Results for Sea-Dweller

SIHH 2015: The Rotonde de Cartier Astrotourbillon Skeleton

In its various forms, the Astrotourbillon is emblematic of Cartier’s multifaceted approach to haute horlogerie. Launched in 2010 after five years of research and development, the groundbreaking movement design freed the tourbillion from its static role compensating for the effects of gravity and allowed it to circle the dial in an elongated carriage with an […]

Pre-SIHH 2015: The Montblanc TimeWalker Urban Speed e-Strap

We live in an age defined by portable computing, but nailing wearable computing has –at least so far –proven to be much more elusive.  While there has been a lot of soul-searching occasioned by things like Google Glass and so-called smart watches (which, thus far, have been more notable for interesting failures than resounding successes, […]

First Look: Christophe Claret X-Trem 1 “Pinball” For Only Watch

It’s time once again for Only Watch –the biennial charity auction to benefit research into finding more effective therapies, and ultimately a cure, for muscular dystrophy.  Hot off the presses is this contribution from Christophe Claret: a pinball themed version of his X-Trem 1 watch, which shows the time with two magnetically suspended steel balls. […]

Over the Hill: Understanding High-Tech Ceramic on the Material’s 40th Birthday

Material innovation is increasingly becoming a core pillar within the watch industry. Whether borrowing and reconfiguring materials from different industries or composing your own from the ground up, it is clear materials matter when it comes to both technical feats and aesthetics achieved in watchmaking today. Sometimes, I like to think of these cutting-edge materials as mile markers on the highway of horology. I am always considering the world 50 or 100 years from now, when the watches of the present will become the watches of yesteryear, when what we consider modern will become vintage. I believe that the application of new materials will be a mark of this era of watchmaking that will serve as a milestone moment in the ever-unfolding history of horology. For Rado, the story starts with a sapphire crystal. While the brand was not the first to use this in place of acrylic or other weaker options, it was among the early adopters. However, Rado took it a step further by patenting a sliding water-sealed mechanism with a tension-fit construction. Here, the thick, faceted sapphire crystal was secured under high pressure into the oval-shaped hard metal case with a specialized gasket, designed to be exceptionally tight. Its effectiveness sparked further curiosity – what if this same scratch resistance and robustness could be applied to other parts of the watch or the watch in its entirety? With that guiding principle, the quest that would lead to the creation of high-tech cera...

Bring a Loupe: A White-Gold Vacheron Constantin, An IWC Mark XII, And A Cartier Bamboo Coussin

It was bound to happen. I've written nine Bring a Loupes, covering 38 watches (excluding Strays or Buyer Beware watches). Two weeks back, I picked a clunker of a Doxa Sub 300T, which, among other issues, had the wrong hands (I'd actually been more concerned with the dial), and in my enthusiasm for vintage Doxa divers, I screwed up and included it. My apologies, though, as Coleman Hawkins consoles, "If you aren't making mistakes, you aren't really trying." Scorekeeping the picks from two weeks ago, the Esso Breguet sold for €15,2000, the Juvenia Arithmo's still available, the Blancpain Bund sold for €15,500, the Doxa Sub 300T passed, the Chaumet sells Friday afternoon and has been bid to $12,000 at the time of writing, and the black dialed Seamaster sold for CHF 1,000. Strays A Universal Genève Railrouter. For sale on OmegaForums. A Gübelin Cioccolatone at Monaco Legend this weekend. For absolutely no reason whatsoever, here's a lovely Doxa Sub 300. As Stefon (from SNL) would say, this watch has it all: original (correct!) black hands, no-T dial, signed expandro bracelet and screw-down crown, and, of course, the OG thin case. These early thin-cased Doxa Sub 300s were made for only a year, and aside from minor paint loss on the bezel, this looks like an excellent example. If the Doxa's not your flavor and/or diving's not your bag, maybe this UG Railrouter'll do it for you. I have an overdeveloped fondness for railroad watches, which fondness is equaled by my appreciati...

Photo Report: Watch Spotting At Oliver Smith Jeweler’s Annual Cars & Cigars

The annual holiday gathering of car and watch collectors has become a festive staple of the season in Scottsdale.

