URUGA 42 "ICE BLUE" Leather Model [UG03-CBKNIB-SSD]

Ice blue is the one dial color MINASE names outright in the URUGA 42 line, and the reason becomes obvious in daylight: the pale horizontal gradation across the face behaves less like paint than like water catching the sun.

That is the intention. The gradation on every URUGA 42 dial is drawn from the glittering, unhurried waters of the Minase River, which runs through the Akita valley where MINASE builds its watches. The case is held together by a clamping structure rather than a bezel screwed down flat: four voluminously cut clasps grip the case and the sapphire crystal at once, the way prongs hold a stone in a jewelry setting. MINASE's stated concept for the line is mature elegance born of dazzling contrast, meaning the meeting of sharp cut edges and smooth curvature.

This ICE BLUE reference is worn on black leather, a pairing that sends the dial cooler and more formal than a rubber strap would. The steel case measures 42.0 mm wide, 48.0 mm long including the lugs and 10.2 mm thick with the crystal, and the sapphire above the dial carries a slight vertical curve. Inside is the self-winding MINASE calibre KT7002, a Swiss ETA 2892 and Sellita SW300 base finished and decorated in Akita, with a date.

Water resistance is 5 atm, which covers rain and a splash but not swimming. Obliquely cut indices, modeled on the overlapping front of a kimono, keep the light moving as the wrist turns.

Perfect for: ice blue dial watch shoppers, buyers who want a dress automatic on leather, collectors of Japanese independent watchmaking.