3,407 articles · 1,709 videos found · page 14 of 171
Monochrome
In the world of fine watchmaking, certifications have always played a reassuring role for clients regarding the quality of their beloved watches. Of course, COSC, the standard for chronometric certification, which is primarily focused on the precision of the watch, is the first to come to mind. But many other initiatives have surfaced over the years. […]
Worn & Wound
A few months back I was given an opportunity to get a little preview of Zenith’s Watches & Wonders novelties in New York. More and more brands do this every year – it’s a great help to those of us in the media charged with photographing and writing about dozens upon dozens of new releases that all appear in the span of a few hours on an April morning in Geneva. So photographer Garrett Jones and I made our way to meet with our Zenith press contacts in midtown Manhattan, not knowing for sure what we’d see. In short order, the bright blue ceramic “Chronograph Trilogy” anniversary models were unveiled. In discussing the watches I casually mentioned that these would probably be a big hit at Watches & Wonders, and I must have inferred that these three watches would be this year’s halo pieces for the brand. I was quickly corrected, and told that there was something else coming that Zenith was holding back – the first watch in an entirely new collection – that would be a big surprise as we got closer to its release. I didn’t even try to elicit a hint about what it might be – I was happy to be surprised. Eventually the press release for the new G.F.J. hit my inbox, and I was indeed surprised. While Zenith, as a brand, has always been quite chronometry forward, I had gotten into the habit of thinking of them as a sports watch brand. Yes, the movements are very good, but lots of brands have very good movements. I admit that the yearslong focus on building out ...
Worn & Wound
Last year, I had the privilege of sitting down with Benoit de Clerck to talk about all things Zenith. At the time, Benoit was just a few short months into his tenure as CEO of Zenith, and Watches & Wonders was only barely in the rearview, but de Clerck made it very clear that he was already looking ahead, not just generally, but towards something very specific, and very exciting. “I’m working hard on something new next year, which - obviously - I like, because it’s very unique, and we’re producing very small quantities and all that. And, I can’t tell you much more, but next year we’re celebrating our 160th year and we will come up with something that the collectors will be very, very, very happy with.” Well, now, nearly a year later, we know what that “something new” is, and de Clerck was absolutely right - because it is something to be very, very happy with. I’m talking, of course, about the new Zenith G.F.J. G.F.J., in this case, stands for Georges Favre-Jacot, the name of the man who founded Zenith some 160 years ago, but it might as well stand for ‘Great F***ing Job’ because Zenith has knocked it out of the park with this one. At the heart of the G.F.J. is a revived version of the calibre 135, a historically significant and long-dormant movement, designed by Ephrem Jobin in the years after World War II and produced from 1949 to 1962. The Calibre 135 was widely used by Zenith at that time, but especially prized is the 135-O variant created...
Monochrome
On the occasion of its 160th anniversary, Zenith celebrates its legacy in the field of precision watchmaking, bringing back to life the venerable calibre 135, the most awarded movement from the golden age of observatory chronometer competitions. In 2022, Zenith released an exclusive limited edition of 10 watches, powered by vintage 135-O movements, restored and […]
Worn & Wound
Over the course of two years, the Bel Canto has fundamentally changed the way many watch lovers view Christopher Ward. This has been discussed in depth here and elsewhere, and is without a doubt one of the biggest stories in the watch world in the last decade or so. It’s changed the brand itself in a meaningful way as well. To meet demand since the launch of the Bel Canto, Christopher Ward has increased production of the watch from 50 pieces per month to 500, and there’s still a months long wait. That means that we haven’t seen Christopher Ward operate from the usual playbook when a brand has a hit new release. There have been vanishingly few limited editions and collaborative versions of the Bel Canto, with the brand instead electing to concentrate on fulfilling a backlog of orders. That’s admirable, in my opinion, but it means we haven’t seen much in the way of refinements or updates to the core Bel Canto design. And that’s perfectly fine. The Bel Canto is still very much a new watch in the grand scheme of watch history, and certainly doesn’t need an update. Today, though, marks a new chapter in the short history of the Bel Canto with the launch of the new C1 Bel Canto Classic. This is the first serious adjustment to the look and feel of the Bel Canto since the watch debuted in the fall of 2022. The changes are (mostly) pretty subtle, but it offers a small glimpse of how the watch might continue to be refined in the future. The most obvious change in th...
