Hodinkee
Vintage Drop: A Pair of Rolex Blue Dials
To reference Marie Kondo, these vintage pieces "spark joy."
5,299 articles · 35 videos found · page 34 of 178
Hodinkee
To reference Marie Kondo, these vintage pieces "spark joy."
Time+Tide
Oris has really dug into bronze of late with the material repeatedly featuring in the brand’s catalogue in recent years. But one thing Oris has done with bronze that you never really see in the industry is produce bronze-cased watches with matching bronze metal bracelets. We first saw this when they released the Oris Divers … ContinuedThe post Candy comparison: How do the Oris Cotton Candy and Rolex OP dials compare? appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Revolution
Time+Tide
Sometimes when I sit down on a Friday afternoon with a beverage of some description (today, an ‘Almond Negroni’ my colleague Matt claims he invented) to write the Friday Wind Down, I need to pause for a moment to consider the theme of the week. Not this week. This week, everywhere I look, it’s green, … ContinuedThe post FRIDAY WIND DOWN – THE GREEN EDITION: St Pat’s Day, Audemars Piguet, Olive dials and Dublin contributor joins the team! appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
SJX Watches
Known for its utilitarian “tool” watches, Sinn’s latest is a variation on its bestselling dive watch. The U1 DS is a limited-edition rendition of the brand’s dive watch that’s best known for having a case made from the same steel alloy as German navy submarines. Limited to 500 pieces, the U1 DS features a dial that has been lapped to achieve a seemingly worn-out finish, whilst retaining the famed robustness that characterises the U1. The combination is a juxtaposition of an aged dial and a case that will likely never show any wear. Initial thoughts The U1 DS is a clear winner in my books. The dial’s battle-scarred look suits the submarine-inspired genesis of the U1, which has long had a military feel, despite not being a military-issue watch (though Sinn did made a special edition for a special-forces unit of the German military). Despite the new finish, the U1 retains its trademark legibility. The randomly-scratched texture does not detract from readability or the distinctive U1 dial design. Its signature block-shaped hands and hour markers remain prominent. Though it’s an uncommon look, Sinn has been using this randomly-textured finish frequently of late. The finish was first used in 2019 on the 356 Fliegerchronograph for Singapore retailer The Hour Glass, and then last year on the EZM3.F.V. that was only sold in Japan. The patina finish remains rare, but not quite as rare as it seems to be. The Japan-only EZM3.F.V. Despite being a limited edition, the U...
Time+Tide
Divers, the tough tool watches that become our best buddies on adventures, strapped on with a wetsuit as backup to a dive computer. All this sounds wonderful, though for those of you in lockdown they have an even more important task, which is to remind us of what will come, as well as adventures spent; … ContinuedThe post MICRO MONDAYS: The Albany Watches AMA Diver – a mother of pearl dial diver, with a $300USD price tag appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Time+Tide
I’m a vintage diver enthusiast, embracing smaller diameters, but still with a predilection for tough tools, even - don’t tell anyone - with a bespoke shirt and a suit. Grand Seiko have single-handedly restored my faith in dress watches in 2020, with their Elegance series having several new references in what is a superb case. The … ContinuedThe post INTRODUCING: The Grand Seiko SBGW264, a classic dress watch in 18k gold with a hypnotic tapisserie dial appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Time+Tide
No fauxtina, no sub 40mm case and seemingly hewn out of a three ton block of arctic granite … I am blown away by how something so big can be so refreshing. A massive chunk of sandblasted blue freshness. You can tell by my name that I might have a Nordic bias here – but … ContinuedThe post IN-DEPTH: Linde Werdelin release ‘3 Timer’ GMT in sandblasted steel with stunning blue gradient dial, limited to just 55 appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
SJX Watches
Just last year Montblanc unveiled the 1858 Split Second Chronograph, a Minerva-powered watch that was warmly received for being well-finished and complex, yet reasonably-priced. A retro-inspired, rattrapante mono-pusher chronograph, the watch cost US$30,000 – a solid deal as such things go. A few months after, Montblanc debuted the one-off Only Watch edition with titanium case and blue-agate dial that sold for a whopping 100,000 Swiss francs, with proceeds going to charity. The brand has now stepped things up a notch with the 1858 Split Second Chronograph Limited Edition 100 that channels the spirit of the Only Watch edition, featuring the same titanium case and paired with a fired enamel dial in graduated blue. Despite the similar styling, the new watch costs a lot less than the record-setting Only Watch Edition – but isn’t quite as good value as last year’s model. Smoky blue And that’s because while the bronze model had an ordinary dial of brass, this has been upgraded with a grand feu enamel dial, leading to a jump in the retail price of about US$7,000, which is about the typical premium for such a dial. The enamel dial starts off as a solid-gold disc, which is painted with a mixture of enamel powder, water and oil. It is then fired in an oven at over 800℃, melting the enamel powder and fusing it to the gold base. The process of adding enamel powder and firing is repeated multiple times so as to achieve the desired depth of colour. But unusually, the di...
