Okay, so I’ve been wanting to get my hands on a Patek Philippe Gondolo 4962/200R-001 for a while now. But, you know, those things are crazy expensive. So, I thought, “Why not try to make one myself?” It sounded like a fun project, and honestly, I was curious if I could pull it off.
First, I gathered a bunch of pictures of the watch. I mean, a LOT of pictures. I needed to see every angle, every detail. I spent hours just zooming in on photos online, trying to understand how this thing was put together. It’s a seriously beautiful watch, with all those diamonds and that mother-of-pearl dial.
Next, I started looking for materials. I knew I wasn’t going to use real gold or diamonds, obviously. I found some rose gold-colored metal sheets that looked pretty close to the real deal. And for the diamonds, I opted for some good-quality cubic zirconia. They sparkle just like diamonds, at least to my untrained eye.
The Dial
- The dial was the trickiest part. I tried using actual mother-of-pearl, but it was way too difficult to work with. It kept cracking and breaking.
- Eventually, I found some thin sheets of abalone shell that had a similar iridescent look.
- I carefully cut them into the right shape and glued them onto a thin metal disc.
The Case
- For the watch case, I used those rose gold-colored metal sheets.
- I sketched out the shape of the Gondolo case on the metal and carefully cut it out with some metal shears. This took forever, let me tell you.
- Then, I bent and shaped the metal pieces until they formed the basic shape of the case. It wasn’t perfect, but it was starting to look like something.
Putting It Together
Once I had all the parts, it was time to assemble them. I carefully set each of the cubic zirconia “diamonds” around the bezel, just like on the real watch. I used a tiny bit of super glue to hold them in place. Then, I attached the dial to the movement, which I just took from a cheap quartz watch I bought online. Finally, I put the whole thing into the case and added a brown leather strap.
The finished product? Well, it’s definitely not a Patek Philippe. But, you know what? I’m pretty proud of it. It’s got that Gondolo shape, it sparkles, and it tells the time. Plus, I made it with my own two hands. It was a lot of work, but it was totally worth it. It’s a reminder that sometimes, even if you can’t have the real thing, you can still create something pretty cool yourself.