nspired by Asian ritual objects and crafted through the ancestral gestures of Vietnamese Son Mài lacquerware, Royal Red unveils a new expression of the Frosted Leaf technique. Red - a timeless symbol of life, energy, and passion - encounters the delicate glow of silver leaf infused with copper-toned pigments, evoking wisdom, transmission, and the mastery of time.

More than a mere aesthetic variation, Royal Red embodies Awake’s vision: to preserve, modernize, and pass on exceptional craftsmanship, embedding it within contemporary, thoughtful, and conscious watchmaking.

At Awake, the vision of the Arts & Crafts extends far beyond the watch itself. Each creation is conceived as a space for cultural expression, an opportunity to highlight ancestral craftsmanship - in this case, Vietnamese - while situating it within a contemporary perspective.

Within the tiny canvas of a dial, the brand seeks to transcend boundaries, celebrate cultural identities, and promote a different relationship with time: slower, more conscious, and more respectful of gesture and material.

Since the launch of Son Mài in 2024, every project has followed this commitment to the living transmission and preservation of exceptional craftsmanship.

The dials of the Royal Red limited edition draw their inspiration from ritual objects from the far reaches of Asia, passed down through generations, and steeped in ancient stories. On their vibrant surfaces, red and gold intertwine to reveal deep textures and complex nuances that seem to suspend time itself.

Red evokes life, passion, vital energy, and the courage to create. Gold embodies wisdom, transmission, and mastery of light. Together, they form a powerful harmony, reflecting a balance between energy and clarity, emotion and consciousness.

Each dial thus becomes the backdrop for a timeless and universal dialogue, making Royal Red a true vessel of culture.

Some colors carry within them the memory of civilizations. For millennia, red and gold have held a sacred place, shaping the history of art and time.

The dials of this Royal Red edition, with their luminous surfaces and complex hues, bear profound symbolic significance. They tell intertwined stories of artistic and cultural traditions, of ancestral craftsmanship, safeguarding the memory of civilizations, their heritage, their spirit, and their light.

Across cultures, red and gold are never in opposition: they complement each other, they converse. One symbolizes the warmth of life, the other clarity and wisdom. Together, they embody the balance between energy and light, emotion and consciousness.

“...But about learning to work like it!” This quote, adributed to P. Picasso, perfectly captures the profound influence of nature and its inexhaustible inspiration for Awake’s lacquer artsans.

The creation of the Royal Red dials relies on Son Mài lacquer, derived from the rare sap of the Rhus verniciflua tree, harvested in Vietnam according to an unchanging ritual. Layering, resting periods, delicate finger sanding, final polishing: each step, carried out by hand, follows the slow rhythm of the material.

This technical and aesthetic evolution of the Frosted Leaf method, applied to Royal Red, takes the complexity of the craft and creative process even further, suspending silver leaf and copper pigments within the lacquer to create depth, relief, and vibrancy. Each dial requires nearly fifteen hours of meticulous work. None are identical. Each bears the trace of a gesture, a breath, and a skill passed down through generations.

The entire process, demanding patience, dexterity, and extreme focus, transforms each dial of the Royal Red edition into a unique, living piece.

Born from a fully artisanal process, each dial carries the breath of a craftsman, the ancient gestures of an expert hand linking centuries of know-how to the modern world. Each dial embodies the desire to preserve and transmit these values, and the magic of these stories, to future generations.

Awake’s “coiffe” luminous signature departs from traditional constructions. The hands and indices, crafted from a Super-LumiNova^® BGW9 base and coated with polished steel, offer subtle legibility by day and a deep backlit effect in the dark.

Here, luminescence becomes a narrative tool, revealing the material without ever overshadowing it, allowing the complexity of the lacquer to be appreciated through its nocturnal reflections.

Royal Red is powered by the La Joux-Perret G101 automatic movement, renowned for its reliability, precision, and 68-hour power reserve. The movement is elevated by an exclusive tungsten rotor, specially designed for Awake, featuring contrasts of polished, brushed, and micro-beaded surfaces. The whole is delicately encircled by a ring engraved with the edition’s specifications and the brand’s modo: Artisanship, Awakened.

To elegantly extend the colors and subtleties of each dial, Royal Red is paired with red suede calfskin straps.Handcrafted by the master saddlers at Maison Bouveret in Franche- Comté, their creation involves over 60 meticulous steps following a strict specification, prioritizing comfort and longevity. Each strap is tone-on-tone stitched and lined with rubberized calfskin, ensuring greater suppleness as well as enhanced resistance to moisture and wear.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

• Case: 316L recycled stainless steel
• Diameter: 39 mm
• Lug-to-lug: 45.6 mm
• Lug width: 20 mm
• Thickness: 11.80 mm including crystal / 10.90 mm without crystal
• Arts & Crafts Dial: Entirely handcrafted using the exclusive “Frosted” technique, combining polished lacquer and pure silver leaf gilding with natural pigments in an unprecedented way
• Indices and Hands: Super-LumiNova^® BGW9, Awake “coiffe” luminous signature
• Water Resistance: 5 ATM (50M)
• Crystal: Sapphire glass with anti-reflective treatment
• Caseback: Screw-down, sapphire crystal
• Movement: La Joux-Perret G101 automatic, 68-hour power reserve
• Decoration: Custom tungsten rotor with recessed and raised surfaces, brushed, micro-beaded, and polished finishes; micro-beaded encircling ring engraved by laser
• Strap (20-16 mm): Red suede with rubberized calf lining, tone-on-tone stitching, mounted on a pin buckle
• Warranty: 3 years international
• Price: €2,200 excl. taxes