Dolce & Gabbana embodies the "handmade spirit" cultivated in their own workshop in Milan

As mechanical movements have reached maturity and differentiation through movement development has become more difficult each year, luxury watches have turned to expressing individuality through the exterior, such as the dial and case. This has led to a sudden rise in the strength of non-specialized watch manufacturers and brands, such as jewelers and fashion houses, who excel at embodying the philosophy and worldview of their own brand. Dolce & Gabbana is one such example. We take a closer look at the watchmaking of this maison, whose brand philosophy is "fatto a mano," or "handmade."

Embodying the spirit of “Fatto a Mano”

　Non-specialty watch manufacturers are increasingly making their presence felt in the luxury watch industry. Dolce & Gabbana, based in Milan, Italy, is one such brand that has emerged amid this trend, exuding an overwhelming presence that cannot be replicated by other brands, with its luxurious yet delicate designs that skillfully incorporate elements of the brand's signature baroque and Sicilian styles.

　Its signature works are the Maison's first luxury watch collection, "Alta Orologeria," launched in 2017, and "Manifattura Italiana," launched in 2019. The former is a high-end line of unique pieces, while the latter is a limited production run of just 10 pieces of each model. We have been keeping an eye on the Maison since experiencing the beauty of their designs in person at the new product exhibition held in Geneva in March 2022.

　The watch is equipped with an exclusive movement developed in collaboration with a Swiss supplier, but as Dolce & Gabbana's brand philosophy is "Fatto a Mano," meaning "handmade," the Milan workshop maintains a production system that places emphasis on handcrafted craftsmanship for everything from clothing to high jewelry and high-end watches. Needless to say, this philosophy has been passed down to the Maison's relatively new category of watchmaking, culminating in the aforementioned "Alta Orologeria" and "Manifattura Italiana."

　While the movements inside the watches are Swiss-made, the brand's signature shapes, decorations, and finishes on the bridges and plates are meticulously crafted by the design department in collaboration with the maison's designers. These are then brought to life by the engravers, jewellers, and watchmakers gathered in this Milan workshop. They carry out the work by hand. This is why Dolce & Gabbana's high-end watches are produced in extremely limited quantities, yet are able to achieve unique designs with a warm and refined aesthetic.

　Currently, the maison's high-end watches are equipped with micro-rotor automatic movements and hand-wound movements with various complicated mechanisms, such as tourbillons. The former micro-rotor automatic movements, developed in collaboration with a Swiss movement supplier, are exclusive to the maison and extend the power reserve from the base movement's approximately 48 hours to over 50 hours. The development of the latter, such as tourbillons, aims to ensure durability despite the complexity of the watch, and further enhances added value by using gold bridges and engravings to enable personalization, taking advantage of the benefits of small-lot production. This kind of ingenious packaging is perhaps the strength of a fashion house that is not a specialized watch manufacturer.

Dolce & Gabbana's core movement is the micro-rotor automatic Cal. DG 01 series. This is a high-end model with engraved bridges on all sides. It is an exclusive movement developed exclusively for the Maison by its Geneva-based partner company, MHC.

The flying tourbillon movement, also developed in collaboration with HMC, features a tourbillon carriage that is not supported by a bridge and features a "DG" motif, which resembles the brand's initials. However, ensuring the asymmetrical carriage rotates evenly requires a high level of technical skill.

　We were able to get a glimpse of the secret behind this packaging expertise at their Milan workshop. Like a specialized watch manufacturer, the Maison has installed CNC cutting machines in their own workshop. In fact, here, cases and lugs are cut based on 3D CAD data created by the aforementioned design department, and surprisingly, prototypes of the exterior are even produced. Being able to manufacture exterior prototypes under the same roof as the design department and make fine adjustments immediately is surely what allows them to materialize intricate designs that accurately reflect the brand's philosophy and individuality. Furthermore, having engravers and jewelers who work on not only watches but also high jewelry under the same roof is surely what gives these intricate designs a warm, lifelike quality.

Dolce & Gabbana's jewelry workshop. Several artisans engrave high-end jewelry and watches. Not only the watch cases, but also the movement bridges are hand-engraved.

Engraving the lugs. The exterior and movement are hand-engraved in the Milan workshop and then sent to a partner company in Geneva, where they are cased and then returned to the workshop for inspection.

　In the jewelry workshop, several artisans work on engraving and jewelry setting for high-end jewelry and high-end watches. The woman who specializes in engraving joined the company after learning basic techniques at art school. It takes 8 to 10 years of experience and training to become a full-fledged engraver, and here they are today. In addition to engraving jewelry, they are also responsible for the gorgeous and elaborate engraving that adorns the exterior and movements of high-end watches. For example, it takes approximately 3 to 4 months to engrave the case of one Manifattura Italiana Napoli model.

Cutting the lapis lazuli used in the small dial of the Manifattura Italiana Palermo. Other precious stones, such as rubies, used on the dial are also cut in-house. Rubies are hard, so they are precisely cut with a laser over a period of approximately 102 hours.

A metal mold is attached to the cut lapis lazuli, and diamond powder is applied to the cut surface, which is then polished using a grinding machine.

　The lapis lazuli and other semi-precious stones used in the dials of the Manifattura Italiana Palermo are also cut in-house. During our visit, we were able to observe the lapis lazuli cutting process. To be used for the small dial portion of the dial, a thin slice of lapis lazuli is placed on a metal mold, a line is drawn around the area to be cut, and the lapis lazuli is then cut along that line with a disc-shaped cutter. Cutting the thin lapis lazuli into a figure-eight shape, overlapping the center of the hour and minute displays and the small seconds, is no easy task, as there are no straight lines. After cutting the lapis lazuli into the figure-eight shape, the metal mold is placed on the piece again, and the cut surface is smoothed with a grinding stone. Because the lapis lazuli alone is only 0.35 mm thick and prone to cracking upon impact, it is ground using a metal mold. The combined thickness of the mold and lapis lazuli is 0.7 mm. Of course, everything is done by hand, except for the electric cutter and grinding machine, with diamond powder sprinkled on the grinding stone.

　Handcraftsmanship is now considered paramount in the world of luxury watches, but there are probably very few watch workshops that cut the semi-precious stones used on the dials in-house.

　Dolce & Gabbana's Milan workshop is where the brand philosophy of "Fatto a Mano" literally lives and breathes. The handiwork of each artisan is embodied in the timepieces they create. The spirit of cherishing every moment is what "Fatto a Mano" is all about, and it is this spirit that lies at the heart of this rare timepiece.