HANDS-ON: The Louis Vuitton Tambour Damier Graphite Race Chronograph brings green lasers to a gun fight
The expression “luxury sports watch” is often hideously misused and exaggerated. But here the Louis Vuitton Tambour Damier Graphite Race Chronograph leaves you in no doubt. Serious swagger and hyper-fresh pops of green are the order of the day to bring a bright spark of sharp contemporary design into a world of vintage homage. First Impressions Well, what can I say, this watch is neither small nor demure, and that’s exactly what we need – not everyone wants a quietly spoken 38mm skindiver, and this is nothing of the sort. The first time I lay my hands on it I’m mostly awestruck by the audacity of Louis Vuitton releasing a 46mm sports watch when every other reference out there seems to be shrinking and hiding quietly under the slimmest cuff. This wants to be strapped on maybe even on the outside of your shirt, Gianni Agnelli style (Google it). In short, it begs to be shown off. The Tambour case and rubber strap In this rather large case, LV manages to create a very comfortable wearing sports chronograph, as the recognisable Tambour case is a silky smooth pebble of comfort. PVD-treated steel creates comfort on the wrist and a perfectly…
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The Super Bowl is fast approaching, and as a New Yorker it pains me that Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaners will be battling it out with Kansas City for the championship. While the Houston Texans did not make it all the way this year, I can imagine at least 15 people in the organisation who didn’t have a horrible end to the year. After signing a a four-year contract extension worth $156,000,000 USD, quarterback Deshaun Watson bought 15 of his teammates special Christmas gifts for a total of $204,000 USD. The beneficiaries – that included Watson’s offensive linemen, backup QB’s, and offensive coaching staff – all received Hublot Big Bang watches in steel with black ceramic bezel, each reportedly valued at $13,600 USD. It’s a lot of money for sure, but when you do the maths it is a drop in the ocean for him at 0.13% of the value of his contract extension. Based on the description and price of the watch, I believe it is fair to say Watson purchased 15 pieces of the Hublot Big Bang Steel Ceramic ref. 301.SM.1770.RX. The stainless-steel watch is 44mm in diameter, has a black ceramic bezel, and a carbon…
It’s late January, which means it’s LVMH Watch Week, an event where the watch departments of Bulgari, Hublot and Zenith unleash their new novelties for the year. For Hublot in 2021, we enjoyed a number of updates to existing collections, including a totally new colour of sapphire crystal in the Big Bang Tourbillon Automatic, a ceramic expansion of the Big Bang Integral collection and the Big Bang MP-11 now in Magic Gold. But we were also treated to an exciting new reference that should quicken the pulse of fans of Takashi Murakami. The Hublot Classic Fusion Takashi Murakami All Black takes the famous “smiling flower” motif of the cult Japanese artist and lets it bloom into horological form. Using the Classic Fusion as a base template, the watch is constructed from 45mm of black ceramic and is paired with the black rubber strap that Hublot is so famous for. For those who follow Takashi Murakami’s high-impact work, you might be surprised to see the monochromatic tones of this collaboration watch, but the liveliness of the dial does more for the watch than colour ever could. Set with 563 black diamonds, the dial features one of Murakami’s most well-known motifs in…
The Swiss maisons are at it again, bringing their entire arsenal of craftsmanship to celebrate the Chinese New Year. As we all know, the Chinese market is huge and a great reason for watch brands to bring out the big guns. By big guns, however, we really mean the opposite here, as tiny instruments and loupes are dusted off to bring artisanal handmade details to the forefront and start off 2021 with an artful bang. Chopard L.U.C XP Urushi Spirit of Shi Chen Lustrous gold meets inky black framed in the classic L.U.C case from Chopard that offers a perfect balance of pebble-round comfort and swoopy lugs. The 40mm dial is a beautifully crafted surface of the Urushi lacquer we know from the best wristworn examples of Japanese craftsmanship, here delightfully integrated into Chopard’s design. The dial has a large crescent-shaped window in the upper half of the dial displaying the animals from the Chinese cycle of the Zodiac, with a balanced Chinese symbol in the centre. This large and engagingly symmetrical symbol of prosperity lends an almost architectural formality to the background. Arrowhead indices and the contemporary sword hands of the L.U.C series brings a sharp modernity that works,…
Back in November, we were treated to two new releases from Grand Seiko to honour the founding of the Seiko brand. As we covered, 2021 marks the 160th anniversary of the birth of founder Kintaro Hattori and the 140th anniversary of the birth of the Seiko Corporation. Hattori, at the age of 21, would create what would later become Seikosha and eventually the Seiko Corporation we have all become so fond of. Now that 2021 has arrived, Seiko is joining in on the celebration to help kick off the new year – and there is a lot to like about the new Seiko SSH083 and SPB205. The watches each capture picturesque elements of Japan with the SSH083 embodying cherry blossoms lit by the night sky and the SPB205 evoking Tokyo at dawn. Both watches really stand out within the catalogue through their “super-hard black coatings” that result in an appealing stealthy sharpness. Seiko Astron GPS Solar Dual-Time 5X53 SSH083 The Seiko Astron GPS Solar Dual-Time 5X53 SSH083 is 42.7mm in diameter and 13.3mm thick. The 100 metre water-resistant case is inspired by 1969 Quartz Astron cases, and features Grand Seiko-like geometries with contrasting polished and satin-brushed surfaces. The bracelet is…
One of my favourite traits of the Octo catalogue from Bulgari is its matte, smooth and very quiet elegance. While the endlessly creative Fabrizio Buonamassa Stigliani, Bulgari’s chief watch designer, continually sets the bar ever higher, it’s mostly done without the flash and bang of complications. But this week we saw the debut of the Bulgari Octo Roma Carillon Tourbillon. While Bulgari has created some more demonstrative pieces – like the sinous dynamic of the Serpenti series – the brand’s emphasis is generally on the understated style and fascinating angular design of the unique Octo case. On the back of that, Bulgari is now renowned for its paper-thin wristwear. But this dark testament to Haute Horlogerie is one of a strong deck of ultra complex cards in the Roma range. This watch combines a tourbillon with a repeater striking a three-hammer chime all packaged up in a stealthy dark suit that hints at the wondrous complexity within. For connoisseurs of the Bulgari brand, the DNA of the minimalist Finissimo Minute Repeater Carbon is mixed with the dramatic opulence of the Grande Sonnerie Perpetual Calendar, two milestones from the maison’s top tier. The dark case is anything but small, yet it’s…