Hands-On With The Holthinrichs Signature Lab Series And The Impressive Ornament Nouveau

At the end of 2023, Michiel Holthinrichs showed me the first sketches of his new Ornament watches at his atelier in the center of Delft, here in the Netherlands. In May 2024, he finally felt confident enough to officially announce the watches. I hadn’t seen them in real life yet, though, so I was very excited to visit the Holthinrichs team again recently and get a good look at the all-new Ornament models. Lex already went over the “entry-level” Signature Ornament watches with the multi-level dials and the CNC-machined swooping lugs. Today, I’ll mainly focus on the 3D-printed Signature Lab Series and the impressive Ornament Nouveau.

However, I’ll start with a watch that’s very similar to the Signature Ornaments that Lex examined. The Holthinrichs Signature Ornament Delft Blue features the same CNC-machined Grade 5 titanium case with a swooping design. But instead of the frosted metal and sapphire dial, the Delft Blue edition has a white ceramic dial with blue pad-printed Arabic numerals.

The Holthinrichs Signature Delft Blue

At his atelier, Michiel Holthinrichs told me how challenging it was to find a party capable of providing a white ceramic dial that was both thin and strong enough. It took quite a few iterations to get to the final one, but the result is impressive. I had already seen the watch in pictures; however, in person, it excited me a lot more. The combination of the dynamic case shape, the modern manufacturing methods, and the glossy white dial with deep blue Breguet-inspired numerals works so well. The watch fuses different eras of design, and the contrast between them makes the result look even better.

The Signature Delft Blue edition has the same 38.5mm case as the Signature Ornament, with a 7.8mm thickness and a 46mm lug-to-lug. Even though the lugs swoop a lot, they don’t exactly hug the wrist, but their shape suggests that they do. Inside, there’s a Top Grade Sellita SW300 automatic movement with a bespoke gold-plated rotor. Like the Signature Ornament models, the Signature Delft Blue is part of the regular collection. It costs €3,750 (ex. VAT) as opposed to €3,500 (also ex. VAT) for the “regular” Signature Ornament models.

The Holthinrichs Signature Lab Series

Now we move a step up in the Holthinrichs catalog with the Signature Lab Series. This was a limited run of only 30 pieces, which is, unfortunately, already completely sold out. Still, it’s nice to take a closer look because the next series won’t be far off from the previous one. Even though, on paper, the Signature Lab Series has the same dimensions as the Signature Ornament models, its skeletonized lugs give it a more refined look. Also, this model has a 3D-printed (rather than CNC-machined) Grade 5 titanium case replete with manual finishing. That’s why there’s a nice contrast between hand-polished areas and raw parts that are a result of the printing process.

In addition to the more refined case, there’s a solid piece of metal that serves as the dial. It features a carved-out sunburst pattern and copper patina. Finishing it is a manual process, which means that each dial has a unique pattern and shade of green. Like the dial, the rotor on the modified Sellita SW300 movement also features a bespoke patina. This time, it’s achieved with an acid heat treatment. The rotor also holds a scraped and heat-treated tungsten weight with a beautiful shade somewhere between blue and purple.

As mentioned, the Holthinrichs Signature Lab Series is already sold out. However, the team is already working on the next series.

The Holthinrichs Ornament Nouveau

Now, we get to the real pièce de résistance — the Holthinrichs Ornament Nouveau. This watch also features skeletonized swooping lugs. This time, though, they don’t end up at the case back. Notice how, instead, they curve upward and continue all around the bezel. You can choose between a stainless steel or titanium case, but it’s always the result of a combination of 3D printing, precise CNC machining, and extensive manual finishing. Michiel showed me a few cases, and not one is precisely the same as another.

Not only the Ornament Nouveau’s case is impressive, though; its movement is as well. Holthinrichs says that this is the first Dutch manufacture caliber. It was developed, built, finished, and assembled in the Netherlands. To achieve this, the team worked with a third party that usually manufactures high-precision medical instruments. The mainplate has a concave shape on both the top and the bottom, while the back features a combination of perlage, frosting, high-polished bevels, and large hand-hammered surfaces.

On the front, the mainplate is covered by several bridges made of stainless steel. They hold the gear train, the keyless works, and the two barrels in place. Finally, we get to the three-dimensional sapphire balance bridge called the Holthinbridge. This was probably the most complicated part to make. All the earlier examples from other watch brands seemed to consist of several thin layers instead of one thicker piece, like this one. The result is an almost invisible balance bridge that allows for a peek inside the heart of the HW-M02 hand-wound movement.

I wear my sunglasses outside

As the entire movement is skeletonized, UV light could affect the lubricating oils inside. That’s why, with the help of a third party, Holthinrichs developed a UV-sensitive Eclipse dial. It works just like my Serengeti photochromic sunglasses. When UV light hits the dial, it turns into a smoke-black surface. Then, when you step inside, the dial slowly clears up again. I don’t think this is the first time a watch has featured a photochromic dial. However, I do think it’s the first time that it has served such a noble cause.

The Holthinrichs Ornament Nouveau’s case has a 39.5mm diameter, a 9.5mm thickness, and a 47mm lug-to-lug. Its movement runs at a 21,600vph frequency and features 24 jewels. The two barrels hold a power reserve of 83 hours, and the watch is water resistant to 50 meters. In terms of personalization, there are many options. For example, you can choose between different colors for the mainplate, the anodized chapter ring, the eclipse dial, and the hands. You can also choose between various levels of finishing and additional engraving, which will result in a higher price and a longer lead time.

Prices for the Holthinichs Ornament Nouveau start at €55,000 (ex. VAT) for the stainless steel model and €60,000 (also ex. VAT) for the titanium version.

What do you think?

In real life, Holthinrichs watches are like miniature sculptures. Each one went through the hands of the Holthinrichs artisans. It’s amazing to see what Michiel can achieve with his architectural background and design-driven approach. I think these watches are distinctive in many ways, and I can’t wait to visit the atelier again to see what’s in store for the future.

Let me know in the comments below what you think of these Holthinrichs Ornament watches.