URUGA 42 Rubber Model [UG03-RBKNBL-SSD]

Put the blue URUGA 42 on black rubber and the watch changes register entirely. The dial keeps its depth; everything around it turns practical.

MINASE launched URUGA in 2023 and describes it as mature elegance born of dazzling contrast, the contrast being between sharply cut edges and smooth curvature. You can see both in the clamping structure that gives the line its architecture: four voluminously cut clasps, faceted on multiple planes, hold the case and the sapphire crystal together instead of a screwed-down bezel, an approach borrowed from the prong settings jewelers use to hold a stone. The crystal itself carries a slight vertical curve, visible from the side.

The dial is blue, worked in the horizontal gradation MINASE takes from the glittering waters of the Minase River in Akita, and the black rubber strap makes it the version to wear without thinking about it. The steel case measures 42.0 mm across, 48.0 mm long including the lugs and 10.2 mm thick with the glass. Inside is the self-winding calibre KT7002, a Swiss ETA 2892 and Sellita SW300 base finished and decorated by MINASE, with a date.

At 5 atm it is rated for rain and splashes, not for swimming or diving. The obliquely cut indices, shaped after the front of a kimono, keep some formality in an otherwise casual setup.

Perfect for: blue dial rubber strap watches, everyday automatic wearers, buyers looking at Japanese hand-finished timepieces.