Stepanets

Grand feu enamel dial watches from my workshop in Ukraine.

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An enamel dial watch that changes with the light

I’m Oleksandr Stepanets, and my watches are built around one material, grand feu enamel.

Why grand feu enamel

Grand feu is glass melted onto metal in a kiln at high heat, and for my dials I fire it onto silver. Because it is glass, the color has real depth, and the dial changes as the light moves across it. It also lasts, and enamel dials made for pocket watches two centuries ago often look much as they did the day they were fired.

Each dial is enameled by hand and fired several times, so small variations from one dial to the next are part of the material. Few watch brands still do this themselves. Once the watch is cased, the enamel needs no special care in daily wear.

How the watches are made

I make most of the parts myself, from the first drawing to the finished piece, so I can design the watch as a whole. The movement is Swiss and mechanical.

Enamel takes time, so I make only a small number of watches a year. If you ever have a question about yours, you’ll be writing to the person who made it.

The first Stepanets watches

The first watches are still being made, and I share the progress on Instagram and YouTube, so you can watch them take shape.

If you’d like one, leave your email. I’ll write now and then from the workshop, and people on the list get the first chance to buy when the watches are ready.