Small watch fans rejoice: Longines has revealed a set of six square miniatures as part of its iconic Dolce Vita collection.
Called the Mini Dolce Vita, the quartz ladies’ watch has a square case measuring 21.5 x 29 x 6.75 mm and is available in green, ivory, blue and pink colour options, plus a pair of silver models.
All six have cases made from stainless steel and with 0.456 carats of diamonds framing the dial. They also share the same sapphire crystal and basic layout, with dial functions consisting of hours, minutes and small seconds on a sub dial at the six o’clock position. The watch has 30 metres of water resistance (3.0 bar) and uses a battery-powered quartz L178 movement.
Longines began producing square watches in the 1910s, with the design enjoying a surge in popularity through the following two decades. It wasn’t until 1997 that the first Dolce Vita collection was launched, followed by a refresh in 2015.
I suspect the two silver models will be the most popular. The first has a silver “flinqúe” dial with blue steel hands and painted Roman numerals, while the other is a sunray silver dial with a rounded instead of square seconds sub-dial.
For me though, I think the green, ivory, blue and pink versions of Mini Dolce Vita with their alligator straps are the most interesting models. They have the same case as the other two, but with colourful dials that closely match the colour of their straps.
The green variant is particularly striking, with the green dial and gold Roman numerals perfectly matched by the strap and its gold markings. I can see collectors picking up several examples to work with certain outfits and complement bags and other accessories.
Priced at £3,450 with a leather strap and £3,600 on the steel bracelet, the Longines Mini Dolce Vita is available now.
