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Monochrome
A new collaboration between our Dutch fellows from Fratello and independent watchmaker Czapek has just landed. Following their first and successful collaboration, which was a green take on the brand’s luxury sports watch with an integrated bracelet, the Antarctique Passage de Drake, the Dutch magazine is back with its signature Viridian Green colour, but on […]
Worn & Wound
There’s a bit of dialogue toward the end of Willy Wonka and The Chocolate Factory from 1971 that goes: Wonka: but Charlie… Don’t forget what happened to the man who suddenly got everything he wanted. Charlie: What happened? Wonka: He lived happily ever after. An inversion of the typical “be careful what you wish for” sentiment that puts a rosy tint on the morbid but wonderful film, I can’t help but hear it play in my head when I look at the current state of independent watches. Once, there was a dearth of brands and originality, and now, there is almost too much. Well, not almost; there is. We went from a time when unique options were few and far between, making any that popped up all the more rare and exciting, to now, when they are almost common. I’M PRETTY SURE WE’RE CHARLIE IN THIS STORY What an absurd state of affairs! Am I actually complaining about there being too much originality? Well, no, but yes (mainly for this article and humor). You see, I used to be easily seduced by these new and unique pieces, but now, I have decision paralysis. Oh, the horror! In reality, this is remarkable. We’ve wondered for years what brands would do when the vintage craze ran its course and a need for originality returned. Rather than purely wild watches that depart from tradition entirely (though there are many), we’ve seen smaller brands invest in research, development, and craft to create watches that, at least, I would not have thought possible a handful of yea...
SJX Watches
In an unexpected twist, Jérôme Lambert will return to the top job at Jaeger-LeCoultre (JLC), some 11 years after he left the same role. Mr Lambert’s first spell as chief executive of JLC, which lasted from 2002 to 2013, was a major success. During the 11 years, the brand developed into a contender in haute horlogerie while maintaining its affordable appeal in simpler watches. He then moved on to run Montblanc for almost four years until early 2017, before rising to a series of senior jobs in Richemont, the luxury group that owns JLC. In 2018 Mr Lambert was named chief executive of the group, but in June 2024 he was reassigned. Mr Lambert became chief operating officer, while Nicolas Bos succeeded him as chief executive. In some ways, Mr Lambert is a JLC lifer – he began his professional career in 1996 in the finance department of JLC. When he was tapped to lead JLC in 2002, he was one of the youngest chief executives in watchmaking. The two chief executives who ran JLC after Mr Lambert never quite led the brand to the same heights, so many will be hoping his comeback also signals a return to earlier glory.
Fratello
At the beginning of 2024, Tissot introduced four watches under the name PR516. They were all chronographs, three of which had quartz movements while the last one housed a hand-wound mechanical caliber. Just like the new time-and-date models we’re looking at today, they were inspired by Tissot watches from the ’60s. However, these new Powermatic […] Visit Introducing: The New Tissot PR516 Powermatic 80 In Four Fun Variations to read the full article.
Monochrome
Louis Erard continues to expand its portfolio of special editions made with renowned watchmakers and designers – such as Kudoke, Alain Silberstein, Cédric Johner or Massena LAB. The latest instalment is a collaboration with Vianney Halter, resulting in two versions of the new Régulateur Louis Erard, which draw inspiration from Steampunk aesthetics and showcase Halter’s […]
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SJX Watches
Breguet gently revamps its flagship chronograph, the Tradition Chronographe Indépendant 7077, with the addition of “Breguet Blue” dial matched with a movement finished in dark grey. Originally only available with a classic silvered guilloche dial, the Tradition chronograph now gains a more modern look with a deep blue and grey palette, while retaining the same innovative chronograph movement. Initial thoughts The Tradition collection is one of the modern-day Breguet’s triumphs. Launched in 2005, the collection draws heavily from the watchmaker’s historic souscription and montre à tact pocket watches, which were created by A.-L. Breguet himself. Tradition models adopt the highly original movement construction of the pocket watches, transforming them into wristwatch format. The going train layout, frosted bridges, and pare-chute shock-absorbers, for instance, all are faithful to the historic pieces. Unique in itself for its chronograph construction, the Chronographe Indépendant 7077 is among the most complicated models in the Tradition collection. The original look of a silver guilloché dial worked well, but the deep blue colour of the new model works even better in complementing the exposed mechanics. The chronograph, reinvented The Tradition chronograph exists somewhat outside of the established norms of a chronograph movement, namely the vertical clutch and horizontal coupling. It features a chronograph architecture that is unique in the industry. The cal....
