Architecture and Time: The Design Eras of the 1900s That Still Shape the Watches & Jewellery We Wear
Throughout the twentieth century, architecture moved through revolutions in form, geometry, and philosophy. Buildings became sculptures, lines grew sharper or softer, and light was treated as a material in itself. What is often forgotten is how deeply these architectural shifts influenced the world of watch design. On the wrist, we see echoes of entire artistic movements, miniature impressions of the same eras that shaped our cities!
Below is a journey through the most important architectural styles of the 1900s, a bygone era that prized craftsmanship over the practical ubiquity that gradually overtook our contemporary landscape.
So many of the small details from these eras still appear in the pieces we choose today. You can see it in the curve of a case, the geometry of a link, the balance of a dial, the softness or strength of a silhouette. Not every watch or piece of jewellery carries these qualities, of course, and that is precisely why curation matters. At Gilded Hour we are deliberate in what we bring forward. Not everything we source ever reaches the website. Only the pieces that hold that certain quality we love. Be it a tiny flourish, a thoughtful proportion, or sometimes simply the perfect harmony of elements , earn their place in our collection.
Eras With Overwhelming Influence on Women's Aesthetic
The First Epoch: Art Nouveau, an Era Shaped by Curves, Light, and the Soft Poetry
Art Nouveau entered the twentieth century like a quiet enchantment.
It was a movement that refused straight lines and rigid discipline, choosing instead to let beauty move with the same softness found in nature. Designs curved like vines reaching toward sunlight. Ironwork rippled in botanical flourishes. Glass glowed as if lit from within. Walls flowed without corners. Every detail felt alive, romantic, and instinctively feminine.
You can still feel Art Nouveau in the softest, most feminine pieces today.
In watches, it emerges through rounded cases, dials that glow rather than shine, flowing numeral scripts, and bracelets that drape like jewellery rather than machinery. In jewellery, it appears in sculpted shapes that look grown rather than manufactured, glowing tones, and designs that move with the wearer.
A great example of its design use is in the bracelet of this beautiful Elgin piece, though the sides framing the soft curves are more iconic of the Deco
The Second Epoch: Art Deco, the Geometry of Glamour and the Architecture of Confidence
Art Deco arrived like a burst of electric light after the soft romanticism of Art Nouveau. If the first epoch was shaped by curves and nature’s breath, this second era was sculpted from geometry, ambition, and unshakeable confidence. Architecture grew sharper. Lines rose in perfect symmetry. Surfaces gleamed with chrome, lacquer, marble, and gold. Cities stretched upward and the world suddenly felt modern.
Art Deco changed the world of design forever, especially the way womens watches and jewellery are imagined. The rectangular case, sleek, confident, and architectural, emerged here. Even round watches adopted Deco language with stepped bezels, crisp numerals, and metallic shine that echoed the city skyline at dusk.
Nowhere is the design more evident than this Rado framed functional art piece with its repetitive pattern and bold lines.
The Third Epoch: Mid Century Modern, an Era of Calm Proportion and Effortless Elegance
Mid century modern arrived with a breath of clarity. After the bold glamour of Art Deco, the world turned toward spaces shaped by calm proportion, honest materials, and a sense of effortless modern life. Architecture became lighter, quieter, more intentional. Rooms opened into gentle planes of wood and glass. Light was invited in rather than sculpted. Every curve and corner had a purpose.
Mid century modern design gave birth to the classic round ladies watch the form we still quietly trust today. Dials grew cleaner, hands became slender, bezels softened into smooth curves. Instead of ornament, designers focused on balance: the perfect spacing of markers, the harmony between case and strap, the soft shimmer of brushed gold.
One of our favourite mid century inspired piece that we've come across is this beautiful Seiko ladies watch with a round case
The Fourth Epoch: Neoclassical, an Era of Balance, Purity, and Quiet Grandeur
Neoclassical design arrived long before the twentieth century, yet its influence stretches deeply into every modern era that followed. It was a return to balance and clarity, an architectural language shaped by ancient temples, measured proportion, and the quiet grandeur of Greco Roman ideals. Interiors became serene, symmetrical, and dignified. Columns framed light. Ornament existed, but only in refined restraint. Everything felt composed.
Neoclassical influence shows up in the designs that feel most quietly eternal. Think of slim round cases, Roman numeral dials, softened gold tones, and watches that resemble miniature architectural medallions. Jewellery follows the same language: clean curves, sculpted simplicity, a preference for form rather than decoration.
Some pieces are bold and draw inspiration from this design cues, with straight long lines that are slightly curved in the right places such as this Seiko ladies gold watch
Across these four epochs — the soft poetry of Art Nouveau, the confident geometry of Art Deco, the calm harmony of Mid Century Modern, and the enduring balance of Neoclassical design; we see how architecture has always shaped the way we wear beauty. Each era left behind a quiet imprint, a visual language that still lives in the small objects we fasten to our wrists. At Gilded Hour we curate with these histories in mind, choosing pieces that carry echoes of the past not as nostalgia but as artistry. A watch is never just an accessory; it is a fragment of design heritage, a little architecture, a moment of someone elses world that becomes your own. And when it settles onto your wrist with the right proportions and the right light, it reminds you that good design, like good timekeeping, is timeless.