Faux Patina... Yes or no?
First: I know this is a hot button topic, so let's all try to keep the discussion civil please...
Second: the two photos above are of my own watches, so you can surmise which way I lean! I know faux patina gets a bad rap these days, but personally, I have no issue with it.
Nearly every time I see a dial that uses "faux patina", my eye is immediately drawn to it.
Why? Is it because it's trying to trick me into believing it's old?
No... for me, cream or tan colored indices are usually more pleasing to the eye than stark bright white (not always of course).
And, these days, lume won't age like a dial from the '50s, so unless you already own a watch purchased 50-60 years ago, or you want to expense of an older model, faux is the only way to go.
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Tom
I have been collecting watches for many years. I appreciate all types, from affordable to expensive. IG: @Daily_Dial
Vermont
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Last active: 4 months ago
I actually like the tan color on my watches that have it. I don’t think of it as faux ‘old’.
I think the old radium lume looks great on some watches, and a bit off on others.
I think the whole business of calling it "faux patina" is a silly, bordering on idiotic. Using a French word en anglais to sound smart just comes across as try-hard, and it's just a way to put down a design choice/preference by making it seem "lesser" than your preferences.
The band-aid color on the lume on my Vaer is one of the worst things about it. It's the acid-washed jeans of watches: inauthentic, crass, etc. Muting a color a tad is fine, but going full fauxtina is a no-no.
Generally speaking, it isn't my thing. That being said it can look good but there is no replacement for actual age related patina.
I tend to see it more as a colour design choice than an attempt to replicate age.
For some watches, with a more muted colour palette, Old Radium lume can be a complementary choice. For example, I think it works well on the Omega No Time To Die Seamaster, alongside the darker grey of the titanium and the deep brown of the aluminium components. In other cases, like the Squale above, it just looks ‘off’, and white lume would be a far better choice.
I just think there are some watches that look better with non-white lume.
Sharp and pure white or nothing. Everything else is heresy 😜
I have seen some that look good and some that don't. If it is done well, I think it is a good thing.
I believe it can be done tastefully but truthfully nothing beats true patina on a vintage watch.