You’d be forgiven if Scotland is not the first place that comes to mind when you think of a small company crafting grand feu enamel dials. In fact, you’d probably be forgiven if Scotland isn’t the first place that comes to mind when you think about watchmaking in general, but boy, do we have a surprise for you:
anOrdain is a 6-person outfit based in Glasgow crafting not only watches, but their own enamel-dialed watches. The name of the company comes from a Highland loch, Loch anOrdain, and the brand’s typography was inspired by old Ordnance Survey maps of the area — the rest of the watch design actually followed the development of the typeface.
After developing the typeface, the brand decided to tackle enameling, which evidently involved testing 168 different enamels from five different countries, and over 4,000 hours over three years to perfect. Currently, two workers produce just eight dials per week using the grand feu technique, which involves covering a copper dial with ground enamel powder and then firing it in an oven.
The Model 1, the company’s first time-only watch, is available in five different enamel dial colors, including an unusual pink version and a beautiful cream. Pricing is roughly $1,360, which, given the difficulty of creating enamel-dialed watches (the rejection rate is often almost absurdly high), is a relative bargain. Other features of the watch include the Swiss Sellita SW200 movement, a 38mm, exhibition-back stainless steel case, a double-domed sapphire crystal with six layers of AR coating, custom-designed hands, an Italian shell cordovan or hypoallergenic suede strap (each available in two colors), and an Italian leather case. Production of each watch is limited to 300 pieces, and watches include a 5-year warranty.
The best way to catch up on the day’s most important product releases and stories. Read the Story
