Rye Straw Marquetry Brings Natural Texture To Watchmaking

Swiss watchmaker Louis Erard has collaborated with Portuguese artist Bernardo d’Orey to create a limited-edition mechanical watch featuring a handcrafted rye straw dial. The Marqueterie de Paille translates a centuries-old decorative technique to a surface measuring only a few centimetres across.

Rather than using straw as a recognisable decorative element, d’Orey transforms its fibres into an abstract composition entitled Broken Ice. Layered shades of blue, combined with different fibre directions, give the dial a changing appearance as it catches the light. The result demonstrates how a relatively simple plant-based material can acquire visual depth and a refined finish through careful selection and processing.

Composed From 28 Individual Sections

Each dial takes approximately 12 hours of manual work, divided across several days. D’Orey begins by selecting rye straw sections with suitable colours, textures and natural reflections. He then opens, flattens and prepares every piece by hand.

The completed surface consists of 28 individually composed sections, which vary in shape, dimensions and fibre orientation. Each element interacts with light differently, causing the pattern and colour intensity to shift as the wearer moves their wrist.

Working with tolerances of less than 0.1 millimetres leaves little opportunity to correct misplaced components. D’Orey therefore builds the composition during short periods of concentrated work. The natural variation within the rye straw also means that no two dials have precisely the same colour, texture or reflective qualities.

Renewable Material Meets Precision Engineering

Rye straw is a renewable agricultural material, although Louis Erard has not published further information about its sourcing or end-of-life treatment in this application. Its use nevertheless illustrates the potential of plant fibres as decorative surfaces for jewellery, accessories and other small-scale product designs. The project also shows how fibre direction can function as an active design tool, altering the way a surface responds to light without relying solely on printed patterns.

The straw dial sits inside a polished 39 mm stainless-steel case with a domed sapphire crystal. A transparent caseback reveals the automatic Sellita SW261-1 movement, which offers approximately 38 hours of power reserve. The watch comes with a beige grained calf-leather strap.

Louis Erard will produce 25 individually handcrafted pieces, each priced at CHF 4,500 excluding tax. The collaboration forms part of the company’s Métiers d’Art series, which applies artisanal techniques such as enamelling, engraving and straw marquetry to contemporary watchmaking.

Source & photos: Louis Erard