Sands of time: The beige watch trend that’s taking over wrists

Neutrals having a moment is exactly the kind of thing the fashion press declares every other season. But in watchmaking – where green and purple dials were only recently making waves and precious metals tend to come in just three shades – the neutrality of sand-coloured timepieces might actually qualify as revolutionary.

Perhaps it's the warmth, both visual and imagined, that makes these beige, brown, copper, and gold watches so inviting. Or maybe it's simply that they hit the sweet spot between subtlety and statement. Either way, these watchmakers aren't afraid to get their hands a little sandy.

PARMIGIANI TORIC PETITE SECONDE PLATINUM ROSE GOLD DUNE

When Parmigiani came back with a whole new direction for its very first watch back in 2024, it took our breaths away. Pure, clean, with gentle pastels and sartorial inspired patterns, the Toric Petite Seconde became a watch that could somehow soothe your very soul. Colour choices had just as much of an impact as the overhauled design, especially for a dial as empty as the ones on the Petite Seconde. It debuted with sand gold and celadon versions, and now the lineup includes another pleasing combination of a 40.6mm rose gold case with a solid gold, hand-grained dial, paired with a sand-coloured nubuck alligator strap.

There’s a lot more going on visually on the flip side, with the manual-winding Calibre PF780 made from 18k rose gold and decorated with Cotes de Fleurier and polished bevels. It runs at 4Hz and offers 60 hours of power reserve.

IWC PILOT’S WATCH AUTOMATIC 41 TOP GUN MOJAVE DESERT

When you’ve gone through countless trials trying to get just the right shade of ceramic, it makes sense to want to use it on more than one watch. IWC’s “Mojave Desert” shade of high-tech ceramic first showed up in the mission-ready Pilot’s Watch Chronograph Top Gun Edition “Mojave Desert” in 2019, and has since reappeared in other Top Gun variations like the Big Pilot’s Watch, Big Pilot’s Watch Perpetual Calendar, and Pilot’s Watch Chronograph 41. This year, an uncomplicated automatic Pilot’s Watch joins the sandy crew. 

The tone-in-tone design is every neutral wardrobe’s dream, and comes with a beige rubber strap with a textile inlay. It’s powered by the in-house 32112 calibre with a frequency of 4Hz and 120 hours of power reserve.

ARMIN STROM TRIBUTE 1 SANDSTEIN 

It’s not uncommon for watches to take design cues from the environment in which they’re made. But Swiss ones tend to conjure images of snowy peaks and evergreen forests (read: Chopard’s Alpine Eagle, Montblanc’s 1858 Geosphere, H Moser’s Nature Watch, to name a few). Armin Strom also had a green-faced Tribute 1 inspired by verdant forests and fields, but the Tribute 1 Sandstein pays homage to the sandstones found in its hometown of Burgdorf in Bern.

The main dial and off-centred time dial are the same colour, but contrasting finishes keep things visually arresting and legible: frosted for the former, and grain d’orge guilloche for the latter. Completing the look for this 38mm stainless steel watch is a matching Alcantara strap. Inside it, the in-house, manually wound Calibre AMW21 delivers 100 hours of power reserve.

CHRONOSWISS PULSE ONE SAND 

While “timelessness” is a quality many watch brands like to embody – particularly the venerable ones with centuries of history to uphold – a few have no qualms about swinging sharply in a new direction to stay current. Chronoswiss is one such example, trading its classic aesthetic for vivid colours and modern dial finishes. Yet despite this newfound youthfulness, several hallmarks remain: the oversized onion crown, straight lugs, slim bezels, and signature regulator-style dials.

The new Pulse One collection, however, marks its boldest departure yet. It’s the brand’s first integrated-bracelet sports watch thanks to the trend’s seemingly inexhaustible mileage. Crafted entirely from titanium, the Pulse One Sand pairs a sandblasted brown dial with blued hands and hour markers, all while keeping the distinctive regulator layout and retrograde seconds. Beneath it beats the automatic Calibre C.6001, developed by La Joux-Perret and offering a 55-hour power reserve. Limited to just 100 pieces, this might be the most quietly confident Chronoswiss in years.

RESSENCE TYPE 9 S75

Past collaborations between Ressence and UAE retailer Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons have featured sand-toned dials as a tribute to the region’s heritage, but their latest partnership marks the first time actual sand has been used. 

To celebrate the retailer’s 75th anniversary, sand was gathered in equal measure from the dunes of all seven Emirates by Ressence founder Benoit Mintiens and Mohammed Abdulmagied Seddiqi, CEO of Ahmed Seddiqi, themselves. The grains were then fused to the rotating titanium discs that make up the Type 9 S75’s dial. 