Sean Lim, Inside a $5 Million Watch Vault | The Collector’s Perspective

James Bond Watches: 50 Years of 007's Timepieces

James Bond has been a pop culture icon for more than half a century and his watches have been a subject of intense discussion, debate, and speculation for nearly as long. From Connery to Craig, from Rolex to Seiko to Omega, and with other iconic actors and notable timepieces in between, here is the complete guide to the eclectic watches worn throughout 50+ years of James Bond movies.  And for anyone interested in this topic, we are really excited to share our new video The Watches Of James Bond hosted by none other than Mark Bernardo, our very own verifiable font of knowledge for all things 007 and watches. This is a feature video so we recommend getting comfortable, having some snacks and beverages ready, and watching it on the biggest screen you've got. This is going to be fun. [toc-section heading="1962-1971: The Sean Connery Era"] Dr. No (1962), From Russia with Love (1963), Goldfinger (1964) - Rolex Submariner Ref. 6538; Thunderball (1965) - Breitling Top Time; You Only Live Twice (1967), Diamonds Are Forever (1971) - Gruen 510 Precision The speculation over what wristwatch James Bond would or should wear on his demanding missions is one that predated even the first movie, 1962’s Dr. No. Ian Fleming, Bond’s creator and the writer of the original novels that inspired the long-running movie series, was known to wear a Rolex Explorer, specifically Reference 1016. On the relatively rare instances in which Fleming (below) refers to Bond’s watch in print, he e...

Introducing: IWC Announces Two New Limited-Edition Pilot’s Watches With F1 Driver George Russell

Ahead of the new F1 season, IWC announces its first collaboration with an F1 driver.

Revolution Awards 2025: Best Women’s Watch - Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra 150M 30mm, Moonshine Gold on Moonshine Gold

It's Complicated: A Vacheron Constantin Overseas And Losing A Fight Against Hamburgers

How Guest Editor Eddie Huang found peace with a Vacheron QP while the menu for his new restaurant forced an existential crisis.

Introducing: Omega Launches The Fourth Generation Seamaster 'Planet Ocean,' And It's A BIG Update (Live Pics)

With a new case, updated movement for the core collection, and a new bracelet. New, new, new.

Hands-on – The New Titanium Jacques Bianchi JB300 Profonde x Deepsea.edc

Every brand from Apple to Zenith touts at least one watch that is “built for adventure”, “to stand the test of time”, or to “take a licking and keep on ticking” (okay, maybe that last one is less current). One look at the watch marketing out there today, and you will be inundated with images […]

Stowa General Manager Kevin Müller Continues the Brand’s Long Enthusiast Legacy

Change is a scary thing. Change at a small, enthusiast-favorite brand is downright terrifying. As watch collectors and enthusiasts, we’re constantly on the lookout for the next thing - the new exciting brand, the unexpected novelty, the rising watchmaker yet to be truly discovered. But that search for the ‘new’ is only possible thanks to the reliable backstop certain brands have built for enthusiasts since the modern enthusiast market developed in the latter part of the 20th century. Stowa is absolutely one of these backstop brands. A reliable step on the ladder for developing enthusiasts, Stowa - which was founded in 1927 but has existed in its modern form since 1996 - has sat squarely at the heart of the watch community as long as I’ve been interested in watches. As long as I’ve been aware of them, Stowa has been the place to go for high-quality, affordable pilots’ and marine watches, and has paired those standards with elegant Bauhaus-inspired dress watches and chronographs (among other things). That much is absolutely still true, but you’d be forgiven for expressing concern when, in 2021, Jörg Schauer (who had owned and operated the brand since 1996) sold Stowa to Tempus Arte, the German watch group best known for their ownership of Dresden-based Lang & Heyne (who in turn are best known for their highly finished tri-lugged case architecture). Since then, there has been a tremendous amount of hemming and hawing over the existential question of Stowa...

How Ulysse Nardin’s Freak-Mentality Has Taught the Industry to Keep Watchmaking Forward-Thinking and Fun

When Ulysse Nardin unveiled the Freak in 2001, it set off a chain of events that forever changed the course of history for the brand and for the industry at large. The model seamlessly flexed a combination of technical and design achievements. The Freak offered material innovation that was far ahead of its time, introducing the use of silicon in the escapement wheels-a technology that is now used by almost every major watch brand from Rolex to Patek Philippe, Girard-Perregaux, Breitling, and Jaeger-LeCoultre, just to name a few. It also presented an entirely new set of aesthetic codes for watch design with an expression of time that notably lacked a traditional dial, hands, or crown. With the Freak’s overall success, it immediately established the brand as a thought leader, an innovator, and (perhaps most importantly) a rebel in an industry often paralyzed by its reverence and steadfast commitment to tradition.  In the nearly 25-years since the first Freak, we have seen Ulysse Nardin infuse this spirit in each subsequent Freak model and its catalog at large-from the Blast collection to its UFO clocks and, most recently, in its record breaking Diver [Air], the world’s lightest mechanical dive watch.  The first Freak We all know record setting has become a bit of a thing in watchmaking. Particularly in the past decade or so, we have witnessed brands embark on the race to claim the next world record title. Since 2014, Bulgari has set a whopping ten for the ultra-thi...