Time+Tide
Double-signed dials are the perfect example of how the details of a watch are sometimes the most interesting, revealing not just where a watch might have been sold, but opening up a window into the past to expose key relationships and macroeconomic trends that affected how the business of selling watches was done. Double-signed dials … ContinuedThe post RECOMMENDED READING: Why double-signed Rolex and Patek Philippe dials are so interesting appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Revolution
For decades the Vacheron Constantin Overseas has been one of the exemplars of luxury steel sports watches. And now the travel-oriented Dual Time comes with a stylish black dial.
Time+Tide
It has been a stellar year for Grand Seiko, with the Japanese watchmaker releasing not only a bevy of new iterations of some of their most popular models, but also a completely new manual-wind dress watch, the SBGK series. And, as is always the case with Grand Seiko, the arresting dials adorning these new timepieces … ContinuedThe post Top 5 Grand Seiko dials of 2019 appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Time+Tide
Editor’s note: Baume & Mercier’s flagship dress watch, the Clifton Baumatic, got a deep blue makeover earlier this year, which, combined with the classic styling and impressive movement, makes for a compelling daily dress offering … Baume & Mercier’s foray into the world of in-house movements resulted in one of the biggest value propositions of … ContinuedThe post Dress blues – Baume & Mercier’s Clifton Baumatic with a gorgeous gradient blue dial appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Time+Tide
Where do Rolex meteorite dials come from?The post RECOMMENDED READING: Rare rocks? The truth about Rolex meteorite dials appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Time+Tide
The name of this watch gives much away about its romantic, dare we even say, poetic roots. Seiko do not usually name their watches. This makes them very difficult to tell your friends about. Unless, of course, you have a beautiful mind, and can rattle off Seiko references. Which describes no one in the Time+Tide … ContinuedThe post ANNOUNCING: Seiko release stunning blue enamel dial Seiko Presage SPB069 ‘Moonlit Night’ appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Time+Tide
Last week, I was in the mountain town of Jackson, Wyoming with Montblanc. And while I’ll have to wait until SIHH 2018 to share most of the watches I’ve seen with you (totally worth it, by the way), I did spot one smooth new variation of this year’s sporty TimeWalker Chronograph that I can tell you … ContinuedThe post HANDS-ON: The Montblanc TimeWalker Chronograph in red gold with brown dial appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Deployant
Vacheron Constantin extends the collection with the Overseas Brown dials for the World Time, Chronograph, Automatic/Date and the Ladies Automatic.
Monochrome
Founded by Gautier Massonneau in 2018, Trilobe is a French brand distinguished by its hand-free displays. Instead of traditional hands, Trilobe uses three rotating rings that align with fixed markings to display time in motion. Last year, Trilobe released the Trente-Deux, a luxury sports watch with the brand’s unconventional display in an elegant steel case […]
Hodinkee
What We Know I'll come clean—I've been a bit more than mildly obsessed with the modern revival of Daniel Roth ever since I got to spend some time with the Daniel Roth Tourbillon in platinum last year. While that watch very much still reigns supreme for me in the lineup, Daniel Roth has just announced a new watch today that feels awfully close to unseating the Tourbillon's title for me. It's the new variation of the Daniel Roth Extra Plat in rose gold, but this time, it's with a black gilt dial. What's important to note is that this is a true gilt dial, not the often misconstrued sense of the word that many modern watches like to use for accents and markings printed in a gold tone. As I've covered on Hodinkee in the past, a real gilt dial is made by taking a base dial blank, printing a protective lacquer mask on what are typically the positive markings on a dial, and then galvanically coating the entire dial in black. The masked portions of the dial are protected from the coating, and after the lacquer is removed, the base metal underneath serves as the dial text. The dial of this Extra Plat starts as a dial blank of solid 5N rose gold, then is engine-turned by hand on a rose lathe to achieve the guillochage on the various sections of the dial in recognizably Daniel Roth style. Afterward, all the markings—Roman numerals, the Daniel Roth logo, dial number, etc.—are pad-printed with a pink varnish to protect them during the subsequent electroplating treatments. After th...
