Unique watch: I paint your favorite city on your timepiece

Have you ever thought of wearing your favorite city right on your wrist? With this series of hand-painted watches, you get a unique model: an iconic place, recognizable colors... Your Place to be on your timepiece!

Amsterdam, Brooklyn, Japan, Paris or the French Riviera... the list of customized watches with themes of iconic places on our planet is already long.

The idea started to sprout when I asked myself "what to paint" on a given model? And then I thought: "why not consider the origin of the watch when choosing the design?" So I painted Japan on Casio and Citizen. Then Paris on a vintage Yema, the French Riviera and its charming Menton on a Lip Churchill.

I made an exception to the nationality rule by painting the canals of Amsterdam on a Casio lady. But the rectangular format and its black leather strap contrasted well with the colors of the Dutch capital.

Unique, hand-painted watch: Timex "Manhattan Bridge"

Timex has a much underestimated history in the watchmaking world. Founded in 1854, the American house is a must-have across the Atlantic. Naturally, I had to paint a memorable place in the USA. For this re-issue of the Timex 1983 E-Line, I therefore took my brushes to represent the famous Manhattan Bridge as seen from the Brooklyn neighborhood.

Everything then becomes a story of perspective, meticulousness, and color choices. I wanted to stick to black and white to match the dial and case of the model. Thus, the buildings seem to have a few open windows (or broken ones?). The lines frame the Timex logo as if it were the center of attention, more than the bridge itself. The lines, sometimes imperfect, remind us that this building is more than a century old, having been completed in 1912. It is also the result of the artisanal side, painted freehand.

See: Timex "Manhattan Bridge" - hand-painted watch

Original customized watch: Casio "Japanese Landscape"

Casio must certainly be the most popular brand in the world and it comes from Japan. So when I saw this immaculate white dial, I didn't hesitate long before working on a Japanese landscape.

Mountains in the distance, a torii and a typical fisherman in the middle of this atmosphere, the perfect combo to give this watch a special style.

Black and white on this one too, but it can also be imagined in color or on a brighter dial, in pink or red for example.

See: Casio "Japanese Landscape" - Hand-painted watch

Unique personalized watch: Casio "Amsterdam Canal"

A bit of color to contrast with the first two! Amsterdam city center is full of buildings, each more colorful than the last. Lacking an original watch from the Netherlands - Maen could absolutely have been an option for this one - I chose to apply my representation of the famous Blauwburgwal, the shortest canal in the city, on this Casio Lady.

The contrast of the vivid colors with the silver case and the black of the strap makes it absolutely brilliant in my eyes.

A blue sky, a green tree, red and orange buildings... The entire palette was used for this watch.

See: Casio "Amsterdam Canal" - Hand-painted watch

Unique hand-painted watch: Lip "Tolosa"

The very last of the collection! I couldn't not make a watch about my hometown: Toulouse. There were many iconic places to paint, the Capitole, one of the famous basilicas or churches... but I chose the Pont Saint Pierre and its magnificent view of the La Grave hospital, where many Toulousains were born.

I managed to get a brick color to match the nickname of Toulouse: The Pink City, which in reality is more in shades of brick color.

New perspective challenge for the bridge, always difficult to grasp when hand-painting. A bit like for the Timex. But we're here for the challenge!

See: Lip "Tolosa" - Hand-painted watch

These models are only part of the -unofficial- series of cities painted on watches. As I mentioned above, there was the Lip Côte d'Azur, the Vintage Yema with Paris, a G-Shock Miami. Feel free to browse the site or my Instagram to find them.

NoracTime