Results for Swiss Lever Escapement

Swiss Watch Exports Dip In February As Key US Market Loses Steam

Monthly exports fall 8.2% as luxury watch sales face declining demand.

Rolex Files a Patent for a Natural Escapement

Hands-On with the 100% Swiss-Made Piccola & Jofrette PJ1

It’s not entirely uncommon for my first encounter with a brand to be when they inquire about attending Windup Watch Fairs. There are a lot of brands out there, more every year, so it’s hard to keep up with every new launch. Conveniently, Windup is a great way for new brands to meet enthusiasts and potential customers (sorry, this wasn’t meant to be a Windup pitch), resulting in a natural amount of outreach. When new brands come in, whether to me or a colleague, we give them a quick review to see if they are a conceptual fit for the fair, which they are more often than not. Occasionally, a new brand will stand out, for one reason or another, and they’ll get the seal of approval and an immediate request for a sample to review. Such was the case with Piccola & Joffrete. What stood out wasn’t the watch’s design, though it is altogether pleasant if conservative; rather, it was what appeared to be a high level of finish and a dedication to Swiss manufacturing. Many watches say Swiss-made on them, the definition of which I’ll elaborate on below, but few say 100% Swiss-made like the Piccola & Joffretes. Typically, those that are 100% Swiss (which is also hard to tell as transparency isn’t a strength of the watch world) cost significantly more, likely starting in the five figures. So, the final aspect that made Piccola & Joffrete (PJ) stand out was their relatively reasonable price point, Swissness considered, of 2500 CHF. There are several criteria a watch must mee...

The Detent Escapement In Wristwatches: Dream A (Big) Little Dream

Buying Guide – We Travel to France for Some More Exciting Non-Swiss Watches

A week ago, we covered some of the best watches coming from the Netherlands for the simple reason that both our founder Frank and myself are Dutch. However, part of the team comes from France, and as such, I thought it would be fun to have a look at French watches this time around! And when […]

Breaking News: Swiss Court Finds John Lennon's Patek Philippe 2499 Belongs To Yoko Ono

A bombshell decision on the hotly contested ownership of a seriously special Patek Philippe.

Introducing – The Engraved MB&F; LM Split Escapement x Eddy Jaquet

Inspiration at MB&F; comes from all sorts of places, including hypothetical musings like Max Büsser’s question: “What would have happened if I was born in 1867, one hundred years before my actual birth? What watch would I have conceived with the help of my friends?” The answer, as we know, was the motor behind the […]

First Look – The New Ikepod Horopod Titanium Is Back to Classic Designs and Swiss Movements

Ikepod has had its fair share of ups and downs since it was founded in 1994 by Oliver Ike and designer Marc Newson. Soaring to fame with Marc Newson’s fabulous designs, Ikepod’s skyrocketing prices eventually forced the brand into a nosedive. Following several attempts to restrain its prices with Japanese quartz and mechanical movements, the […]

Portrait – Gagà Laboratorio, When Italian Design Meets Swiss Precision in Luxury Watches

The current watch market is polarized and most often highlighted by the major and mainstream brands on one hand, and let’s say, all the rest on the other hand. Among the latter, on the fringes of the groups and a few independent and historical brands, a swarm of new brands has emerged in recent years […]

Introducing – The Studio Underd0g Salm0n, The First Model in the Swiss-Powered 03SERIES

Why so serious…? This was somehow the idea Richard Benc had in mind when he decided, in 2020, to create his watch brand, Studio Underd0g. From there, the brand managed to gather the attention of watch enthusiasts with its fun, colourful watches at accessible prices – think about an April Fool’s joke becoming a reality, […]

Dispatch: A View On The Swiss Watch Industry After Spending A Few Days In Switzerland

New releases from small brands including Berneron, Daniel Roth, and Rexhepi highlight the industry's back-to-school show.

Marine Lemonnier-Brennan: The Doyenne of Public Relations in the Swiss Watch Industry

Watch Week Aspen brings Swiss Watchmaking to the Colorado Rockies

Introducing – Slimmer and Swiss Powered, Meet the New M.A.D.Editions M.A.D.1S

The story behind M.A.D.Editions is pretty simple, yet very cool. It’s all about offering the taste and spirit of MB&F;, without the price tag of an MB&F;. Many have dreamt one day of owning such a watch, but most of our readers and us here at MONOCHROME won’t be able to. For this reason, M.A.D.Editions […]

Event – The GMT Watch Safari, A Week of Experiences to Discover Swiss Watchmaking

To celebrate their 24th anniversary, our colleagues at GMT Magazine are organising an exclusive watch experience for 24 lucky watch enthusiasts, from October 27 to November 1, 2024, in Switzerland. This meticulously curated tour will offer a behind-the-scenes look into the heart of Switzerland’s legendary watchmaking industry. From Geneva to the historic Jura Mountains, and […]

Swiss Watch Exports Continue Downward Trend, Confirming Yearly Decline Forecast

Video – A Closer Look at Laurent Ferrier’s Natural Escapement and the Micro-Rotor Movement

Today, for our latest in-depth video, we’re going technical. This is what MONOCHROME is all about, after all. Sharing the knowledge behind fine horology and understanding how our beloved mechanical watches actually work. Today’s topic is one dear to our hearts, as it combines everything we love in fine watchmaking: high-end finishing, mechanical ingenuity, profound […]

Business News: LVMH Acquires Swiss Clockmaker L’Épée 1839

Plus, Bloomberg reports the LVMH CEO holds a personal stake in a rival conglomerate.

