Pre-Baselworld 2018 – The new Louis Moinet Skydance
Welcome to the Baroque universe of Louis Moinet watches where Jules Verne steampunk aesthetics are combined with elaborate mechanical movements and out-of-this-world materials like meteorite from Mars and 70-million-year-old fossilised palm wood. Made in exclusive, limited editions, the galaxy is a recurrent theme at Louis Moinet. Just ahead of Baselworld 2018, Louis Moinet launches Skydance, a 36mm ladies’ watch designed to celebrate the beauty of our celestial canopy offering hours, minutes and small seconds.
If you know a little bit about how the world of watches works, you’ll likely know that it’s a space dominated by a few big groups (namely Richemont, Swatch and LVMH), each with their own stable of brands. SIHH is a show dominated by Richemont brands — big names like Cartier, IWC and Montblanc. But they’re not the only show in town at the Salon. Some larger independent brands, such as Richard Mille, show as well, as do a a select group of smaller names. These smaller names — low in production numbers but high in quality, innovation and prestige — congregate in the Carré des Horlogers, an opulent cul-de-sac, populated by some of the most exceptional (and expensive) watches at a fair all about exceptional (and expensive) watches. Who better to show us around than Andrew and sometime contributor and full-time indie-lover Justin Mastine-Frost. Over to you, Justin …
TAG Heuer have, much like Marty McFly and Doc Brown, gone back to the future with their latest partnership, with Gulf Oil International. If you’re not familiar with the world of historic Heuer, the pairing of the Swiss watchmaker and venerable oil company is perhaps surprising, but one larger-than-life character pulls it all together: Steve McQueen. In 1971, during the film Le Mans, McQueen wore a Heuer Monaco while driving a Porsche 917 emblazoned with Gulf’s distinctive blue and orange stripes. Vital statistics Now, it’s not just the car that has the livery, it’s also the special edition Monaco Gulf, a regular calibre 11-powered Monaco (much like this one), with a blue sunburst base, and bold powder blue and orange stripes on the right-hand side of the dial, and a Gulf Oil logo above the date at six. The strap is a nice blue perforated calf, with contrasting orange stitch. First thoughts Now, this isn’t the first Gulf-striped Monaco TAG Heuer have produced, not by a long shot, but this is a particularly nice interpretation, thanks largely to the choice of the classic calibre 11 Monaco as a base. And while the big bold stripes aren’t to everyone’s tastes, if…