Before writing this review, I found another DD Allwood Box in our household: a double decker jewelry box of my wife. Now on to the box I received from DD Allwood in April 2002.

One can write a lot about a product, but my style of review always includes a lot of pictures. Not because I am too lazy to type, no, because I feel many pictures with legends are ideal and easier to "digest". Thus I included my review text into bold legends below the pictures.

2. The carton box is designed like a Girard-Perregaux or Jaeger-LeCoultre outer Watch box with a clever front lid that allows easy access to the content. Since the box is quite heavy, about 3.5 kg including the packing or ca. 3 kg net, that front lid is a good idea that allows convenient unpacking

3. And this is how the box looks inside. The lining is light brown in the box and tray and the same non tarnishing synthetic suede is used for the pillows. In close-ups to come you will see that the quality of the lining is very high compared to cheap boxes, not only is it a good material, but the manufacturing is immaculate too

4. Here is a picture with the upper tray lifted off. At the head of those trays are compartments for small parts, e.g. rings, bracelet links, date pushers etc.

5. Populating the box with watches was fun, 6 bracelet watches, 3 black leather strap watches for the lower strap compartment and three brown leather strap watches for the removable upper tray

6. The "populated" watchbox from the front with the upper tray removed

7. The watchbox storing 12 watches

8. This is the box from a different view storing 12 watches

9. The manufacturing quality of the box is very high, inside and outside

10. This is a detail of the 2 small compartments on the upper tray

11. A picture showing the immaculate lacquering of the box: each piece is sprayed with up to 15 layers of polyurethane with hand polishing and sanding in between

12. Also the brass hinges are top notch. I also observed that on my smaller DD Allwood box

13. This is the right hand hinge, the box is fully open here at around 92 degrees to safely stabilize the cover when open

14. The pillows have an ideal size. I have a small wrist of 16.5 cm circumference. My bracelet watches will squeeze the pillows a bit when closed, but I guess that pillow size is a perfect compromise for different bracelet lengths

15. I was curious to see how the cover of the second tray was treated, because the manufacturer normally show great creativity in avoiding to decorate invisible areas. But no surprise here, the same lining materials is used as inside the box: non tarnishing synthetic suede. Very well done

16. The box is really highly polished. I read on the DD Allwood website www.ddallwood.co.th that they polish and lacquer the boxes in 15 layers. I try to capture the beauty of the wood, but the box is so glossy, that it is almost impossible to get a shot without reflections. This is the best shot from the wood texture I could get and it can not fully describe the great materials and finish of the boxes

Conclusion
A very good high quality watchbox with an outstanding finish quality. Very consistent quality on the outside and inside. Also the hinges are very well finished. This makes a very pleasant home for our babies Given the very high quality of the box, the price of around USD 400 for the box reviewed seems fair. And as always, I think you can get those boxes online at considerable discounts.

Reto Castellazzi, May 2002

For further details, ordering information and prices please see www.ddallwood.co.th, I included below some details from the FAQ page of that website:

IA. Question > Tell me something about your company and products?
Answer We are manufacturers of high quality wooden products, specializing in custom-made boxes for over 30 famous brand names, mostly watches. Uptill now we have never retailed our products, selling to Importers and Wholesalers. The only time they were available to the public was after trade shows, when we sold our extras and spare samples. We have seen a very high demand for them because there is nothing available to match their quality and price anywhere.

IB. Question > What makes these products so special?
Answer Every piece is hand-made and hand-lined, but the most important features is the finishing. Each piece is sprayed with up to 15 layers of polyurethane with hand polishing and sanding in between. The style is always simple, with a minimum of frills and gadgets. We select the woods with the best grain and then just rely on the natural beauty of the wood.

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IIA. Question > What kind of wood do you use?
Answer Our boxes are generally made from veneers laminated on MDF.

IIB. Question > What is MDF?
Answer MDF(Medium Density Fiber) is a board made with the left-over fibers from sugar cane.

IIC. Question > Why do you use MDF?
Answer It is environmentally beneficial as well as stable. We are taking a waste by product and turning it into a thing of beauty.


IID. Question > Do you use any real wood in these products?
Answer In humidors, where it is absolutely necessary. But cedar is not a rain forest wood. We do have other products made with solid wood, but in one whole year, we use about as much wood as is used by one Sunday Edition of any newspaper in any major city.

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III. Question > What kind of lining do you use?
Answer Products are lined with non tarnishing synthetic suede or synthetic leather. Silk or real leather are also available (See Special Order)

--modified by Reto Castellazzi at Wed, May 15, 2002, 19:51:45
-moved to www.pmwf.com by Reto Castellazzi on January 9th 2004 (this was originally posted on WUS)