Event – Patek Philippe To Showcase the 2018 Rare Handcrafts Timepieces at its Geneva Salons (April 19 to 21)
If Patek Philippe is known for its super-complicated watches and its iconic luxury sports timepieces, we often forget that there something else, something simply exquisite, that the brand masters: métiers d’art or rare handcrafts. Enamelling, micro-painting, micro-wood-marquetry, hand-guilloche… Few manufactures can compete with Patek in terms of such artistic work. From April 19 to April 21, the entire 2018 Rare Handcrafts collection, something that you don’t have the opportunity to see anywhere than at Baselworld, will be showcased to the public in the Salons on Rue du Rhône, Geneva.
TAG Heuer have a long history in motorsport. Heuer chronographs adorned the dashboards of now priceless Porsches and Ferraris that were being rallied in the 1960s. Fans of Steve McQueen will know he wore a Monaco in his famous 1971 film Le Mans. Then only three years after that film, TAG Heuer championed digital precision timing at the highest echelon of motorsports – Formula One. Their relationship with F1 is so strong in fact, they’ve had the Formula 1 watch in their range for more than three decades. These days, TAG Heuer are a major sponsor of the Red Bull Racing F1 team. Time+Tide were invited to the international launch of the Red Bull Racing Connected watch earlier this week, an event held in the lead-up to the first race of the F1 season at Melbourne’s Albert Park. The official name of the watch is the succinct TAG Heuer Connected Modular 45 Aston Martin Red Bull Racing Special Edition, and is a limited run of their second generation Connected, a smartwatch Andrew spent some time with a year ago. This new Mod 45 is surprisingly slight on the wrist, due to TAG’s employment of a titanium case and lugs. But…
The new Ferrari Portofino — the replacement for Ferrari’s first ever front-engine V8 convertible, the California — has plans for you. It wants to be your first Ferrari. It’s eyeing you even more closely if your current whip is an Aston Martin, Porsche or McLaren. Meanwhile, at the ‘White Night’ themed launch at the Elements Resort in Byron Bay, hosted by Ferrari Australasia boss Herbert Appleroth (whose watch collection we explored in a video below), our eyes were divided between the shining flanks of Ferrari’s latest high-speed cruiser and the place they are usually trained on: Wrists. We spotted seven watches in particular, with stories about them ranging from husband and wife rivalry over a vintage GMT, a self-bought divorce watch, and a local brand whose stocks are on the rise. If you’d like to know more about the car, here’s about as much as we can impart without getting too far out of our wheelhouse: its construction is similar to the California T’s platform, and it keeps the same wheelbase and overall rough dimensions. It’s powered by a 3.9-litre twin-turbocharged F154 V8 (also shared with the 488 GTB) and has a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission. How fast is it? According to Ferrari, it goes from zero to 100km/h hero in 3.5 seconds…
Wherever Aishwarya Rai Bachchan goes in India there is a monumental crowd surge, and it was no different in Sydney at the weekend when Longines launched their flagship boutique in Australia and celebrated their starring role in the upcoming Commonwealth Games. Some local Indian film fans had brought their entire clans and staked out a viewing spot when the Queen Victoria Building opened that morning, even though the superstar was not due to arrive until 6.30pm. The press scrum was on when the world-famous beauty made her entrance, flanked by intimidating security, followed by countless hands launching mobile phones high. But the crowd was in respectful awe; there was no pandemonium. As Longines’ Ambassador of Elegance welcomed her audience with the Hindu greeting, Namaste, the crowd listened intently to their icon. Alongside Juan-Carlos Capelli, Longines Vice President and Head of International Marketing, Rai Bachchan graciously held the 2018 Queen’s Baton aloft, after it was handed to her by Australian high jumper Amy Pejkovic. “The pleasure is all mine being here this evening,” she smiled. “Thank you Longines for having me enjoy this wonderful little adventure of receiving the Queen’s Baton. It’s been a privilege for me receiving the baton.” She…
