AWAKE Sơn Mài Frosted Leaf Royal Blue: when pure gold elevates one of Asia’s finest artistic crafts

With Royal Blue, AWAKE pursues a singular path within the independent watchmaking landscape. Rather than piling on complications or bowing to passing trends, the young French house chooses to place the dial at the heart of its artistic expression. This new limited edition of 200 pieces takes a further step by incorporating, for the first time, pure gold leaf into a dial crafted using the ancestral Vietnamese Sơn Mài technique.

An evolution that is not purely aesthetic, but that reflects an increasingly assertive ambition: to create a dialogue between artistic crafts, culture and contemporary watchmaking.

The maturing of a watchmaking identity

Since its founding in 2019, AWAKE has patiently built a world of its own. Far from a purely decorative approach, the brand has developed a genuine reflection on the transmission of artisanal craftsmanship. After exploring different expressions of Vietnamese lacquer, it now takes a new step forward by introducing pure gold at the heart of its hand-crafted dials.

This approach is far from trivial. In an industry where differentiation is becoming ever more difficult, few young houses are able to develop an immediately identifiable aesthetic language. AWAKE now appears to be succeeding at just that.

Sơn Mài, an exceptional Vietnamese heritage

While the name may still mean little to the general public, Sơn Mài is nonetheless one of Vietnam’s most prestigious decorative arts.

This centuries-old technique relies on the sap of the Rhus verniciflua, a tree that requires around ten years of growth before it can be tapped. The harvest remains particularly rare, since a single tree produces only about 200 millilitres of sap per year. After purification, it becomes a natural lacquer whose visual depth and protective qualities have been prized for centuries.

Unlike the Chinese or Japanese traditions, Vietnamese master lacquerers developed an approach consisting of embedding precious materials directly into the substance itself. It is precisely this distinctive feature that AWAKE chose to draw upon.

When gold leaf meets lacquer

The introduction of pure gold leaf is unquestionably the main novelty of this Royal Blue edition.

Rather than simply coating the dial, the artisans successively layer natural blue pigments, coats of lacquer, gold leaf, further glazes and then multiple sanding and polishing operations. This work, done entirely by hand, requires nearly fifteen hours for each dial.

The result goes well beyond the expected decorative effect. Depending on the angle of the light, the gold appears, disappears, diffuses into the depth of the blues or, conversely, immediately catches the eye. Each dial thus becomes truly unique, a direct consequence of an artisanal process impossible to industrialise.

A particularly successful exercise in style

The pairing of blue and gold is of course nothing new in the history of decorative arts. It has run through civilisations for several millennia and remains associated with nobility, the sacred and the quest for perfection.

AWAKE nevertheless manages to give it a contemporary interpretation. The various shades of blue create an almost liquid depth, while the golden glints seem suspended beneath the surface of the dial, as if trapped within the material.

This sensation is reinforced by the Frosted technique, already used by the brand, which produces a subtle glazed effect and further accentuates the visual richness of the whole.

A new, more mature case

Royal Blue does not merely introduce a new dial.

This edition also introduces a brand-new 38 mm case that is particularly well proportioned. More compact than previous generations, it adopts a slimmer bezel that leaves more room for the dial, fine, slightly downturned lugs inspired by 1960s watches, as well as a now screw-down crown ensuring water resistance of 100 metres.

These developments demonstrate a genuine attentiveness to collectors. The proportions now appear more universal and further enhance the model’s natural elegance.

A proven mechanical base

Inside, AWAKE places its trust in the Swiss automatic calibre La Joux-Perret G101.

With its 68-hour power reserve, its reputation for reliability and its new dedicated oscillating weight developed for this collection, the movement is a coherent choice. Here the brand favours a proven mechanical base in order to focus all its creative energy on what truly makes this watch singular: its dial.

A signature that asserts its personality

Another notable evolution, Royal Blue also introduces a new graphic identity with a more organic handwritten logo as well as a crest symbolising the transmission of craftsmanship.

These details may seem incidental, but they in fact mark an important step in the brand’s development. AWAKE is no longer simply a young company offering fine ideas; it is progressively building a truly coherent world in which design, craftsmanship, culture and watchmaking engage in dialogue with remarkable consistency.

Specification	Detail
Brand	AWAKE
Model	Sơn Mài Frosted Leaf Royal Blue
Series	Limited edition, 200 pieces
Case	Steel, 38 mm, screw-down crown
Water resistance	100 metres
Dial	Sơn Mài lacquer and pure gold leaf, Frosted technique (~15 h of handwork)
Movement	La Joux-Perret G101, automatic
Power reserve	68 hours
Price	3,000 €

Our verdict

The world of micro-brand watchmaking is today brimming with proposals that are sometimes appealing but often interchangeable. AWAKE takes a far more demanding path.

Royal Blue impresses neither through a spectacular complication nor through a flood of technology. Its strength lies elsewhere: in showcasing an exceedingly rare artistic craft, in the intelligence of its execution and in an identity that becomes, collection after collection, ever more assertive.

At 3,000 euros, this limited edition of 200 pieces sits in a particularly competitive segment. Yet it possesses an argument that few watches can claim: each dial is the fruit of fifteen hours of handwork and is a truly unique piece.

At a time when industrialisation tends to standardise production, this Royal Blue is a reminder that certain watchmaking emotions still spring from the patience of artisans, the beauty of materials and gestures passed down over several centuries. That is probably where its greatest luxury lies.

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