Watches, Stories, & Gear: Video Games Galore, Screeching Seagulls, and Leica’s Newest Safari Model

“Watches, Stories, and Gear” is a roundup of our favorite content, watch or otherwise, from around the internet. Here, we support other creators, explore interesting content that inspires us, and put a spotlight on causes we believe in. Oh, and any gear we happen to be digging on this week. We love gear. Retro Gaming Inspired EDC Whether you’re matching a few pieces or building out an entire carry, choosing a theme can make those decisions just a tiny bit easier.  Our good friends over at Tactile Turn and Tactile Knife, fueled by 90’s nostalgia, have crafted up two new pieces for your retro inspired EDC.  As part of their “Seasonal Release” series, Tactile Turn created the “16-Bit” pen and pencil, a worthy successor to their 2023 8-bit release. Built from their titanium models, both the pen and pencil feature a grey cerakoted body with purple cerakoted accents, reminiscent of the SNES console, a custom engraved “scope” pocket clip, and “Eject” engraved near the pen release / lead advancement button. Complementing these models is a limited release Bexar slipjoint from Tactile Knife that features a similar colorway (grey scales, purple accents), with the “scope” pattern engraved on the scales, magnacut blade and a titanium lanyard bead. While orders for the pen and pencil will be open until June 30th, Tactile Knife has stated that only one run of the 16-bit Bexars will be made, and that they are “one and done”.  More information for the pen...

[VIDEO] Owner’s Review: Omega Seamaster Professional Diver 300M 2220.80.00

“That makes perfect sense, since MI6 looks for maladjusted young men who’d give little thought to sacrificing others in order to protect queen and country. You know, former SAS types with easy smiles and expensive watches - Rolex?” “Omega.” I’m not James Bond. I know it may come as a surprise, but I don’t spend my time playing in high-stakes poker games (or baccarat, if you prefer the books), I don’t chase terrorists across European cities, and I don’t save the world from a colorful megalomaniac every few years. But I do have a bit of a crush on Eva Green, and I do wear an Oh-meeg-uh, so I guess I can forgive the confusion. Specifically, and for about the last half-decade, I’ve been wearing a reference 2220.80.00 Omega Seamaster Professional Diver 300M, the same watch worn by Daniel Craig in the infamous train car scene of Casino Royale quoted above, and, for my money, the best Seamaster to come out of Bern, maybe ever. I don’t make that claim lightly. The Seamaster is, by the standards of a ‘luxury’ watch, remarkably ubiquitous. I see Seamasters a lot - on the wrists of my bartenders, on the subway, and almost every time I move through an airport. A lot of that is thanks to one thing: Bond. But while most people know the Seamaster thanks to its starring role in three decades worth of Bond films, the name goes back far further - all the way to 1946.  Granted, those first Seamasters have very little to do with the dive watches we most associ...

Introducing: The Metric Chrono Regulator Returns With A Lumed Dial In Worn & Wound's New Collaboration With Brew Watch Co.

The retro colors takes a backseat for something more monochromatic (until you turn off the lights).

Frédéric Arnault Departs LVMH Watches, to Become Loro Piana CEO

A year after being tapped to head the LVMH Watch Division, Frédéric Arnault has been named the next chief executive of Loro Piana. Mr Arnault will assume the top job at the Italian maker of clothing and shoes in June 2025. Loro Piana is synonymous with “quiet luxury” for its emphasis on materials, restrained colours, and discreet branding, but it has become successful enough that the Loro Piana look is ironically recognisable while its trademark Summer Walk boat shoes have become footwear’s equivalent of the steel Rolex Daytona. Though only 18 months long, Mr Arnault’s leadership of the French group’s watch brands saw a management renewal across all its three brands, namely TAG Heuer, Hublot, and Zenith, as well as the announcement of a group-wide strategy for movement industrialisation and production. The period has also been a challenging one for the watch industry, with a sustained pullback in demand for watches that peaked during the pandemic. According to insiders, Mr Arnault also played a leading role in sealing the decade-long sponsorship deal with Formula 1. His ascension to the top job at Loro Piana part of succession planning at LVMH, the world’s largest luxury group. Mr Arnault’s successor at the watch division has yet to be announced, but his predecessor at Loro Piana, Damien Bertrand, will move onto the deputy chief executive job at Louis Vuitton.  

