It was six years ago that Jaeger-LeCoultre unveiled its first new collection for women in decades: Rendez-Vous. Launched with Diane Kruger as the face behind the line, the collection was designed expressly for women and was all about romance, femininity and allure – indicative of its name. Since then, the line has evolved to include […]
Métiers d’art and natural stones are familiar themes at Jaquet Droz – for instance, Onyx has already been used in the past. The brand regularly adds new, rare stones to its decorative repertory. In the frame of the celebration of its 280th anniversary, the brand unveils new limited-edition watches with meteorite or stromatolite dials, based on the iconic 8-shaped watch with a twist, the Grande Seconde Off-Centered.
For the last three years, Chopard has adopted the graceful peony flower to decorate its L.U.C XP Esprit de Fleurier 35mm limited editions for women. This year is no exception and Chopard unveiled a beautiful 18k rose gold edition of eight watches decorated with the silhouette of black paper-cut peonies on the dial and exquisite Fleurisanne engraving on the bridges of the movement. As the female representative of the L.U.C XP family, the watch is fitted with a Chopard manufacture ultra-thin automatic movement.
While the recently revived brand Czapek continues its development with the introduction of a highly interesting chronograph, the Faubourg de Cracovie, one watch in the collection – actually, the flagship model – shouldn’t be forgotten: the Czapek Place Vendome Tourbillon Suspendu “Ici et Ailleurs” GMT (quite a complex name indeed). Already an exclusive watch in its inaugural shape, it now becomes even more exclusive with the possibility to have engraved cases, making each watch unique.
Ok, well maybe saying that the watch will have you roaring is a bit of an over-reach, but we know if you are an art- or big-cat lover, this watch is going to hit all the bells and whistles for you. Sorry men, unless you love diamonds, the watch is really meant for the lady in your life. I say “sorry” because I believe that a man would enjoy the boldness of a non-diamond red/orange version of the new Petite Heure Minute Smalta Clara created in Plique-a-Jour enamel.
If you are a regular reader of MONOCHROME, you will be familiar with the independent watchmaker Czapek. A name with a lot of history (François Czapek was a Geneva-based Polish watchmaker whose 6-year partnership with Antoni Patek gave birth to remarkable watches before the latter founded Patek Philippe with Adrien Philippe), the brand was revived in 2015 with the launch of the Quai des Bergues. The first modern Czapek creation was awarded the Public Prize at the prestigious Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève in 2016. At Baselworld 2017, the brand introduced the Place Vendôme tourbillon featuring a GMT indication.
My wrist is a lucky one as I get to test a lot of seriously brilliant wrist watches. Whether it’s the understated Galet Square Tourbillon Double Spiral from Laurent Ferrier, the magnificent Datograph from A. Lange & Söhne, the ultra-thin and über-clean Piaget Altiplano in white gold, or even the € 60.000 Euro impressive Grand Seiko Spring Drive 8-Days, I get to test (and enjoy) some of the most spectacular timepieces of our time. When I got the call from my fellow countrymen Bart and Tim Grönefeld, that they finally secured a 1941 Remontoire for me to test, I was delighted and excited. Here are my thoughts on the Grönefeld 1941 Remontoire that now also comes with bespoke dials featuring guilloche and translucent enamel.
Few might know Kees Engelbarts here. It is true that is work will always remain confidential, however for very good reasons (that we’ll explain). He himself says that he can only produce 6 to 8 watches a year, all hand-made, unique, mostly commisioned pieces. But, believe us, Kees Engelbarts’ work must be discovered. His latest piece, the Psychedelic Tourbillon, is a perfect demonstration of what proper skeleton watches are.
The other day I had the distinct pleasure of spending a few days with A. Lange & Söhne in Florence, Italy. The main purpose was the launch of the Lange 1815 Rattrapante Perpetual Calendar Handwerkskunst and four new blue dial version (Lange 1, Lange 1 Daymatic, Saxonia and Saxonia handwound), all of which we already showed you last weekend. The team at Lange organized several ‘field trips’ to various handcrafts, like lithography, fabric weaving and printing, among others, and we visited one of the most prestigious winemakers from Tuscany (the region in which Florence is located.) Wilhelm Schmid, the brand’s CEO, tells us more about Handwerkskunst and handcrafts, plus I’ll share wrist shots of a group of Lange collectors whom I accidentally ran into. Be warned… LOTS of photos!