The New Grand Seiko Elegance Karasawa SBGY035

Nature has long been a source of inspiration for Grand Seiko, using the splendid views around its Shinshu and Shizukuishi Watch Studios to create some of the most appealing textured dials on the market. Now that summer is coming to an end, we’ll soon greet autumn and its warm colours. GS’ latest creation, based on the thin and dressy Elegance collection, is all about enjoying Autumn foliage with a deep red, textured dial with golden accents. And as the brand celebrates this year 20 years of the 9R calibre, this new Karasawa SBGY035 had to be powered by a Spring Drive movement. 

While not exclusive to Grand Seiko and in fact developed by mother brand Seiko during the 1970s, only to be commercialized first in 1999, Spring Drive came to GS in 2004. After more than 2 decades of research, the first generation of Grand Seiko Spring Drive was born, a movement named 9R, which powers all Grand Seiko Spring Drive watches today. This hybrid technology, combining the beauty and perpetuity of a mechanical movement with the precision of quartz, celebrates this year its 20th anniversary, which has given birth to several dedicated editions already, starting with the Pink Snowflake SBGA497. It is now time for the Elegance collection to have its special edition model.

This new reference SBGY035 relies on familiar grounds, with a case and movement that have been used already on several occasions – for instance within the gorgeous Hana-Ikada SBGY026 or the Omiwatari SBGY013, and is still based on the collection unveiled in 2019. Overall, this new Elegance Karasawa almost feels like a baby-Hana-Ikada, as if doesn’t share the same light pink dial and gold case, its texture is very close. As for the case, no surprises here. This SBGY035 retains the same curved design with Zaratsu polished surfaces and satin-finished flanks. The smooth case is topped by a dual-curved sapphire crystal and the proportions are lovely – 38.5mm in diameter, only 43.7mm in length and about 10mm in thickness (well, it’s not ultra-thin territory but still pretty slim overall).

As often with the brand, what matters is the dial… You can argue with that, Grand Seiko makes some of the best dials and hands in the industry. For this Karasawa limited edition, the dial “captures the moment of the rising sun in Karasawa Cirque, surrounded by the Hotaka peaks, renowned for being one of the most magnificent places in Japan to enjoy Autumn foliage.” The randomly scratched texture is here presented with a rich, deep brownish-red colour with a subtle gradient effect. Reinforcing the autumnal feeling, the seconds hand and the GS logo are gold-coloured. Finally, the crocodile strap with a folding buckle matches the dial (note that the strap on this prototype is in stamped calf leather, for export issues… the final product will be different).

Inside the case is the 9R31 Spring Drive calibre, as seen in various other watches such as the SBGY011 Asaborake. This hybrid quartz-mechanical movement combines the best of both worlds with two stacked mainsprings in a single barrel. The movement is regulated to run within a deviation of ±1 seconds per day (or ±15 seconds per month). Once fully wound, which is done by hand, it will keep running for a maximum of 72 hours. A convenient power reserve display is discreetly placed on the back of the movement. The movement’s finishing includes straight graining, blued screws and bevelled edges.

Released as a limited edition of 700 pieces, the Grand Seiko Elegance Karasawa SBGY035 will be available on November 1st, 2024 and priced at EUR 8,800. For more details, please visit grand-seiko.com.