Alright, so, I’ve been on a bit of a mission lately. You know how sometimes you just get obsessed with something? Well, that’s what happened to me, but with a watch. Not just any watch, though. I decided to try and remake the Patek Philippe Gondolo 7042/100R-010. Yeah, the super fancy one with all the bling.
First, I started by staring at pictures of this watch online. I mean, I really looked at them, trying to get every little detail in my head. This Gondolo model is a real looker, with its rose gold case and those diamonds, man, it’s covered in them. It’s got this 31mm size and a manual wind-up movement, which is kind of old school, but in a cool way.
Then, I got to work. This wasn’t easy, not by a long shot. I started with the case. Now, I didn’t have rose gold lying around, so I had to be a bit creative. I found some materials that could give that same kind of warm, luxurious vibe and shaped them into that distinctive Gondolo rectangular shape. The size was important, so I made sure it was as close to 31mm by 34.8mm as I could get it.
The next step was the diamonds. Oh, the diamonds. The original has like, 251 of them, plus some bigger baguette ones on the sides. I spent hours, maybe even days, just trying to figure out how to arrange these little sparkly bits to look like the real thing. I used some shiny stones I had, placing them in that circular pattern that Patek Philippe is famous for. The baguette diamonds on the bezel and lugs? That was tough, but I managed to get something that looked pretty darn close.
Then, the dial. I wanted it to be simple but elegant, just like the original. I used a plain background and added those classic Roman numerals. The hands were tricky, they’re so delicate on the real watch. I tried my best to replicate them, making them as thin and elegant as possible.
Finally, I put it all together. Seeing it come to life was amazing. It’s not perfect, of course, it’s not a real Patek Philippe. But, it’s my version of it, and I’m pretty proud of how it turned out. I wore it around a bit, and it felt good. It felt like I had a little piece of that luxury watch world on my wrist.
- Started with an idea.
- Studied the original.
- Gathered materials.
- Crafted the case.
- Arranged the “diamonds”.
- Designed the dial.
- Assembled the watch.
- Enjoyed the result.
So, that’s my story of remaking the Patek Philippe Gondolo 7042/100R-010. It was a fun project, and I learned a lot. Maybe next time I’ll tackle an even crazier project. Who knows?
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