Tissot further extend their dressy feminine collection, the Desir, with six new references that add a romantic moonphase display.
Watches and jewellery are two industries that so often intertwine. Nowhere is this truer than in the world of women’s horology and jewellery, where watches and gems are often designed to complement or combine with each other. In an industry that’s quite anachronistic in its use of mechanical movements, the women’s watch industry often focuses more on practicality merged with elegant character.
Tissot taps into this with its Desir collection, which was introduced in early January 2025 as a modern, chic offering with a dressier character. Its asymmetrical crown, lugless case and slim profile have made it the perfect candidate for many women across the watch world. Now, the brand has elected to further expand the collection sixfold. Complete with a new size, new complication and new dial finishing, the Desir’s latest additions are as refined as they are accessible.
Moonlight Sonata
The Tissot Desir Moonphase line is sized to a delicate 29.6mm lugless case with a 9.52mm thickness. If you’re new here, watch measurements often rely on the use of lugs where the bracelet attaches itself. This can often extend the length of the watch beyond the case diameter, affecting the wearing experience far differently.
However, the Desir’s lugless case guarantees that the watch will wear true to size every time. With a rounded profile that sits close to the wrist and an out-of-the-way two o’clock crown, the Desir’s case silhouette leaves little room for potential discomfort. Predominantly polished, the watch’s light play develops a halo of reflection that further highlights the dial.
Small end links extend from the top and bottom of the case, connecting the watch to a small three-link bracelet. For five of the six models, it comes in stainless steel, but of course, the two-tone model offers a stripe of rose gold PVD to match its other accents. At 50m water resistance, you’re not going to take it into the ocean any time soon, but the size and versatility enable the Desir Moonphase to slip effortlessly onto practically any wrist.
Midnight Pretenders
The true highlights begin as you look closer at the Desir Moonphase, as they’ve been given several aesthetic updates that make them more distinctive than the original lineup. Before we get into those, however, some familiarities: each watch is given a set of leaf hands to tell the time, as well as a seamlessly integrated eight o’clock date window.
These two features are the only similarities the Desir Moonphase has with the rest of its peers, with each watch sporting a series of new and unique finishes. Four of the watches, including the two-tone model, have been given a radially textured finish that emanates from the added moonphase between four and six o’clock.
The deep-lined texture goes beyond that of simple brushing, making the watch far more recognisable as a result. Set with either silver, salmon or red dials, they complement the romantic moonphase complication with their white mother-of-pearl accents.
The final two models are set with a blue dial, occluded with refractive minerals that twinkle like stars in the sky. However, their dial layouts are worlds apart from one another. The first model makes use of a silvery minute track printed with black Roman numerals, while the second segments its mineral blue from a blue fumé centre with a silvery textured arc.
With six choices, it might feel difficult to choose, but if it were me, I would go for that blue fumé rendition. Between the rest of the watches, all of which are spectacular, I find myself hypnotised by the level of detail relative to the blue fumé dial.
Quintessential Quartz
There’s not much else to say about the movement, which is hidden behind a solid brushed caseback. It’s what you might expect an accessible timepiece like this to have: an autonomous quartz movement, set with a 1.55-volt battery. Easy to set, easy to grab and go. For as elegantly complex as the Desir Moonphase line is, I’m not entirely surprised that they went with a movement so intuitive. The quartz movement powers the watch as well as its associated complications, which are of course the date and moonphase.
The date is easy enough to understand, though you’ll have to reset it in months that don’t end in 31. The moonphase, however, is a little bit more difficult. To set a moonphase, you could wait until nightfall and a clear sky, or you can just hop onto a website like Timeanddate.com to check out the moonphase in your local area. It’s not the most practical complication, sure, but no romantic complication ever really was.
Initial Thoughts
While we at WatchAdvice normally cover men’s and unisex watches here, it’s always nice to show you all how the women’s watch world is progressing. The industry has come a long way from ‘pink it and shrink it’, and brands are becoming more considerate in how they design watches for female watch enthusiasts.
The Tissot Desir Moonphase is exemplary of that, leveraging its undoubtedly modern attitude and beauty with Tissot’s penchant for accessible craftsmanship. And though I can’t speak for every woman, or any woman for that matter, I know a pretty watch when I see one. The Tissot Desir Moonphase models are, if nothing else, extremely pretty, just as their desirable nomenclature intended.
References & Specifications
| Feature | Specification |
|---|---|
| Reference | T152.223.11.496.00 (Blue with diamonds) / T152.223.11.493.00 (Blue) / T152.223.22.036.00 (Two-tone with diamonds) / T152.223.11.036.00 (Silver with diamonds) / T152.223.11.546.00 (Salmon with diamonds) / T152.223.11.426.00 (Red with diamonds) |
| Dimensions | 29.6mm lugless case diameter x 9.52mm thickness |
| Case | Stainless steel Two-tone rose gold PVD & steel (Two-tone with diamonds) |
| Dial | Blue fumé with mineral inclusions & 4 diamond indexes totalling 0.02ct (Blue with diamonds) Blue with mineral inclusions & silver accents (Blue) Radially textured silver with rose gold accents & 4 diamond indexes totalling 0.02ct (Two-tone with diamonds) Radially textured silver / salmon / red with 4 diamond indexes totalling 0.02ct |
| Crystal | Sapphire |
| Caseback | Closed, brushed |
| Movement | Quartz with date & moonphase complications |
| Water Resistance | 50m / 5bar |
| Strap/Bracelet | Steel / two-tone rose gold PVD & steel bracelet with butterfly clasp |