Worn & Wound
Collective Horology, the Southern California based retailer of independent watches, has unveiled their most recent collaboration, their second with Zenith. The Zenith Defy Skyline C.X follows the El Primero C.01, Collective’s very first limited edition which was released into a very different watch landscape in 2019. Collective has changed along with the watch industry – they’ve become a full fledged retailer of independent watch brands, and have nixed the “members only” concept that the company was born with. It’s fair to say that Collective’s scope has widened considerably since 2019: their goal seems to be spreading the gospel of independent watchmaking at a huge range of price points to anyone who will listen, while continuing to hone in on storytelling in their own limited edition releases to make each of them feel special in their own way. The Skyline C.X takes the latest version of Zenith’s Defy Skyline and strips it back aesthetically to resemble an imagined version of what the watch might have been had it debuted in the 1970s when the Defy collection was beginning to take shape. The theme Collective and Zenith are playing with for this edition is that of midcentury industrial design. To that end, virtually every surface of the case (and bracelet) has been given a micro blasted finish for a sleek, industrial look, and the familiar star motif seen on most Skyline dials has been given a dramatic gradient effect, with the engraved stars appeari...
Monochrome
Doxa is renowned for crafting rugged watches with a focus on functionality – tool watches, all featuring that toughness, high-water resistance or scratch-proof sapphire crystal you expect from utilitarian divers. Today, mechanical watches are as much luxury items as they are functional tools. In response to “strong demand from markets”, the brand’s compact and rather […]
Monochrome
The year 1969 proved to be pivotal for Zenith. The manufacture introduced the El Primero automatic chronograph, which would become one of the most influential movements ever made. Besides that monumental feat, it also launched the formidable Defy collection that year. This sporty series of watches had an unprecedented design, with an octagonal case topped […]
Worn & Wound
Sébastien Muller, a fourth-generation watchmaker, founded Brellum in 2017. Unlike many new brands, they did not pursue crowdfunding but adopted a more traditional approach. The first model released by Brellum was the Duobox, which was covered by Worn & Wound here. Since then, we have reported on several other releases by the brand. However, despite this coverage and similar attention from other outlets, Brellum does not appear to have the same visibility or market presence as many competitors. That is the impression I have, at least. Since 2017, they have quietly expanded into multiple product lines, exhibiting strong and distinctive brand coherence. They have successfully established their brand identity in such a way that their models are instantly recognizable as Brellum watches. In an industry as prolific, diverse, and prone to imitation as ours, achieving a high level of brand consistency is more challenging than one might expect, particularly if your designs are conservative. However, their watches do possess some flair, and all feature high-grade chronometer-certified movements. For 2024, Brellum is introducing a smaller version of their most popular model, the Duobox, along with a new chronograph movement in their collection. Introducing the Duobox 39 Chronometer Limited Edition. This watch is essentially a 39mm version featuring subdials at the 3, 6, and 9 positions. Many consider this arrangement more aesthetically pleasing than the standard ETA/VJ7750 dial layo...
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Fratello
Having past ambassadors who became icons in their fields of activity is priceless. Some of these connections are real, and some are more of a wish. It’s important to navigate through tons of lies and fairytales made up to boost the value of vintage watches and just stick to the facts. Jim Clark or Stirling […] Visit #TBT Racing Legends Jim Clark And Stirling Moss Wearing Enicar Watches to read the full article.
