Introducing the Itay Noy Full Month Collection

If, like me, you get worked up about date apertures, then you’re sure to have a strong reaction to the 40-millimeter Full Month from Itay Noy. My reaction is entirely positive. Few things bother me more than a date complication that fails to be thoughtfully integrated into the dial, and in the case of the Full Month the date aperture isn’t just integrated; it’s practically the whole story.

This independent brand out of Isreal has perforated the dial with the days of the month. Beneath the dial, the date disc rotates like most mechanical date complication’s do, but here the only printing is a small dot of color that appears through one of the perforated numerals at a time, thus indicating the date. This arrangement is a complete reversal of the standard date aperture: instead of a fixed window with numerals appearing beneath, the numerals are themselves the fixed aperture.

On another nearly identical model called The Full Month Moon, Itay Noy has simply replaced the numeral perforations with 31 phases of the moon. This is an equally unconventional approach, and quite an elegant bit of technology in that an entirely different complication is rendered so simply.

This perforated method of indication isn’t entirely new, as more than a few watches have featured multiple apertures through which a color appears in order to generate the needed info. Some of Omega’s regatta and apnea timers from the Seamaster lineup do this, for example, and Ochs und Junior’s watch, called The Date, employs a similar, though far less legible, strategy. And, lest we forget, Itay Noy’s catalog is filled with perforated dials layered over moving discs.

As is typical of Itay Noy’s watches, almost nothing else is conventional on the Full Month, either. Check out the photos to see how the bezel and case back are screwed into the mid case at six points. At the three and nine o’clock positions, the protruding screw-in points are like small bird’s mouths protruding beyond the main circle of the case. These protrusions help the crown—located at 4:30, or, I guess Day 11—look unobtrusive. The lugs are shapely and stout, offering up a mere 44-millimeter span, and the strap bars are screwed in. These screws, smartly, match those that hold the case together, making for one of the most compelling watch profiles I’ve seen in a while.And if that isn’t enough oomph, inside we find the incredibly thin and handsome Vaucher VMF 5400 micro-rotor movement. It is less than three-millimeters deep, allowing the case to stay svelte at a hair over six millimeters. Twenty-nine jewels are deployed throughout the movement, while blued screws, gold-filled engraving, top-grade bridge decoration, and an extra-thin micro-rotor make for a breathtaking rear-window view.Straps are handmade leather with a handsome double folding clasp. This strap and clasp seem entirely appropriate for the Full Month, given its dressy, high-end vibe.

The price of $9,800 for this watch, of which there will only be 18 built in each colorway (white, blue, or black) is beyond our typical value-driven range, but given the high-grade movement and Itay’s in-house case and dial work, it’s well worth the consideration. Itay Noy’s watches have prestigious spots in museum collections, and—price aside—the Full Month is a heavy-hitter on all fronts.

The Full Month and Full Month Moon are ready to ship within two days of placing an order. Itay Noy