Carole Forestier-Kasapi and her team really got carried away with the new Minute Repeater Mysterious Double Tourbillon. The result is a mechanical behemoth that doesn’t hide its horological prowess, but rather grabs the attention of the senses of those fortunate enough to behold it.
For years IWC has staked its claim as being one of the biggest, baddest and most masculine of the major Swiss brands. Recently though, we’ve sensed a change in the wind. In 2014 they released the delicate Portofino, and last year their more petite pilot had women firmly in its sights. That’s set to continue for 2017, with the latest evolution of the historic Da Vinci collection very much conceived with the female wrist in mind. The core of the collection is a range of eight 36mm references, three with moonphase complications. These models with their smaller size, optional diamonds and numerous colourful straps are intended purely for female customers. Things get a little more ambiguous with the two 40mm versions – including this one, the Da Vinci Automatic. I’d comfortably wear it, but I could also easily imagine my partner purloining for the day/week/rest of my natural life. It’s quite simple, with handsome rose gold hands and applied Arabic numerals. So far so good. But hold the watch in your hands and the party trick becomes apparent. The lugs aren’t just unusual and distinctive, they’re articulated. This means the Da Vinci is supremely comfortable on the wrist, whether it be large or small.…
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Heading into the first day of SIHH, there were a handful of watches I was already dying to see. The Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Tourbillon Extra-Thin Openworked in stainless steel was certainly one of them. Luckily my very first appointment was with AP and I made quick work of asking to check out this new skeleton. So, how is it? Every bit as awesome as you’d think.
It’s amazing to think that some of the most fascinating and important vintage Rolex watches in the world are still out there with their original owners waiting to be discovered. If you don’t believe me, have a read of this story on Rolex Passion Report about a Tektite 1 diver’s prototype Rolex Single Red Sea-Dweller. If you don’t know what any of that means, that’s okay – you’ll still love reading about what this man did with his life, the undersea world whose exploration he helped pioneer, and how this watch came into his possession. .
Looking for insta-inspo? You’ve come to the right place. NAME: James Banks OCCUPATION: Head of Bespoke Cars at McLaren Special Operations (MSO) bringing to life his clients’ creative visions through custom paint colours and unique designs. HANDLE: @JamesBanksEsq FOLLOWERS: 8.5K LOCATION: London Tell us about your daily watch. It’s a Rotary skeleton watch. I adore skeleton watches and clocks – I guess it’s the engineer in me, having studied Mechanical Engineering at university. Apart from a recent Cartier design for over £500,000, I’ve never seen a watch that I find more aesthetically pleasing. Sadly, it keeps terrible time. I rely on my iPhone for that. I’ve really only started to appreciate watches in the past year or so, having had more interest in clocks historically. My most recent purchase was a Cartier Tank Solo in stainless steel. It’s by no means a flashy watch, but that appeals to me. Also, after visiting Patek Philippe’s exhibition in London with a McLaren customer last summer, I’d love to own a Patek Philippe 5131 or similar one day. Again, the engineer in me very much appreciates the complications that in their watches. I find it truly staggering that so much can be achieved…
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You never know who you’re going to bump into in the halls of a watch fair like SIHH. Apart from when you get a tipoff in your schedule that a celebrity will be at a booth at a certain time, and you get there early with your cameraman to make sure you make something happen. Unfortunately in this case the chat was off camera, but the quotes were real. Here are five things you almost certainly (apart from you crazy Ryan and Deadpool fans) didn’t know about Ryan Reynolds on the subject of watches. 5 things you probably didn’t know about Ryan Reynolds and his watches He had a smart watch, but he accidentally smashed it on a wall. Smart watches, says Reynolds, are for “counting calories” and that’s it. He was handed down his grandfather’s watch, which was issued to him as a solder in a World War 2. He says it has a mystical air. He has his daughter’s initials engraved on his watch. His daughter’s name is James Reynolds. He has a criteria for all watches that he buys. They must tick the following boxes: timeless, elegant, functional and flexible. What on earth is SIHH? (The Salon International de la…
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While in Geneva for the SIHH, I had the opportunity to spend a bit of time with an unexpected divers watch: the re-edition of the famous Triton Spirotechnique. Of course, the name has changed, and the case is slightly bigger than in the original, but this Triton Subphotique gave me a good reason to look into the past of a singular piece, with its characteristic crown at 12 o’clock. And I quickly discovered that back in the early 1960s, the original Triton was engineered as a hardcore diving watch, and manufactured by a famous supplier to the French Army. More astoundingly, it was then priced higher than the Rolex Submariner.
Cartier is many things – classic, chic, and cool are just a few words to describe this brand. They have produced an enormous range of watches since their founding in 1847, including the Tank (whose 100th anniversary is coming up in September), the Ballon Bleu, the Santos, Roadster (RIP), and finally the Panthère de Cartier. I didn’t know what to expect this year from Cartier, but was glad to see that they had brought back the Panthère de Cartier collection as a focus for 2017. They have revived this classic collection with great enthusiasm, and in a range of metals and finishes.
Jaeger-LeCoultre and designer Marc Newson debut their latest collaboration – Atmos 568, Newson’s unique take on the iconic Atmos line.
The purpose of the SIHH may be to discover new watches that will soon be available to the general public, but one of the pleasures of spending the week in Geneva is meeting collectors who own watches we will likely never see again. Claude Sfeir is one of those collectors, and when he gave us a call to come see “something small,” well we knew it would be anything but. We met Claude in one of Geneva’s oldest hotels, and took a few quick snaps of the watch in question. Turns out, we were right.