SJX Watches
Audemars Piguet (AP) debuts an entirely new look for its thinnest-ever perpetual with the Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar Ultra-Thin Greater China. Crafted entirely in yellow gold in a first for the model, the limited edition even sports a gilded dial with matching yellow gold moon disc. Initial thoughts The Royal Oak is inarguably the face of AP. And amongst Royal Oak models, the ultra-thin perpetual calendar stands out for its technical sophistication. Derived from the Royal Oak RD#2 concept watch, the Perpetual Calendar Ultra-Thin has a cleverly engineered movement that spreads out the calendar mechanism to minimise its height. That results in a slim case that enhances the proportions of the Royal Oak design. The signature starry moon phase features yellow gold-toned moons The Greater China edition is a major departure from the grey and blue tones of the prior two versions. It’s loud and definitely not for everyone, but it does look good. At the same time, it also references vintage Royal Oak perpetual calendar models that featured similar all-gold livery. Though the price is only on request, the Perpetual Calendar Ultra-Thin mode in general is pricey, arguably more expensive than it should be in fact, but it looks and feels great on the wrist. Yellow moons Crafted from 18k yellow gold, the ultra-thin yellow gold case is 41 mm in diameter and 6.2 mm in thickness. Water resistant to only 20 m due to its thinness, the case is finished in traditional Royal Oak style, wit...
Monochrome
The 2024 edition of the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève has just unveiled the grand winner of this year’s awards ceremony! Often regarded as the Oscars of Watchmaking, the GPHG stands for a celebration of all things surrounding mechanical watchmaking. A specially selected jury, which included our founder and editor-in-chief Frank Geelen, has narrowed down […]
Time+Tide
Now you don't have to worry about which colour to choose when picking your ceramic Bathyscaphe.The post Blancpain rounds out the Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe ceramic collection with new dials appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Fratello
Glashütte Original has come with two new watches featuring bold, bright dials. The new SeaQ Chronograph Silver Screen is a sporty addition to the regular catalog. For those interested in a dressy limited edition with a guilloché dial, consider the PanoLunarInverse. Are you ready to check out both? With these latest models, Glashütte Original introduces […] Visit Glashütte Original Introduces A New SeaQ Chronograph And The PanoLunarInverse to read the full article.
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Monochrome
It’s a given that the vast majority of mechanical watches rely on round or circular cases to portray the passing of time. After all, it makes the most sense, right? Hands rotate in a circular motion, which leads to circular dials and cases. But what if you’re looking for a different vibe in a more […]
SJX Watches
One of the most valuable watches to go on the block this auction season is the Rolex Daytona “Rainbow” 16599SAAEC. Part of Phillips’ Reloaded auction taking place on November 8, 2024, the Zenith-powered Daytona is the original “Rainbow”, having been produced in 1994, some 18 years before the serially-produced Daytona “Rainbow” was introduced. Like all automatic Daytona models prior to 2000, this Daytona “Rainbow” is powered by the cal. 4030, which is a Zenith El Primero modified by Rolex. But this Daytona is unique in having a singular model reference of 16599 followed by the suffix “SAAEC”, short for saphir arc-en-ciel, French for “sapphire rainbow”. A rainbow history Though the Daytona “Rainbow” is perhaps the most famous gem-set Rolex model today, it took a while to catch on when it was introduced. It debuted as a regular production model in 2012 with the Daytona ref. 116598RBOW in yellow gold and ref. 116599RBOW in white gold. The Daytona ref. 116599RBOW in white gold At launch the Daytona “Rainbow” was not the object of frenzied desire as it is now, but by 2018 it was sought after. And that year Rolex debuted the Daytona ref. 116595RBOW in Everose gold that boasted the upgrade of baguette-cut rainbow indices. The facelift was also applied to the yellow and white gold versions, both of which now sport baguette-cut rainbow indices as well. As with the first generation model, variants with gem-set dials and bracelets also exist. The Day...