Teddy Baldassarre
The fan-favorite timepiece channels its "Interstellar" origins in two new references. More
Worn & Wound
The field watch has long provided a blank canvas for creative – or in many cases not so creative – designs. Leave it to a brand like Studio Underd0g to take a timeless classic and give it a fresh and decidedly fun spin. That’s exactly what the brand did in 2023 with the launch of its 02SERIES. The line recently got a glow up with Gen2, which notably introduced a more streamlined case – down to a 37mm diameter from the original 37.5mm and down to 11.5mm thickness from the original 12mm. In addition, the new Gen2 collection got an upgraded movement from the Sellita SW210-1 to the Sellita SW200-2 M, which in turn upped the power reserve from 42 hours to 63 hours. Still, the biggest departure we see from the run of the mill field watch is the use of color – a trait Studio Underd0g has become known for – with four shades: Red L0lly, Pink Lem0nade, Steffany Blue, and Nightshade. Now, for the first time, a limited color run comes to the Gen2 series – this is the Special Edition 02SERIES Mantis. For this limited edition, we don’t just get a bright new green colorway by day – we get one that glows bright green by night. Yup, that’s right – it’s a full-lume dial. Thanks to a generous application of X1 GL C3 Super-LumiNova (a whopping seven layers to be exact), the daytime green ombre transforms into a single, uniform glow once the light fades. Here, at the base, you have that well-refined case design of the new Gen2 makeup. The dial gets a pleasing green colo...
Revolution
Monochrome
The Atelier Wen Inflection collection (2025) marked an important step up for the brand, with its complex, fully curved case, an integrated bracelet made almost entirely from tantalum, high-end dials, and a customised movement supplied by Girard-Perregaux. For Geneva Watch Days 2026, Atelier Wen has partnered with New York-based creative studio Massena LAB on a […]
Monochrome
To say that the PRX collection by Tissot is wide would be a genuine understatement… The range is vast, comprising classic automatic versions, quartz models, several sizes (40mm, 38mm, 35mm and even 25mm recently), standard steel editions, but also unexpected materials (titanium, damascuss steel, carbon) and all the colours you can imagine. And here, I’m […]
Worn & Wound
With generative AI slop permeating even our most sacred of artistic spaces these days (don’t Google “AI in museums”, it will ruin your day), any honest-to-god expression of creativity can feel like a breath of fresh air. Watches can be a great escape in this regard, and watchmakers, from industry heavy hitters like Swatch to beloved microbrands like Fears, have recently released pieces inspired by aesthetic movements to bring a little bit of artistic integrity to your wrist. Detroit-based watch brand Shinola is throwing their hat in the multi-colored ring with two new vibrant models in their Detrola collection, inspired by the annals of American midcentury art, and at a price point that should appeal to many. Let’s take a gander. The Detrola line is Shinola’s premier “pop” collection, featuring colorways that are a little bolder than the usual fare. With a clean field-dress design ethos, each Detrola watch comes in at 41mm in case diameter, making them ideal for everyday wear. Materials vary across the lineup, and the two new Color Theory models both feature polished cream TR90 resin co-molded with a stainless steel core. A thickness of 9.72mm keeps the watches slim on the wrist, and while the longer lugs add a bit of presence, giving the models a 45mm lug-to-lug width and allowing for 20mm straps. It’s a simple silhouette that allows the dial design to set the pace aesthetically, which works in the Color Theory models’ favor. Each of the two models s...
Deployant
We organized a special collector event for Piaget recently and got intimate with the Polo 79 Sodalite . Here is our hands-on review of this amazing watch.
Revolution
Time+Tide
Bringing its expertise in hard stone dials to its early chronograph model, the vintage styling stays strong across the collection.
Monochrome
The Manhattan has become one of Maen’s defining collections, offering the angular aesthetics of 1970s integrated sports watches and increasingly refined execution at accessible prices. Building on the success of last year’s Manhattan 37 Ultra-Thin, the Swedish brand is introducing natural stone dials to its permanent collection. Mechanically identical to the existing hand-wound model, the […]
Worn & Wound
The latest from Ming is a collaboration that I think most enthusiasts could never have predicted, but makes quite a bit sense when you take a few steps back and look at the participants from a high level. The new 37.06 Royal Selangor is a new limited edition made in partnership with Royal Selangor, the well known pewter manufacturer, by some accounts the largest in the world. Both brands have roots in Kuala Lumpur, and the collaboration took shape after Ming Thein helped a client collect his camera, reskinned by Royal Selangor in Malaysia. Thein and Royal Selangor CEO Yong Yoon Li shared a meal, and that was enough to generate the seeds of a collaborative watch. Pewter is not commonly used in watchmaking. Used since antiquity to craft a variety of objects including decorative metal items and tableware of all kinds, it is an alloy that is largely made from tin, which is highly malleable and has a low melting point. That makes it relatively easy to work with compared with some metal alloys, but the process is necessarily undertaken largely by hand, which opens up all kinds of craft opportunities which is what Royal Selangor excels at. Pewter does not generally tarnish or corrode, but it does develop a patina after long periods of use. The 37.06 Royal Selangor features a pewter dial with a hammered texture, similar to those used in Ming watches in the past. According to Ming, the filing, polishing, and finishing of pewter is all traditionally done by hand, even now at a tim...
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