“The Monochrome Video Week” – Montblanc, Hand Decoration At The Villeret Manufacture
As watch journalists, one of the most recurring questions we have is how a small wrist accessory (a.k.a a watch) can have a 5 or 6-digit price tag? And clearly, for those who are not entirely into watches, that’s an entirely justified question. In order to draw an answer to this highly complex and delicate question, we took Davide Cerrato, Managing Director of Montblanc Watch Division, apart for a properly interesting discussion. Davide will guide us inside the Montblanc Villeret Manufacture, the haute-horlogerie sanctuary of the brand, to discover the beauty of real hand-finishing as it’s executed by Montblanc’s watchmakers. Polishing, Anglages, Tourbillon… Let us bring you in this fascinating world of hand-decoration through a long, in-depth video.
There are a few things everyone in the Time+Tide office can get behind 100 per cent: coffee, classic ’70s rock and blue watches. In fact, we spent a good portion of 2015 quietly losing it over how stunning Blancpain’s Bathyscaphe Ocean Commitment was, with its lustrous blue dial and grey ceramic case. So when we heard earlier this year that the brand would release a follow-up watch, we were honestly sceptical as to how it could be topped. As it turns out, all it took was for Blancpain to flip it. The dial is now a slate grey sunburst and the case is an incredible blue brushed ceramic. It’s a simple change, but the result is a startlingly different watch, more understated than last year’s effort, which is somewhat surprising given the remarkable case. What hasn’t changed is the tangible good that buying this watch does for the world. At the Australian launch, VP and head of marketing Alain Delamuraz revealed that Blancpain has been donating one million Euro a year to marine conservation for the past seven years, resulting in three million square kilometres of ocean being protected. In addition, one thousand Euro from the sale of each and every Ocean…
It started in Tokyo. We were over there with Bulgari to celebrate the launch of their first ever watch, the Bulgari Roma, released just over 40 years ago. We landed, in a spare moment, at the bar. Our cameraman Marcus, or perhaps me, I honestly can’t remember, suggested we have a restorative whisky. It had been a long day. Before we knew it, Bulgari’s chief watch designer, Fabrizio Buonamassa Stigliani had joined us, and we were once again talking watches. We started comparing Bulgari watches to whisky, and thus, one of our favourite ever videos was created. It seemed only logical that when Bulgari CEO Jean-Christophe Babin arrived at our office, we find a way to continue the tradition, but being rather early in the day, we held the harder stuff and instead played more of an in-boutique retail training type game: What watches would Jean-Christophe choose for different – and to him, wholly unknown – people that we presented to him an on iPad? His answers were, without giving too much away, brilliant. So considered. So spot-on. You’ll have to see the thought processes in action, because it’s very impressive. Enjoy our first, and certainly not our last, Celebrity Watch Match.
We gave a glimpse of our 48 hours in paradise with the Vacheron Constantin Overseas collection a month ago, but now, with the watches officially revealed and reviewed, it’s time to turn up the envy to unforeseen levels. In addition to mouthwatering shots of the collection, hands-down one of the best in the steel sports category this year, we’re also showing here just how spectacular Lord Howe Island is. From the volcanic peaks, to the friendly schools of fish that mill around your ankles in the shallows, to the outlook from the luxury Capella Lodge where my room had, just months before, been home to Blake Lively during the shooting of shark-as-villain thriller The Shallows. It’s all here, as well as our rationale for why we chose this place to explore the Overseas collection.
