Watch Dandy

F.P. Journe is an interesting case in the expanding landscape of independent watchmaking. For a watchmaker that produces around 900 pieces per year, the brand is seen in all the right places, regularly winning prizes at the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève, and producing a watch for the Only Watch charity auction for its last three editions. But what can be a little confusing is just how the brand structures its collections – for that, here’s an introduction to F.P. Journe. Watches from F.P. Journe can basically be broken down into three collections: the Souveraine Collection, the Octa Collection and the Linesport Collection. These three collections cover everything from more simple time-only watches, to minute repeaters and perpetual calendars, but are united through a consistent design language. Round case shapes, asymmetric dial layouts and highly stylised numerals are all a part of the blueprint that makes an F.P. Journe recognisable across the room, despite there being fewer than 20,000 of them in existence (half of the annual production of Audemars Piguet). For a full introduction to F.P. Journe, The Hour Glass (who are the sole stockist of F.P. Journe in Australia) has published a piece that goes into some good…

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Editor’s note: In the last few years Montblanc has made quite the pivot away from the dressier end of the watch spectrum, to some sportier, more robust models. Case in point, the Montblanc TimeWalker Manufacture Chronograph from a few years ago now. While Montblanc is not a mainstream chronograph brand, with watches this smart, it’s certainly worth a look …  Earlier this year I had a chance to have a look at Montblanc’s pre-SIHH offerings in scenic Wyoming, including this smart new evolution of the TimeWalker, the TimeWalker Manufacture Chronograph. There are two big changes to this 43mm sports chronograph; let’s start with the most obvious first. The dial. Instead of the black or silver tones of the existing TimeWalker chronos, this time we get some added vintage style, in the form of the ever-popular ‘panda’ dial (so named because the black on white layout looks a little like the endangered bear). The matt dial finish has a slight creamy look, in line with the retro vibe that’s going on here. The small seconds subdial has the inlaid Montblanc star. You’ll also notice the ceramic bezel is now fixed, and shows a tachymeter scale instead of a 12-hour readout.  All…

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Last night I went to see the new Quentin Tarantino film, Once Upon A Time In Hollywood, and while plot tension and A-grade acting kept me on the edge of my seat, I was kept guessing by what Brad Pitt’s character was wearing on his wrist. So what was Brad Pitt’s watch? As the movie progressed, I could tell it was a gold watch, worn on a bund strap, and it was a chronograph of some kind in a bullhead configuration (with the pushers at the top of the watch). But the brand escaped me. Was it a Seiko? A Lemania? I wasn’t able to confirm, so I rushed from the cinema once the film finished, and found there were a few others who were interested in Brad Pitt’s watch as well. As it turns out, the watch was a Citizen 8110 chronograph, an interesting choice for a watch, not only because of how specific the piece was, but also because it was period incorrect. As Worn & Wound reported, the watch worn by Brad didn’t exist in 1969, the year Once Upon A Time In Hollywood is set, and wasn’t released until 1972. A minor oversight by Mr Tarantino…

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