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Worn & Wound
The upward trajectory of Christopher Ward in the eyes of enthusiasts and collectors has been well documented over the last few years. The Bel Canto, of course, completely changed the game for the brand, and was an announcement to the broader watchmaking community of something ardent supporters have known for quite some time: that the team at Christopher Ward is capable of real outside-the-box thinking, and has an ambition to tweak expectations far beyond that of most brands in their price range. They have periodically introduced watches since that in one way or another qualify as what you might call “statement pieces,” or watches that seem to exist for the purpose of shifting the community’s expectations around the brand. The Twelve X, introduced earlier this year, is a perfect example, and I’d also point you toward a personal favorite of mine, the C1 Moonphase, which works as an art piece the same was some of the watches created by my favorite high end independents. Their latest offering, at least on the surface, is perhaps not as paradigm shifting as any of the watches mentioned previously, but it’s still generating an awful lot of chatter online for a series of dramatic improvements to just about every feature of a core offering from Christopher Ward: the dive watch. The Trident collection, Christopher Ward’s dive watch range, is now in its 15th year, and the new C60 Trident Lumière is described by the brand as the pinnacle of the series to date. There ar...
Monochrome
Most days, you’ll catch me wearing a dive watch or a classic chronograph. This is what I most enjoy as a watch collector (yes, we are first and foremost watch fans at MONO). I like to wear watches that I don’t have to worry about, and I love a timepiece with some heft. Not necessarily […]
Monochrome
Abraham-Louis Breguet is often regarded as one of the founding fathers of modern watchmaking. Through numerous inventions and the so-called unmistakable signs, he firmly imprinted his mark on the industry. On this date, June 26th, 1801, A.L. Breguet patented what would become his most famous invention, the tourbillon regulator. As a tribute to the genius […]
Worn & Wound
On an unusually warm day in early March, I was invited to visit Sinn headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany. Sinn had prepared a special program including a special exhibition showcasing their technologies over the last 30 years in the main foyer. This was followed by a factory tour, and finally seeing their latest collection. Most of us are familiar with the origins of Sinn, which all started with Helmut Sinn, who was a flight instructor, and former World War II pilot. The company’s core business under his ownership was the manufacturing of navigation clocks and pilot chronographs. In 1994, certified engineer Lothar Schmidt acquired the company from Helmut Sinn and renamed it to “Sinn Spezialuhren GmbH”. Lothar Schmidt worked previously with IWC, and was also part of Günter Blümlein’s team to revive A. Lange & Söhne. This year Sinn is celebrating 30 years since Mr. Schmidt acquired the company. It was a coincidence that the day of my visit, news broke regarding Mr. Schmidt’s succession plans. He will celebrate his 75th birthday this year, and announced plans to create a foundation similar to the Hans Wilsdorf Foundation, that will own the shares of Sinn and its subsidiary companies. Mr. Schmidt also owns the SUG casemaker in the famous watchmaking village of Glashütte. Over the past 30 years, Mr. Schmidt, with his engineering background, has developed several technologies for Sinn watches. In 1995, Ar-Dehumidifying Technology was introduced for the first tim...
Monochrome
Patek Philippe’s World Time models have remained a timeless presence for over three-quarters of a century. Intriguingly, the concept and presentation have undergone little change since introducing the “cleverly designed watch for men with international interests,” as touted in an early advertisement for World Time 1415. Since the inception of the World Time complication, Patek […]
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Worn & Wound
Someday, a history of this period in affordable independent watchmaking will be written, and the chapter on Christopher Ward is going to be the longest in this hypothetical volume, for sure. They’ve been around since 2004, and in the ensuing twenty years have gone through just about every high and low a watch brand can experience. While the ultimate thrust of their story is one of incredible growth, those of us who have been around for a little while can probably remember a time when the thought of Christopher Ward winning GPHG awards and being the toast of the watchmaking town would have been fairly unheard of. The Bel Canto, introduced at the tail end of 2022, changed all that, but the brand had been on an upward trajectory for years before. They’ve come a very long way from being one of the most hotly discussed watch forum brands (so hot, in fact, they have their own forum for C. Ward enthusiasts) know primarily for somewhat generic, but always well made, dive watches. Over the years, they’ve stepped up every facet of their business, with particularly large steps taken in case finishing and movement design. In a very low key way, they are capable of doing things at the higher end of their range that other brands at similar price points simply can’t equal. While the Bel Canto deservedly gets a lot of the press, one my favorite little pockets of Christopher Ward over the last few years has been the inventive way they’ve incorporated the classic moonphase com...