Pierre Jacques: The Silent Force of the Swiss Watch Industry

A Week in Watches Ep. 79 – Swiss Leftovers

On episode 79 of A Week in Watches, we start with a trip down memory lane, all the way back two weeks ago to Watches & Wonders 2024. Well, not exactly; rather than the fair itself, we look at the other shows and exhibitions, looking at several of the brands we got to check out. From there, we jump over to a new release by an old brand. Or, rather, the relaunch of the brand, Amida, and their most iconic watch, a jump hour with a digital display, the Digitrend. Lastly, we head over to the UK to celebrate a double anniversary with Christopher Ward through the launch of the Twelve X powered by the SH21 movement. Before diving into the week’s news, don’t forget that Windup Watch Fair San Francisco is starting on May 3rd at the Gateway Pavilion in Fort Mason and running until May 5th. It boasts over 85 brands and free admission for all, making it a perfect outing for family and friends to explore the world of watches; visit windupwatchfair.com for details. This episode is sponsored by the Windup Watch Shop. It features the exclusive Depancel x Worn & Wound Allure Valjoux 92 Chronograph collaboration, which showcases restored vintage chronograph movements visible through a display case back. The collaboration is limited to just 20 pieces and is available at windupwatchshop.com. The post A Week in Watches Ep. 79 – Swiss Leftovers appeared first on Worn & Wound.

One To Watch: Fleming’s 'Series 1' Brings Together Two Young Collectors, One Tennis Star, And A Cadre Of Swiss Industry Veterans For A New Independent

Based in the United States and built in Switzerland, Fleming is the culmination of years of passion from its founder, but with a plan to be in the industry for the long haul.

Morgan Stanley And LuxeConsult Publish Swiss Watch Industry’s Top 50 Companies For 2023

Louis Erard’s Latest Limited Edition is a Collaboration with a Swiss Abstract Artist, and their Most Challenging Work Yet

There’s a whole category of watches that I have come to genuinely love that I think can be fairly described as highly impractical art objects that also tell time. I wrote about one quite extensively here, and if you follow me on Instagram or have chatted with me in real life or in the Worn & Wound+ Slack community (which, to be fair, is technically “real life”) you know that I gravitate more and more toward the avant-garde, and love challenging designs that try to break what a watch even is. The new limited edition regulator from Louis Erard fits into this category nicely, and indeed was made in partnership with a Swiss abstract artist with a reputation for this type of challenging work. The new Le Régulateur Louis Erard x Olivier Mosset is perhaps the brand’s most purely abstract creation yet.  Let’s start with the obvious question: how do you tell the time on this thing? This is not an unreasonable query – many who have encountered this watch on Louis Erard’s Instagram feed since its unveiling on Tuesday morning have been confused enough to send their question into the void. I won’t say it’s “simple” because even I have to admit that telling the time on this thing is probably difficult in a pinch, but the idea is straightforward. It’s a regulator, with the top hand reading the hours, the middle the minutes, and the bottom the seconds. But the task of actually reading the time is intentionally (I’m assuming) made more challenging for a few reas...

Delma Announces an Affordable Swiss Made Tourbillon to Celebrate their 100th Anniversary

Delma is celebrating its Centennial Anniversary in 2024. Family owned and operated in Lengnau, Switzerland, Delma watches has been in continuous production since its inception in 1924. To mark this tremendous milestone, they have created something quite special. Introducing the Delma 1924 Tourbillon. Yes, you read that correctly, a Tourbillon, limited to just 100 pieces. Historically, the Tourbillon complication has been reserved for ultra high-end watch brands to flex their horological muscles, while at the same time commanding equally high prices. In recent years, however, brands like Tag Heuer and Horage have brought these prices down to the realm of relative affordability. Delma wanted to do the same, while also making sure the movement was 100% Swiss. What is the big deal with Tourbillons? Simply put, the Tourbillon places the escapement and regulator within a rotating cage that revolves 360 degrees in 60 seconds, effectively negating any positional errors. Tourbillon calibers have a reputation for being rather delicate, and are often fitted to dress watches in precious metals. With the help of their Swiss supply partners, Delma has gone the extra mile to ensure these watches are shock resistant to 5000g and antimagnetic to 2000 gauss.  This sporty 41mm hand wound watch is made of 316L stainless steel and is nearly completely brushed, except for the beveled edges lining the top of the case. There is a display back, to admire the movement and it is fitted to a matchin...

Up Close with Furlan Marri x Auro Montanari x Revolution Swiss-Made Mechanical Flyback Chronographs

Being the first Furlan Marri with a mechanical chronograph movement, we also want to focus on the beautiful dials and just the fact of the amount of attention to detail given to individual pieces. These pieces all come with the elevated inner dial which is brushed nicely to finish, accompanied by the pulsation indicator chapter […]