Worn & Wound
We live in a very good time for independent watchmaking. I know that may sound like an oddly specific metric by which to judge the world, but it’s true. There was a time, not so long ago, when an enthusiast watch collector looking for a highly complicated watch would have struggled to find what they were looking for outside the worlds of Patek Philippe or Audemars Piguet. Perhaps the occasional Blancpain or Breguet might make a splash, but in the wake of the quartz crisis, the contracted watch industry focused on what it did best for the sake of its own survival, and we should all be grateful for that. Thankfully, in 2024, those days are gone, or at least mitigated. Since the mid-‘90s, the rise of independents has been one of the watch industry’s key narrative arcs, and, now, collectors looking to patronize the sort of small, unique, highly technical brands lost to them in the ‘70s and ‘80s are truly spoiled for choice. It is out of this transition that Laurent Ferrier has emerged not only as one of the watch world’s preeminent names but as a perfect encapsulation of how the industry has evolved over the last few decades. And there is no better watch to summarize that point than Laurent Ferrier’s new Classic Moon, introduced at Watches and Wonders earlier this year. But before getting to that watch, it’s worth spending a little bit of time thinking about Laurent Ferrier (the person, not the brand). Now, I’m not going to give you a complete accounting of t...
Teddy Baldassarre
I enjoy a good retro-revival, but I especially love it when it’s a super-niche piece like the Girard-Perregaux Casquette. First introduced back in the 1970s, the very cool Casquette was brought back in 2022 in the form of the Casquette 2.0. According to GP, something like 8,000 examples of the original Casquette were produced between 1976 and 1978. That unique driver-style case with LED display was basically unchanged for the 2.0, which came in a slick, black ceramic case. Now, we see the release of a new Girard-Perregaux Casquette 2.0 Titanium and Gold, which I was able to get my hands on and spend some time with. Luxury digital watches are few and far between but I have to say, there is nothing like the Casquette out there. As someone who has seen and handled just about every watch out there, I personally would rather plunk down just shy of five grand on this digital watch over many, many mechanical pieces in that price range. Where the inaugural Casquette 2.0 was done in a black ceramic and bracelet, this new iteration opts for a Grade 5 titanium case with yellow-gold GP logo and pushers and a matching titanium bracelet with rubber lining. It is absolutely insane to see this level of quality and finishing on an LED-display watch, but it sparks so much joy in my heart to see a brand have the guts to do so. The case dimensions are spot-on for a piece that needs some wrist presence to properly convey its vibes. The sleek, angular case measures 42.4mm tall and 33.6mm wi...
Monochrome
Tudor‘s connection with military forces is no secret anymore. The most famous of these partnerships is, without a doubt, the co-creation of specific dive watches for the French Marine Nationale, which resulted in some of the most appealing mil-spec models ever made by Tudor. Revived in 2021 with the launch of the Pelagos FXD platform, […]
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Teddy Baldassarre
About 15 years ago I came across a brand out of the Netherlands called d.m.h. which was, in reality, a single person by the name of Fred Dingemans, working out of a shed in his backyard. His creations were raw and slightly impractical, but they were also a pure expression of creativity, and unwaveringly original. These watches were captivating at a glance, showcasing a similar level of creative fidelity to what we were seeing from the likes of Urwerk and MB&F; at the time. This is a quality sorely taken for granted these days, with most of the newcomers wisely choosing to play it safe with practical, conventionally attractive creations that can go anywhere, and do anything. I have a well-documented love of practical tool watches that can go anywhere and do anything, but I often lament the homogeneous nature of watch design that this trend has brought us to. Truly novel expressions are a rare sight these days, but there has been exactly one to cross my radar over the past year that has brought a similar feeling to seeing a d.m.h. watch all those years ago, and that is the kollokium projekt 01. My first glimpse of kollokium came when I spotted one on the wrist of one of the co-founders while attending the Dubai Watch Week events of 2023. This individual, uncoincidentally, is also responsible for the avant-garde creations coming out of Louis Errard these days. His name is Manuel Emch, and he is one of three men (the others being Barth Nussbaumer, and Amr Sindi) behind koll...
