You're probably wondering what the process is for creating a custom watch. How do you access the dial to paint on it? How do you create a unique watch... I'll tell you all about it here.
Choosing the Watch
The first thing to do—and not the least important—is to choose the right model. Depending on the imagined design, the space allotted to it on the dial, the colors... there are many reasons to spend enough time choosing the ideal timepiece.
So, it could be a watch you already own. An old model that needs refreshing. A vintage watch to bring back into style, dare I say "fashionable"? Although vintage is clearly on-trend right now.
An example of the evolution of dial painting. I created the World map on a Seiko World Timer. ©NoracTime
Everything can also start with a new watch. A specific brand or a dial color to respect. It's up to you to choose. Other elements remain to be considered: do we want to maintain optimal time readability and thus avoid painting over the indexes? Or, on the contrary, are we looking to highlight the design above all else? As you've understood, the options are numerous, but the reflection is intense.
Painting on a Watch
Before starting, you have to disassemble the watch. This already involves basic equipment. Tools to open it (not all case backs have the same opening system); something to isolate the parts so they don't get dusty (hello, bell jar), the famous finger cots, often affectionately renamed "finger condoms"... Then something to remove the movement, the hands... You've understood: only the dial interests me!
Once all this mechanical work is done, it's time to paint on the watch, or rather its dial. So, several techniques are possible, several types of paints, brushes... It all depends on the chosen design, the type of customization, the desired final style. But all have this in common: meticulousness. This term also applies from the very beginning of the process. Yes, yes, from the initial choice of the watch.
It will also require patience. Letting it dry between each coat. Not overflowing. Identifying beforehand where a particular color will be applied. Not rushing for the black outlines... Erasing an error? Almost impossible.
And no, I don't just jump onto the dial like that, I experiment on paper first. Or on a test piece. Once, twice, several times in reality. That's how I create the design that makes the watch unique.
The Final Result: A Unique Watch
A watch is a reflection of the person who wears it. We choose a timepiece because we recognize ourselves in it, we find something singular about it. Then, we make it our own so that it is ours. Over time, we create a bond with this small object. We travel, we associate it with particular moments. We inflict small wounds on it which, ultimately, tell a story. Our story.
The very principle of painting on a watch is to have a model that no one else has. A unique watch. An object in our image. Whether it's to enhance your collection with a different piece, to add some fun, or just a little color... All reasons are valid! But above all, to please yourself.
A vintage Yema on which I painted the city of Paris and its Eiffel Tower. ©NoracTime
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