The Little Reverso from Japan

My favorite Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso is actually the smallest one in my collection. I have relatively small wrists, around 6 to 6.2 inches, and over the years I've tried just about every Reverso size. For me, this one has always had the best proportions. I like a watch to leave a little space above and below the case, ideally around 20 to 30 percent of my wrist, and I think that's when the Reverso looks its most beautiful. There's something about the smaller size that makes the design feel particularly elegant.

The problem was finding the right one. This particular size, reference 260.2.86, measures approximately 35 by 19 mm and is relatively uncommon, especially with a mechanical movement. Most of the examples I came across were either from the Duetto line or quartz models, and neither was quite what I wanted. I'm not really into diamonds or quartz watches, so finding a simple, manually wound Reverso in these proportions turned out to be much harder than I expected.

Eventually, I found one in Japan. The funny thing is that I was actually traveling there at the time, but for some reason I didn't buy it. After returning home, I kept thinking about the watch, and as the months went by, I began to regret leaving it behind. About six months later, I had more or less given up on finding another one when a friend happened to be traveling to Japan. I asked if they could check whether the Reverso was still available and, to my surprise, it was! My friend picked it up for me, and after all that waiting, the little Reverso I had left behind was finally mine.

One of the things I enjoy most about wearing it is playing around with different straps. I'm a huge fan of Japanese city pop, and I like bringing some of that colorful, slightly nostalgic style into the watch. Whenever I have a strap made, I tend to choose unusual combinations, like purple leather with contrasting stitching and a different color lining. It's a fun way to give a very classical watch a completely different personality without changing anything about the watch itself.

I think that's what makes this Reverso so special to me. It has the vintage proportions I love, a manual-wind movement, and a design that fits my wrist exactly the way I want it to. But with the right strap, it can also feel playful and colorful, almost like something from the city pop era. It took a trip to Japan, six months of waiting, and a little help from a friend to finally get it, but I'm glad I didn't give up on finding the right one.