The watch is housed in a 39mm by 11mm titanium case and paired with a camel leather strap. Limited to 20 pieces, it’s a fun and creative tribute to the hourglass.

AUDEMARS PIGUET ROYAL OAK SELFWINDING PERPETUAL CALENDAR 41MM

Making a perpetual calendar is hard enough, and arguably one of the hardest things in mechanical watchmaking. But to make one that’s easy for us to use is truly a feat of both mastery and grace. Earlier this year, Audemars Piguet achieved just that with the new Calibre 7138, the culmination of expertise built from 2018’s Calibre 5133 (of Royal Oak Selfwinding Perpetual Calendar Ultra-Thin RD#2 fame) and 2022’s Calibre 7121, released for the Royal Oak’s 50th anniversary.

The result is a remarkably user-friendly perpetual calendar, with all functions adjustable via a single crown, housed in a case just 9.5mm thick. Among the new references, the standout is the Royal Oak in Sand Gold – Audemars Piguet’s proprietary alloy of gold, copper, and palladium. Both the Grande Tapisserie dial and snailed subdials share the same warm hue, achieved through galvanic treatment.

ULYSSE NARDIN FREAK S NOMAD 

Anyone unfamiliar with Ulysse Nardin’s Freak concept might find the dial a little intimidating at first glance, but it’s surprisingly straightforward once you know what’s happening. The original Freak earned its name 24 years ago for being a watch with no dial, hands, or crown. The movement was instead mounted on a carousel that would double as a minute hand, with an hour disc underneath. 

The Freak S, introduced in 2021, follows the same core concept but turns up the spectacle with two large silicon balance wheels inclined at 20 degrees and connected by a patented vertical differential that averages their rates for improved precision.

Since then, it’s been exploring a slow and steady evolution in colour and texture to match its sci-fi aesthetic. The Freak S Nomad, launched last year, takes its name from the sand-coloured guilloche hour disc that anchors its design. A titanium case with carbon-fibre side plates completes the look, amplifying its futuristic allure.

LAURENT FERRIER CLASSIC AUTO SANDSTONE

Capsule collections are an excellent way for watchmakers to colour outside the lines just a little bit, and just for a little while. For Laurent Ferrier that’s the Serie Atelier, an annual collection of ultra-limited editions dressed in colours or finishes never seen elsewhere in the catalogue.

For 2024, that exclusive shade was Sandstone – a warm, coppery tone that accompanied the also-new Classic Auto. Marrying the flagship Classic Micro-Rotor case, Assegai-shaped hands, and drop-shaped indices with the Sport Auto’s crosshair dial layout and date window, the Classic Auto presents a sporty new personality while remaining comfortably familiar. Inside the 40mm by 11.94mm stainless steel case beats the LF 270.01 calibre, an automatic movement with a platinum micro-rotor and 72-hour power reserve. Limited to just 20 pieces. 

ARNOLD & SON LONGITUDE TITANIUM KINGSAND GOLD 

Founder tributes won’t be going anywhere anytime soon, but at least Arnold & Son’s approach keeps its homages very mindful of the present. The Longitude was named in honour of founder John Arnold’s marine chronometers from the 1760s and has plenty of nods to this nautical history: a power reserve indicator at 12 o’clock with a second subdial at 6, a notched bezel reminiscent of Arnold’s fluted chronometers, and a prow-shaped rotor in the COSC-certified A&S6302 calibre. But taken as a whole, it is still very much in keeping with the indefatigable trend of sports watches with integrated bracelets. 

It was released last year in three colours, including this one in Kingsand Gold. It dazzles with rhodium-plated hands and indices filled with Super-Luminova, plus a playground of textures: cut-outs for the power reserve, vertical satin finishes across dial and bracelet, a snailed small-seconds counter, and polished bezel flanks. Screw down the crown and you’ve got 100m water resistance – enough to survive a day at sea or a rogue splash from your espresso cup.

SPEAKE MARIN RIPPLES DUNE DATE

The Ripples was Speake Marin’s first foray into sports-chic territory (you know the type by now), and last year the collection added a two-tone, desert-inspired edition that captures the undulating beauty of wind-swept dunes. Each horizontal wave is meticulously engraved and satin-finished by hand, set on a rhodium-plated brass dial coated with a transparent Zapon varnish that gives it a subtle gleam.

A signature off-centre seconds counter sits at 1:30, finished in dark green sunray, a colour repeated along the minute track. Its placement wasn’t just for style: the movement had to be reshuffled to prevent interference with the time-setting module, making it as much an engineering flex as a visual one. The manufacture SMA03-TD powers it all at 4Hz, with a 52-hour power reserve to keep pace with your adventures.