Not all that long ago, the palette of fine watches was a restrained one. The silver-grey of stainless steel, polished to mirrored perfection or brushed to a matte finish. Else, gleaming shades of yellow, white or rose gold, or the cool sheen of platinum. But have a look at the collections of watches out this summer, and you’ll notice that it’s a vibrant field. A colourful watch can be found nearly everywhere these days.
It’s only in the last four years that colour has become a serious point of design to watchmakers. The trend kicked off with colourful dials—recall the Patek Philippe Nautilus with a Tiffany & Co.-blue; or the Rolex Oyster Perpetual with a bubbly, turquoise-blue celebration design.
That’s since expanded, and brands are experimenting more and more with applying bright, vivid palettes on other parts of a watch. Leather and rubber straps, for example, have become a highly customisable field—most new watches these days come with easy-release mechanisms so you can swap these out on your own.
Colour, then, has moved fine luxury watches beyond just subdued, sombre status symbols. Now, you can wear an investment-worthy piece on the wrist that’s cheerful and which puts a pep in your step. The summer season naturally brings out the best of these designs. When wardrobes get lighter in texture and spirit, and colour becomes a mode of expression, the watch you put on your wrist should match the mood.
Here, Vogue Singapore’s edit of joyful, colourful summer watches that will add a dose of chromatic fun to a look.
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Chopard
Happy Sport 33mm Automatic in stainless steel and rose gold, with diamonds and turquoise mother-of-pearl dial, $15,900
2 / 22
Grand Seiko
Evolution 9 SLGH021 “Genbi Valley” in Ever Brilliant steel, limited to 1,000 pieces, price upon request
3 / 22
Audemars Piguet
Code 11.59 Selfwinding 38mm in pink gold, $50,300
4 / 22
Franck Muller
Cintrée Curvex Ryoko Kaneta Dragon Limited Edition in stainless steel with lacquered dial, limited to 500 pieces in Asia Pacific, price upon request
5 / 22
Tiffany & Co.
HardWear in sterling silver, with diamonds and pink mother-of-pearl dial, $6,750
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Baume & Mercier
Riviera 10798 in stainless steel, $4,000
7 / 22
IWC
Portugieser Automatic 40 “Horizon Blue” in white gold, $26,500
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Omega
De Ville Mini Trésor 26mm in stainless steel with diamonds, on double-tour toile de jouy strap, $6,800
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Hermès
Cut in stainless steel, with Vert Criquet rubber strap, $9,810
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Longines
Conquest Automatic 34mm in stainless steel, $2,870
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Buccellati
Macri in yellow gold with diamonds and jade dial, $39,500
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Chanel
J12 Pink Edition in ceramic and beige gold with baguette-cut pink sapphires and a diamond, limited to 55 pieces, price upon request
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Van Cleef & Arpels
Sweet Alhambra in rose gold with carnelian, $26,400
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Audemars Piguet
Royal Oak Selfwinding 34mm in pink gold, $80,400
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Zenith
Defy Revival A3648 in stainless steel, $11,100
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Nomos Glashütte
Tangente 38 Date “Bubblegum” in stainless steel, limited to 175 pieces, $3,090
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Ulysse Nardin
Diver Atoll 39mm in stainless steel, with diamonds and chrysocolla stone dial, limited to 100 pieces, $23,100
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Tissot
PRX Powermatic 80 35mm in stainless steel, $1,000
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Cartier
Santos Dumont in platinum with lacquer, price upon request
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Bvlgari x Tadao Ando
Serpenti Tubogas limited edition in stainless steel and yellow gold with diamonds and green aventurine dial, $24,000
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Breitling
Chronomat Automatic 36 Victoria Beckham in yellow gold with “peppermint” dial, limited to 100 pieces, $43,500
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Blancpain
Ladybird Colours Phases de Moon in white gold with diamonds, with a set of five interchangeable leather straps, $50,800
