Speake Marin’s Ripples Portobello Brings Lavender Colour to the La City Case

Speake Marin’s Ripples has always stood slightly apart from the usual luxury sports watch formula.

Its rounded-square case, off-centre small seconds and deeply textured dial gave the independent Swiss brand a distinctive entry into the category when the collection arrived in 2022.

The new Ripples Portobello pushes that character into a softer, more expressive direction, using lavender across the dial and strap in a nod to the colourful energy of London’s Portobello district.

At a glance

A London colour story for the Ripples line

Portobello is an apt point of departure for Speake Marin, a brand with British roots and Swiss watchmaking execution.

The district’s market streets and vivid façades translate here not through literal illustration, but through colour and texture.

The lavender treatment gives the Ripples a noticeably different mood from earlier references such as the Infinity Date, Dune Date, Ripples Skeleton and full-gold editions.

It also suits the model’s slightly eccentric proportions, which have always made the watch more recognisable than many integrated-sports competitors.

The La City case keeps its distinctive shape

The Portobello keeps the same La City case architecture that defines the collection.

Conceived by Stéphane Lacroix and built from 40 parts, the case combines a rounded-square outline with a circular dial opening, creating a tension between softness and geometry.

In stainless steel, it measures 40.3mm across and 9.2mm thick, which keeps the watch relatively slim for an automatic sports watch with a shaped case.

Satin-brushed surfaces are set against polished bevels and profiles, giving the case enough contrast without making the finishing feel overworked.

The crown guards almost fully surround the screw-down crown, a detail that adds to the watch’s architectural look while preserving a clean side profile.

Sapphire crystals are fitted front and back, and water resistance is rated to 50 metres.

The lavender dial does the heavy lifting

The Ripples identity lives on the dial, and the Portobello leans fully into that signature.

Its rhodium-plated brass base carries 12 engraved horizontal ripples, each hand-finished with a satin treatment before the translucent lavender-tinted coating is applied.

Because the colour sits over a reflective base, the tone shifts with the light from a pale, almost silvery lavender to a deeper purple.

The small seconds display remains at 1:30, interrupting the horizontal pattern with a sunray finish and a diamond-cut rhodium-plated frame.

Faceted rhodium-plated baton indices, including a double marker at 12 o’clock, keep the dial readable and crisp.

The familiar Speake Marin hands, opaline signature cartouche and peripheral minutes track are also worked into the lavender palette, which helps the watch feel cohesive rather than simply colour-matched.

A proprietary micro-rotor calibre inside

Inside the Ripples Portobello is the calibre SMA03-T, a proprietary automatic movement conceived, developed and assembled by Speake Marin’s manufacture, Le Cercle des Horlogers in La Chaux-de-Fonds.

The calibre uses a fully integrated tungsten micro-rotor, one of the reasons the watch maintains its 9.2mm case thickness.

The movement measures 30mm in diameter and 3.9mm thick, runs at 28,800 vibrations per hour and offers a 52-hour power reserve.

Viewed through the sapphire back, the 144-component movement shows a circular-grained mainplate, rhodium-plated bridges with broad 3mm Côtes de Genève and hand-polished bevels.

The micro-rotor is finished with a microbeaded surface and laser-engraved decoration.

Details & Specifications

The matching lavender calfskin strap completes the watch’s strongest visual idea, especially with its embossed denim motif and tone-on-tone stitching.

For collectors who already liked the Ripples but wanted a version with more colour and less conventional restraint, the Portobello is Speake Marin’s most expressive answer yet.