Monochrome
One trend that has asserted itself at Patek Philippe this year is denim, or rather, the colour of blue jeans, appearing on the dials and straps of several novelties, like the Worldtime with Date and Aquanaut Travel Time. A much sought-after model, the Nautilus Flyback Chronograph 5980, was discontinued earlier this year. Much to the […]
Monochrome
Patek Philippe releases a new white gold reference of its popular Aquanaut Travel Time with a greyish-blue dial and matching strap. While many Patek fans mourned the discontinuation of the 5164A stainless steel Aquanaut earlier this year, the new white gold reference – a first for this model – is a handsome addition to the […]
Two Broke Watch Snobs
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Monochrome
It’s been a while since we last saw Clarkson, Hammond and May, whether on screen or here, at MONOCHROME. A few days ago, Amazon Studios unveiled the second to last episode of the three middle-aged men’s car show, The Grand Tour. Combining this and the fact that Top Gear has been taken off air by […]
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Deployant
Patek Philippe are one and synonymous with the classic dress watch, the most famous of which is the Calatrava. The prototypical Calatrava can be described as having a round, slim case made of precious metal, with a clean dial and excellent legibility. While the core of the collection remains true to these principles, that PatekRead More
Worn & Wound
We love a good riff on an existing concept around here, and there’s one candidate in particular that’s ripe for experimentation. The Oris Divers 65 (of Divers Sixty-Five if you’re not into the whole brevity thing) has proven rather malleable in recent years, hosting a variety of colorways, material combinations, dial designs, and even movements. And to its credit, all of them seem to work pretty well. Enter Collective Horology, who are using this watch as a base to their latest collaboration, the C.04, in a shaggy ‘70s inspired take on the watch dubbed, naturally, the Divers Seventy-Five. The Divers Seventy-Five brings back the dateless dial with the retro Arabic numerals marking the cardinal hours. The design feels right at home in the new color scheme, which consists of brown and orange tones throughout the steel case and bracelet. The result is a look that certainly won’t be for everyone, but offers one of the more inventive takes on the watch we’ve seen yet. The color scheme at work here takes inspiration from ‘70s California design according to Asher Rapkin and Gabe Reilly of the Collective, and when set into that context, takes on a slightly different character than your typical brown dial or two-tone watch. The Divers Seventy-Five is built into a 40mm steel case that’s accented by Oris’ bronze bezel and affixed to their bi-metal steel and bronze bracelet, leaning fully into the funky vibes that start at the dial. This is a case we’re fond of ar...
Worn & Wound
Christopher Ward has been on a hot streak over the last year, with the introductions of the Bel Canto and the Twelve collection raising their profile with enthusiasts who veer toward the avant-garde and a style of sleek sports watch that’s in fashion at the moment. These watches have been met with a certain degree of, “Oh, I didn’t know Christopher Ward could do that…” by crops of skeptics who have since been won over. But the fact is, Christopher Ward has been upending expectations and redefining what the brand could be for years. For many in the collector community, a watch that really signified the brand branching out was the C1 Moonglow, which Zach Weiss reviewed here in 2019. A combination of an intricately layered dial design execution and liberal applications of lume in an inherently playful complication was a sign that Christopher Ward had even more ambitious ideas they were willing to play with, and now they’ve introduced a long awaited follow-up to the Moonglow, the C1 Moonphase. Christopher Ward describes this watch as their most ambitious moonphase to date, and it feels very much a part of this newer crop of Christopher Wards that really push the envelope in terms of design, reaching toward ideas that have typically been associated with haute horlogerie in the past. The C1 Moonphase features an aventurine dial, a material often associated with the moonphase complication because of its resemblance to the night sky. Aventurine is essentially glass tha...
