XTREME REVIEW: STOWA ANTEA CREME

BRAND: Stowa
MODEL: Antea Creme
MOVEMENT: ETA 2824-2
CASE SIZE: 39mm Diameter; 9.10mm thickness; 48mm Lug End to Lug End; 20mm Lug Width
CASE MATERIAL: Stainless Steel
CASE FINISH: High Polish
CRYSTAL: Sapphire
CASE BACK: Screw in with Sapphire Glass
CROWN: Signed, pull-out
WATER RESISTANCE: 5 ATM
STRAP: 20mm Black Leather
CLASP: Signed Deployant
ORIGIN: Germany
COST: $765.00 At Time of PURCHASE
ORIGINAL ANTEA PRODUCED AROUND 1938

I don't think the Antea Creme is available any longer. The 39mm Antea now comes with a silver dial.




A part of me has always loved straight, clean lines and when I first came across the Bauhaus design, I was immediately attracted:




In a nutshell, Bauhaus is about simplicity and modernism (maybe minimalism can also be used in this review). The following link is a good overall history of the origin of Bauhaus:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bauhaus

And, here is a link to the history of Stowa:

http://www.stowa.de/cgi-bin/cosmoshop/lshop.cgi?action=inline&rubnum=&artnum=History&id=72&gesamt_zeilen=72&wkid=12981445745500&ls=en&nocache=12981



The Antea Creme is the smallest of the watches in my collection (39mm diameter) however, it plays larger on the wrist due in part to the narrow bezel and the substantial lug length.

The case is superbly hand made and finished by Jorg Schauer:


NICELY SIGNED CROWN

LOVE THE LUG DESIGN


The automatic movement is lightly decorated and seems fitting for the Bauhaus concept. It is easily viewed through the sapphire case back:





In 2005, the Antea automatic won the "International Watch Award" ("Goldene Unruhe 2005"), the world's biggest watch contest, in the category of 500 Euros or less.


The strap is a simple plain black leather strap with a signed deployant and is a perfect match for the Bauhaus look:





The dial is simplisity at its best and the modern clean lines of the black indices, numbers and hands are crisp against the creme colored dial. A creme colored date wheel with its black numbers is smoothly integrated into the overall look. Even the stowa printing on the dial is Bauhaus perfect:




The build on this watch is "TOP NOTCH". The look is reminiscent of an earlier time. The more I look at this watch, the more appealing it becomes to me and the more I daydream of the era it which this design was conceived.


The watch is perfect for dress or for casual wear and it fits well on the wrist:





The watch is so very affordable. I believe it is under-rated and is under appreciated. Its history is rich and intriguing. Jorg Schauer has done an admirable job since acquiring STOWA and in particular, keeping the Bauhaus design alive with the Antea.

VERY nice review John...


THANKS!

John, this review was just TOO GOOD ! All of your detailed specifications,
as well as pictures were really exceptional. The information you gave about
Bauhaus, and Stowa was phenomenal also. Genuinely didn't know about all
of that to tell you the truth. So thank YOU ! Also want to thank you for
giving us so much insight into your Antea Creme, and how much you have
enjoyed it so far. I know it's always GREAT seeing this watch in the Watch-U-
Wearing section. So it has to be something really special to own, and see in
person. This watch, much like your review, and design is perfect sir ! Thanks
very much !!!

Awesome review John!

Stowa is one of my favorite brands and I think the quality matches any other watch that I own, no matter the cost.

Great review john, with some awesome pics!! Thanks steve

Thanks Guys! Really love this watch and I enjoyed putting the review together.

Nice review John, its a great looking dress watch.