Why Is Every Watch Suddenly Green?

Maybe the quarantine did it. Maybe the world's watch designers, trapped indoors for the past year, collectively found themselves longing for nature. Or maybe they were just channeling the proverbial color of money. But for whatever reason, in this year's Watches & Wonders trade show, just about every major brand made a green dial. Rolex introduced "a palm motif, inspired by tropical forests," Piaget's Altiplano Ultimate Concept "Tribute to La Côte-aux-Fées" was created in the image of "the rolling green hills and valleys" surrounding the town where the brand got its start, and the new addition to the Reverso line is "reminiscent of the deep green of the pine forests that surround Jaeger-LeCoultre's home in the Vallée de Joux." The list goes on. Below, as a representative sampling, we've pulled out the specific greens, starting with the pastels and progressing deep into the forest. As you'll see, the watch industry is fully obsessed with conifers, pistachios, cocktail olives, military uniforms, and ornamental grass. Mint Condition The Look Here we have our pastels. They've got just enough white mixed in to remain light and breezy, and have a soothing effect. Pastels aren't commonly used in modern watchmaking and are considered outlandish for the conservative taste of the industry, and that's exactly why I find this segment the most interesting. Neither of these models was expected; they came out of left field to the delight of many. The Watches The Oris Cotton Candy is just plain fun. While the use of this specific color might be a surprise, it isn't necessarily a surprise that it came from Oris. The other watch, the Breitling Premier Heritage B09 Chronograph , seemingly came out of nowhere and had people falling in love with it. Breitling has been maintaining a high batting average since CEO George Kern took over. If this is the new Breitling that's not afraid to take risks, then keep it coming! Alternate Sources of Inspiration Easter eggs, children's nurseries, wintergreen breath mints, lime sherbet The Brighter the Better The Look These cheerful hues fall somewhere between kelly green and racing green, with maybe some hits of jade. They're the most traditional of the bunch and were present on dials well before the current trend began. Nevertheless, the new generation has certainly produced some lookers. The Watches Tudor stole the show with the Black Bay Fifty-Eight 18K , and while the attention had more to do with a precious metal case than a green dial, it's worth noting that this is a new green for Tudor. The 2017 Black Bay Harrods Edition used a green closer to a subdued olive, while this new version is lively enough to stand up to an 18k case. When it comes to the Cartier Tank Must Watch , there's almost nothing to distract one's eye from the green dial. The color-matched leather strap just completes the package. While the Cartier may put green at the forefront, the Zenith Defy Spectrum playfully uses it as an accent color in the form of green bridges and dazzling gems. The new TAG Heuer Aquaracer uses yellow as an accent color, akin to the Black Bay Fifty-Eight 18K, though the effect is totally different. More of a Green Bay Packers thing. Alternate Sources of Inspiration The Irish countryside, Medieval dragons, pool tables, the flag of Macau. Olive The Watches The Look The year was 1902 when the U.S. Army officially adopted khaki and olive drab. The previous blue uniforms were too easy to spot in battle. Shortly after, the French started experimenting with camouflage. Colors in the family of Olive Drab Green are now applied to everything from water canteens to Black Hawk helicopters. This color represents a get-things-done attitude and is closely associated with tactical equipment. The fashion world has borrowed aesthetic treatments from military assets for a long time, and this does include watches, though it's noteworthy to see the color on so many top-tier luxury brands. The Watches The most talked-about release from the whole event, the new Patek Philippe 5711/1A-014 , features an olive dial. There's something very interesting about the utilitarian military roots of the dial color and the über-luxury leader of the high horology world. And the hi/low theme continues with releases from Audemars Piguet (in the form of the Royal Oak 'Jumbo' Extra-Thin Ref. 15202 ) and Rolex (with the Olive Palm Oystersteel 126200 ). Given Panerai 's military roots, it's not surprising to see Olive Drab Green incorporated into the Marina eSteel line . Alternate Sources of Inspiration Martini olives, UAV-469 vehicle, Olivine crystals, the 2020 Toyota TRD Pro Tacoma Out of the Woods The Look " The woods are lovely, dark and deep," Robert Frost wrote in Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening , and that perfectly encapsulates the enchanting nature of these shades. There's something mysterious about forest green. It carries a specific allure that no other shade of green has – and it makes a dial stare-worthy. While the pastel watches have a lot of white in them, these mix in a great deal of black. The Watches Take one look at the H. Moser Pioneer Mega Cool and you'll see why darker greens work so well in watches. Though Moser  calls this shade Blue Lagoon, sampling the RGB code in press images of the dial (yes, we did that) reveals more green than blue – it's basically a petrol color. Meanwhile, the Tutima M2 Chronograph Commando plays with black and winds up feeling quite serious. Both the Norqain Freedom 60 GMT and the IWC Pilot's Watch Chronograph 41 put an inviting shade of forest green on full blast with a full dial treatment. On the other end of the spectrum, the Piaget Altiplano Ultimate Concept "Tribute to La Côte-aux-Fées" uses green as an accent on the bridges and dial. Alternate Sources of Inspiration Germany's Black Forest, the Forbidden Forest in the Harry Potter series, standard mono-green deck from Magic: The Gathering .Mean, green, horological machines are dominating the year's new releases. We're not mad, we're just confused. Read on to see the full gradient and help us figure this out.