So You Like Steel Watches With Blue Dials?
Among all the trends threading through the luxury watch landscape today, there is one that is emerging as the most popular: stainless steel watches with blue dials. Even watch manufactures that have historically stayed away from this style are breaking from brand tradition and following suit. As day-to-day wardrobes get more casual and offices continue to embrace relaxed dress codes, it’s only natural that watch designs shadow the same sentiment by swapping out precious metals for hardier ones and opting for cooler colors. The vibe may be easy-going but the design, quality, and features of these four stainless steel luxury watches with blue dials are unmistakably top-tier.
Grand Seiko Spring Drive SBGA375
Based upon the landmark 44GS design from 1967 that would come to define the “Grand Seiko Style,” the Grand Seiko Spring Drive SBGA375 is a contemporary interpretation of the angular case silhouette and polished surfaces characteristic of the brand’s creations. The Zaratsu polished 40mm stainless steel case houses a lacquered sun-brushed midnight blue dial, which can morph into black depending on the light, with a date at three o’clock and a power reserve indicator at seven. Just as famous as the exterior design of the Grand Seiko is its interior Spring Drive movement—a quartz and mechanical hybrid that offers both a smooth sweeping seconds hand and an accuracy rating of -1/+1 seconds per day.
Vacheron Constantin Overseas Dual Time
A direct descendant of the Vacheron Constantin 222 from 1977, the Overseas collection provides many of the signature design traits of the archetypical sports watch de luxe of that era. The angular case, the integrated bracelet, and the striking bezel shape are all there but reimagined for current audiences. The Vacheron Constantin Overseas Dual Time is a particularly practical model from the sporty collection, featuring a user-friendly dual time complication inside its 41mm case and an easy-to-read dial with local time, home time with AM/PM indication, and date display. While there are several metal and dial options to choose from, the steel Overseas Dual Time with the blue dial is the winner. Plus, thanks to the proprietary strap changing system, you can swap out the bracelet for another strap to change the style of the watch in a flash.
Rolex Sky-Dweller
When Rolex debuted the entirely new Sky-Dweller dual time annual calendar model in 2012, it stood out from the Crown’s other dress watches due to its large size, packed dial, and complicated movement. But it was in 2017 that the Sky-Dweller collection really made waves when a fresh steel option joined the original full-gold lineup. The stainless steel Rolex Sky-Dweller retains the 42mm case size of its predecessors and it is topped with a white gold fluted bezel and fitted with a steel Oyster bracelet. In true Rolex form, there’s an assortment of dial color choices but the blue hue is by far the most popular right now. And on that dial, the center hands indicate local time, the off-centered 24-hour disc displays home time, the date appears in the window at 3 o’clock, and the month is shown through color-changing rectangular apertures adjacent to the hour markers.
Patek Philippe Nautilus Annual Calendar
To say that certain Nautilus models (yes, the current 5711/1A and the vintage 3700/1A) are largely responsible for the pervasive steel body plus blue face watch trend would be a massive understatement. But there are other fab finds within Patek’s iconic sports watch lineup that not only have similar colorways but more functions too. Take the Patek Philippe Nautilus Annual Calendar with moon phases for example; while not a new model, what is new for 2019 is the coveted horizontally embossed blue-to-black gradient dial variant. With the exception of the color update, everything else remains the same, from the steel 40.5mm porthole-shaped case to the steel integrated bracelet to the dial layout with time, day, month, day, moon phase, and 24-hour indication.