Worn & Wound
A good friend of mine leans heavily toward the category of pilot watches. He’s not a pilot, but he likes the way pilot watches look, how legible they are, and the rich history that propelled them to occupy an important role in Swiss brands’ catalogs. I lean heavily towards the genre of dive watches, and although I’m not a professional diver, I do occasionally explore the world below the surface. I have been drawn to dive watches because of their inherent robustness and versatility, as well because I have a particular affinity for any large body of water. This means, in other words, that I mostly wear dive watches and that I’m always on the lookout for the next one to add to my collection. At the risk of bragging a little, I’ve gotten my hands on many Christopher Ward models in the past three years. But for some strange reason, I’ve never looked at a Trident in the metal. This is odd because it is the collection that the British brand is perhaps the most known for. And this might be due to the fact that, over the past few years, Christopher Ward has revamped the Trident collection multiple times, updating the designs, improving upon the case profile and dimensions, and continuously bettering the finish. Or, in Christopher Ward terms, giving us better bangs for our bucks. So today is a special day as I got to spend some time with the 38mm C60 Trident Pro 300. An Enthusiast Driven Design We watch enthusiasts are not only enthusiasts about horology but we som...
Worn & Wound
Boldr is an exciting young brand based our of Singapore and Malaysia and they really live up to their mantra of “Be Boldr”. With an impressive lineup of tool watches under their belt, Boldlr is becoming known for their serious value proposition, crafting spec-packed watches that fall within very reasonable price ranges. Today, we’re happy to announce that their newest collaboration with Nitecore is now in the Windup Watch Shop. Let’s take a look at this unique and fun meeting of the brands, where the result is a dinosaur-themed mashup that’s sure to bring out your inner child. Boldr is an exciting young brand based our of Singapore and Malaysia and they really live up to their mantra of “Be Boldr”. With an impressive lineup of tool watches under their belt, Boldlr is becoming known for their serious value proposition, crafting spec-packed watches that fall within very reasonable price ranges. Today, we’re happy to announce that their newest collaboration with Nitecore is now in the Windup Watch Shop. Let’s take a look at this unique and fun meeting of the brands, where the result is a dinosaur-themed mashup that’s sure to bring out your inner child. The post Now In The Windup Watch Shop: Nitecore x Boldr Go Prehistoric On A New Collab appeared first on Worn & Wound.
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Worn & Wound
For the last few months, Christopher Ward has received an unprecedented amount of attention from watch media and the enthusiast public for the release of the Bel Canto, a genuine industry phenomenon that has won over collectors of all stripes. The release was honestly timed just about perfectly, allowing the brand to get it into the hands of fans just ahead of the holiday shopping season and all of the listmaking that tends to happen at the end of the year, where the Bel Canto figured prominently. Supplemental releases in additional colorways have since sold out, and it appears that CW is ready to ride the Bel Canto wave throughout 2023 as the chiming watch is delivered to anxiously awaiting enthusiasts. But the first non Bel Canto related release of the year is something of a return to Christopher Ward’s tool watch roots. No chiming here, and no exposed mechanisms on the dial, showing that Christopher Ward is not moving directly into the haute horlogery sphere just yet. The new C65 Dune series takes the popular C65 sports watch format into a desert inspired aesthetic. The trio of watches is named after Dune du Pilat, the tallest sand dune in Europe, and each watch makes use of tan and beige tones to underline a sandy theme. These are not hardcore tool watches in the traditional sense, though. They make use of Christopher Ward’s excellent “Light-Catcher” case finishing, which highlights unexpected bevels and undercuts in the complex case geometry and adds just a ...
Deployant
The Calatrava is widely considered to be synonymous with the Patek Philippe brand. Ultra-elegant and timeless, it is seen as the very essence of the round dress watch. This philosophy of the Calatrava has been strictly held as gospel since the debut of the watch way back in 1932 – well, until this year anyway.Read More
Quill & Pad
Marc Newson‘s original Hourglass was one of Joshua Munchow's favorite objects of the last decade. And now it’s back and as good as ever, only this time the collaboration is with independent boutique brand De Bethune because it is these artisans who possess the unique ability and knowledge to create the color necessary for the new blued nanoballs inside the shaped, tempered glass.
Revolution
Zenith DEFY consumer perception with two exceptionally high-end new watches from their DEFY range, each mesmerizingly on full view through crystal sapphire.
Deployant
Casio releases the 2nd collaboration with Pokémon, with another Pikachu model - a more sporty model in pastel pink, detailed with Pikachu elements.
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