Monochrome
Since its founding in 2001, MeisterSinger has introduced various functional complications to its single-hand watches, including jumping hours, moon phases, and even the Bell Hora series, which chimes on the hour. In 2022, the Münster-based brand unveiled the all-new Primatic collection, adding a power reserve watch to its lineup. Though MeisterSinger had previously incorporated this […]
SJX Watches
One of the first brands to invert a movement and showcase it on the dial, Glashütte Original just released the PanoLunarInverse, a sibling of the PanoLunarTourbillon and PanoMaticInverse. Like the earlier models, the PanoLunarInverse has key parts of the movement on the dial, including the balance wheel, escapement, and three-quarter plate that’s finished with with pyramid guilloche. In addition, it features the brand’s oversized Panorama date at two o’clock and a large moon phase display. Initial thoughts Older Pano models tended to be conservative in style. The PanoLunarInverse, on the other hand, is modern in colour and decoration, setting it apart from its Pano siblings. The inverted construction is made more interesting with the pyramid guilloche, while the moon phase adds a bit of romance to the technical appearance of the dial. Some models in Glashütte Original’s Pano collection bring to mind the asymmetrical dial layout of another German brand (which is partly why Glashütte Original has never escaped the shadows of its peers), but the PanoLunarInverse feels original because of the combination of colour, decoration, and complication. Priced at US$42,600, the PanoLunarInverse is one of the pricier watches in the Pano collection, but it is reasonably priced considering the platinum case and movement decoration. This is typical of Glashütte Original, which sits in the accessible high horology segment alongside brands like Jaeger-LeCoultre. Inverse German wa...
SJX Watches
Panerai raised some eyebrows when it installed the newly developed perpetual calendar movement in the beefy Luminor. Now the brand brings the complication to its more elegant, but still oversized, wristwatch with the Radiomir Perpetual Calendar GMT Goldtech PAM01453. Initial thoughts The Radiomir collection has always been Panerai’s most elegant offering, with some older models even being dress watches, albeit in Panerai style. The slimmer cushion-shaped case, wire lugs, and onion crown evoke the early wristwatches. Compared to the bulkier Luminor, the Radiomir is more adaptable in terms of design and complications, and consequently sometimes departs from the brand’s signature military look. A complication such as a perpetual calendar tends to fit better in more classical designs. For that reason, the perpetual calendar didn’t feel at home in the Luminor format. Bringing the perpetual calendar to the Radiomir seems like the sensible thing to do. The PAM01453 is handsome, especially with a case in Goldtech, Panerai’s proprietary rose gold alloy of platinum and copper that the brand claims to have superior durability. Though more elegant, the PAM01453 is still a rather large watch in typical Panerai style and measures 45mm across. The slim lugs and the leather strap should increase wearability to some extent, but the piece remains imposing. The P.4100 The PAM01453 celebrates in part the first Panerai watch prototype that was developed in 1935, a timepiece that was ...
Worn & Wound
You might be familiar with the work of Justin Walters through his work with Marin Instruments, which burst onto the microbrand watch scene back in 2021 with a unique, contemporary spin on the classic skin diver. Justin has just launched a new brand, the Alterum Watch Company, which he’s been teasing to those of us in the industry for nearly as long. It’s great to see the watch finally made public, and to see Justin fully emerge as one of the most interesting watch design minds working today. Between this initial release for Alterum and the ongoing work with Marin, we’re seeing a clear, modern aesthetic evolve right before our eyes. Best of all, these watches are accessible to just about anyone, proving once again that you don’t need to spend a small fortune for thoughtful and interesting design. The working principle behind the Alterum Worldtimer is one of simplicity, or “cutting away the chaos,” as Justin puts it. We’ve heard and seen this before, of course. Many brands attempt to reach a minimal design, but it’s hard to think of one that starts with a worldtimer, a genre of watch that’s busy almost by definition. But it’s a good test, when you think about it. If the goal of Alterum as a brand is simplicity and clarity, finding success with a worldtimer would seem to bode quite well for future projects. In many ways the Alterum Worldtimer feels familiar, at least in its functionality, but when you really start digging into the details you come to und...
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