Apiar Pushes the Limits of Additive Manufacturing with the Gen1.B for British Watchmaker’s Day

A concept that we’re always coming back to at Worn & Wound is the thrill of discovering something new. This is fundamentally what the Windup Watch Fairs are all about, this idea that anyone can walk into a show and happen across something that is completely new and exciting, whether you’re a seasoned veteran of the hobby or brand new to it. While I certainly admit to a bit of a bias toward the unusual having worked in the space long enough to become a bit tired of the generic, for me this has always been key to my enthusiasm, and I’m just a lot more likely to stop and read a press release or pick up and try on a watch if it looks, sounds, or feels unfamiliar to me. That’s the feeling I had when I came across the press release for the new release Apiar, a British brand who will sell five examples of the new Gen1.B at the upcoming British Watchmaker’s Day event in March. Apiar is a brand I had only a passing familiarity with – they are a relatively new brand on the affordable indie scene – and I found the images of the Gen1.B to be quite striking and the concept behind the brand interesting in its own right.  Apiar was founded by Matt Oosthuizen and Sam White, a designer and engineer, respectively. They bring a contemporary, tech forward approach to watchmaking, and are building the brand on a trio of core principles: Build Impossible, Build Sustainable, and Build British. The idea is to create watches that take on shapes and forms that in their design that ha...

Introducing: Omega's Seamaster 37mm "Milano Cortina 2026" Is The Brand's First Release For The 2026 Winter Olympics

Omega pull at its deep history making Olympics watches for a rather cool new release.

Watches, Stories, & Gear: Baz Luhrmann’s New Bar, a New Safdie Brothers Project, and the LVMH Olympic Medals are Falling Apart

“Watches, Stories, and Gear” is a roundup of our favorite content, watch or otherwise, from around the internet. Here, we support other creators, explore interesting content that inspires us, and put a spotlight on causes we believe in. Oh, and any gear we happen to be digging on this week. We love gear. Share your story ideas or interesting finds with us by emailing info@wornandwound.com. The Latest From Tactile Turn  You know we’re pretty big fans of Tactile Turn’s pens around here, so we definitely wanted to highlight their latest seasonal release. The “Groove” is inspired by a love of music and vinyl record culture. The inky black pen (sorry for the pun) is meant to conjure the grooves of a vinyl record, and it’s paired with an “LP” edition that is a bit bolder and colorful, recalling colored viny and 1970s design cues. Both are available in Tactile Turn’s side click configuration in three sizes. The standard black is priced at $149, while the LP is priced at $179. Find more information at Tactile Turn’s website right here. The Timepiece Gentleman Saga Comes to an End  We don’t always cover legal news here in Watches, Stories, & Gear, but when we do, it usually involves the most infamous watch related Ponzi scheme any of us can recall (and perhaps the only one)? Anthony Farrer, otherwise known as the Timepiece Gentleman, became a YouTube sensation during the pandemic, giving viewers a behind the scenes look at the life of a high flying watch d...

Introducing: Frederique Constant's Classic Moneta Moonphase, Now Available Stateside

An affordable and attractive quartz watch that was only available overseas in Europe now hits American shores.

Hands-On: Two Unlikely Watches That Became The Face Of Omega's Olympics – The BG859 And The Aqua Terra 150 'Ultra Light' 'Duplantis'

It makes sense the Olympics would be all about the Speedmaster or Seamaster, but these two watches have won me over for two different reasons.

Imperial China’s “Seawater, River, Cliff” Inspires Vacheron Constantin Métiers d’Art

Continuing its recent run of watches dedicated to great art and ancient cultures, Vacheron Constantin (VC) now turns to the decorative symbolism of Imperial China. The Métiers d’Art Tribute to Traditional Symbols “Eternal Flow” and “Moonlight Slivers” are a pair of elaborately decorated watches inspired by 海水江崖纹, or “seawater, river, and cliff”, a highly symbolic motif employed during the Ming and Qing dynasties. Executed in a variety of decorative techniques, the dials of the Métiers d’Art pair are subtle reinterpretations of the traditional motif. “Eternal Flow” is rendered in vivid cloisonné enamel and the more striking of the duo. “Moonlight Slivers”, on the other hand, is set with diamonds but presents a more restrained, stylised take on the pattern. “Eternal Flow” Initial thoughts VC has a good track record at reproducing art on its watch dials. The Les Cabinotiers “Thunder God” and “Wind God” is a prime example of that. The Tribute to Traditional Symbols are similarly successful, though each of the pair is distinct from the other. “Moonlight Slivers” is almost low-key with its dark blue enamel, though the diamond setting gives it a bit of glamour. It also feels more modern. At a distance the motif appears almost geometric and abstract, particularly in this monochromatic execution. “Moonlight Slivers” In contrast, “Eternal Flow” is full Technicolour with the Imperial robe motif in all its glory. It’s almo...