I first noticed it for a split-second in Channel 9’s new show Doctor Doctor. Pause. Rewind. Yep, there was no mistaking the black bezel and dial on the wrist of Hugh Knight (the titular doctor) – definitely a Tudor Black Bay. I filed that knowledge away in the part of my brain dedicated to celebrity watch-spotting, not imagining for a minute that a few weeks later I’d be having a drink with Rodger Corser, in a tiny laneway bar, talking about that exact timepiece. Watches tell you a lot about a character, and a bad choice is immediately obvious. But for Rodger, the Black Bay Black is more than just a smart props decision, it’s a deeply personal link, one that ties into his other on-screen personas and informs his craft. Of course we spoke about more than just watches – we discussed how he felt coming back to his hometown of Melbourne, as well as the importance of timing, and making the most out of opportunities when they arise. We highly recommend you watch the full three-minute story, but if you want to cut straight to the watches and the story of the Tudor Rodger’s grandfather passed down through the family,…
Ten years ago Hublot pioneered the black-on-black-on-black look in watches. Sure, it made it hard to read the time, but when your watch looked that cool who could care? They called it (appropriately enough) ‘All Black’ and this year they’ve released a number of special limited editions to celebrate. The standout is this not-so-stealthy Big Bang. Instead of PVD or black ceramic, Hublot has created a Dark Crystal Big Bang out of black sapphire, creating a blacked-out watch that’s surprisingly lively on the wrist, full of mirror-like reflections and smoky finishes. Just don’t expect it to fly under the radar. Hublot Big Bang Unico All Black Sapphire Australian pricing and availability The Hublot Big Bang Unico All Black Sapphire, limited to 500 pieces, $81,300.
When I was in high school we had to buy an atlas/geography textbook from a publisher called Heinemann. Don’t ask me why I remember this – it’s just one of the scores of useless trivia facts that are stuck in my head, while much more important information (such as reference numbers and calibre names) seem to constantly elude me. One of the things I liked most about this atlas were the different types of map on offer: Political, altitude, rainfall, temperature – Heinemann had them all. And this is what the new, brightly coloured dial of the 4810 Orbis Terrarum instantly reminded me of. Turns out I wasn’t too far off. Aside from adding a dash of colour to the Orbis Terrarum, the multi-coloured world disc represents warmer and cooler parts of the globe. But the map isn’t the only thing that’s different about this Orbis Terrarum, it’s now part of the 4810 family, meaning it has a bigger, curvier case than the original. When it comes to looks it’s a hard call as to whether this version or the blue-on-blue Heritage Spirit model is more attractive, and will depend largely on personal preference. For me though, the 4810 Orbis Terrarum is…
At their packed Baselworld press conference Seiko announced that 2016 was to be the year of their middle-tier Presage collection. The lion’s share of attention has been on the truly excellent limited edition Presage Chronograph, but there’s a lot to love in the rest of the collection too. Presage honours the spirit of fine mechanical watchmaking that Seiko is well known for, but at a price point that’s far from prohibitive. Take for example the good looking three-hander that is the Seiko Presage SPB039J1 – not only do you get a quite handsome dress watch (with such a catchy name!), you get all the advantages of Seiko’s ‘Trimatic’ technology. This comprises of the magic lever (for efficient winding), Spron alloy (for stronger and longer lasting springs) and Dia-Shock (Seiko’s shock resistance technology). The watches in the Presage collection are a cut above Seiko’s popularly priced mechanicals in terms of movement quality and finishing, but the pricing, as you can see, is still highly competitive. Seiko Presage SPB039J1 Australian pricing Seiko Presage SPB039J1, in steel on leather, $1250.
It’s 2016, so why would anyone wear a pocket watch? That’s the question I found myself asking this week as I took the Tissot Bridgeport Lepine for a test drive. And look, I’m not going to lie to you, it took more thought to integrate this 45mm little number into my life. But if you’re up for this sort of challenge, and I know plenty of you out there will dig the self-consciously anachronistic look of wearing a pocket watch, then the rewards are definitely there. It’s a great talking point and style statement. Plus, I love how it made checking the time such a deliberate activity. Oh, and the quality to price ratio was way up there too. Tissot Bridgeport Lepine Mechanical pocket watch Australian pricing Tissot Bridgeport Lepine Mechanical, $900.