We can get the time from our computers, iPods, iPads, and cell phones, yet I still find myself running into the kitchen to check the time on our trusty wall clock. Maybe I'm a dinosaur, but I believe a well-designed clock will always be a useful tool in a home. But I also still enjoy these devices called watches (have you heard of them?), and I sometimes make calls on this contraption called a landline, while writing with this thing called a pencil. I kid, I kid.

Hundreds of years ago clocks were considered the forefront of cutting-edge technology, and clock makers were highly trained master craftsmen. Marrying the function of precision time telling into a form that is aesthetically interesting is still the work of the modern clock maker, and even though we can check the time on any number of devices, from coffee makers to car dashboards to cell phones, designers such as Philippe Starck and Oliver Hemming continue to create clocks that are visually compelling as decor as well as functional devices.

1. Alessi Walter Wayle II Wall Clock by Philippe Starck ($78).
2. Oliver Hemming 300 mm Chrome Steel Wall Clock ($69)
3. Station Alarm Clock by Muji. Inspired by the design of railway clocks in Japan. ($48.75)
4. Watch Me Clock designed by Rasmus Gottliebsen. Gottliebsen explains that his clock design "isn't about telling you the exact time, but more about an idea of time - a time color. You experience different moods, depending on the minute, hour, day or year." ($58)
5. Vintage inspired Sprint Alarm Clock by British clock manufacturer, Newgate. ($48.50)
6. Tiuku Standing Clock. A modern interpretation of the grandfather clock, designed by Ari Kanerva ($350).
7. Kartell Tic & Tac Wall Clock designed by Philippe Starck with Eugeni Quitllet ($112).
8. Sunburst Wall Clock designed by George Nelson ($385).
9. Twice-Twice Clock from Areaware is a reinterpretation of rail station clocks ($170).
10. Ball Clock designed by George Nelson ($365 - $430).

(Images: As linked above)