Annelinde Dunselman Makes Her Debut With The Dunselman Black Tulip

It’s not often we get to uncover a new independent watchmaking name, especially one that’s from the Netherlands. Even though there’s a lot of exciting stuff going on in our small country, the focus is still very much on Switzerland for the most part. However, today we introduce you to Annelinde Dunselman, who recently made her debut on the indie scene with her newly launched brand, and watch, the Dunselman Black Tulip. With training from some of the most revered names in the business, there’s a ton of details waiting to be discovered. So without further ado, here’s our first encounter with the Black Tulip.

Annelinde Dunselman has spent the majority of her working life in watchmaking, working behind the scenes for some of the most illustrious names in existence. Ever since she was little, she had a fascination for mechanical things, taking apart and reassembling old cameras, turntables, clocks and so on, to discover how they were made. She’s not unique in that, as it’s often the case with watchmakers, probably to the frustrations of parents who, from time to time, were no doubt confronted with a TV remote that didn’t work anymore, or worse. Jokes aside, enrolling in the Watchmaking School in Schoonhoven, the Netherlands, and later working for and with Jaeger-LeCoultre, Grönefeld, and Philippe Narbel seems to pay off now, as she launches her own eponymous brand and the Black Tulip. (Yes, we’re Dutch, so Tulips are never far away, as you know).

Annelinde states that the inspiration, and name for that matter, for the Black Tulip came from the elusive and mythical flower itself. Although many have tried, no one has been able to create a true black tulip to date. So in essence, she’s chasing something that can’t be achieved: absolute perfection. In many ways, this goes for a lot of independent watchmakers, as I am often engaged in conversations with them on what they couldn’t achieve due to various circumstances, rather than what they could. And yes, it is that self-criticism that drives them forward every day, even in the biggest names around. There’s always the next idea, the next level of finishing, the next complexity in construction or functionality.

On to the Black Tulip, which comes in a soothingly compact case of 38mm across. The height is 11.9mm, which keeps things well within the comfortable and easy-to-wear realms of dimensions. The case is riddled with interesting details, such as scalloped sections in the case flanks, a concave bezel, and the special engraving between the lugs (“Created In The Kingdom Of The Netherlands”), leaving no doubt about its origins. The vertical side of the bezel is decorated with Dunselman’s D-shaped logo, which is a stylised tulip on the side. This is alternately positioned upright and on its side, creating a unique and rather attractive pattern.

The tulip pattern continues on the silvery-white dial, which has a lot of depth and plays with the light because of it. What I noticed upon close inspection is how the concave minute track neatly aligns with the concave bezel, creating a sort of flow from the outside in. This track has black markers at every minute, with applied steel dots at every 5-minute increment. One step in comes the section for the hour markers, which have a simple yet very effective design. The centre section is recessed once more. At the bottom, a subdial for the small seconds is found, with a hand that has a Dunselman’s logo for a counterweight. The printing for the scale is in black, providing plenty of contrast. What stands out furthermore are the steel hour and minute hands, which have a very delicate and refined shape, with thin legs and tips that remind me of a flower bulb. And finally, there’s a very interesting contrast in texture between vertical brushing on the main dial and radial brushing in the small seconds subdial. Despite all these details, I’ve never felt the theme was unbalanced or overwhelming. On the contrary, even as I think it’s very coherent.

Such an intriguing watch needs a movement to match, and Annelinde doesn’t disappoint in that area as well. Developed by herself with the help of befriended specialists, the Calibre D202.5 is the result of more than 2 years of hard work. Here, too, Annelinde’s calm nature comes through, as it is wound by hand and comes with a zero-reset mechanism. Pull the crown, and the small seconds hand jumps to 12, making sure you can precisely set your watch.

The movement is constructed out of 125 parts and measures 31.8mm in diameter and 7.8mm in height, meaning it neatly fills almost the entire case. With rhodium-plated bridges, bevelled angles, polished screws, positief relief engraved details on the barrel and rather wheel, and so on, it shows great attention to detail yet again. It shows where she’s been and what she’s capable of, which is altogether rather impressive! Another element I simply adore are the small openworked bridges in the lower half of the movement, revealing the intrinsic mechanics that make up the Black Tulip’s beating heart.

Annelinde Dunselman announced that the debut Black Tulip will be limited to 10 pieces, each delivered with a brown small-scale alligator leather strap fitted with a signed pin buckle. The price is set at EUR 38,000 excluding VAT. And if you’re wondering if this is a one-time design, the answer is yes and no. The Black Tulip marks the design direction for Annelinde’s future watches in the broader perspective, yet the tulip (floral seems the wrong word here) theme is considered exclusive to this debut piece. Elements may pop up in other watches at some point, but there will always be distinctive features to separate future creations from this one.

Please note that this is the first-ever Black Tulip by Annelinde, so essentially a prototype. While it is there in terms of finishing and so on, the spring for the click-spring is not the correct one. This will be amended in the final client-ready version.

For more information, please visit DunselmanWatchmaking.com.