INTRODUCING: The knockout dazzle of the KITH for G-Shock GM-6900 Rainbow
Polarising did you say? Well, this is like nothing else, I’m back and forth between love and, well, indifference is not a word. Right now, I’m very much in the LOVE camp, and still trying to work out what the hell the KITH for G-Shock GM-6900 Rainbow looks like. A burnished heat shield from a re-entry heat shield fallen off a Space Shuttle? Gold plating gone chemically wrong? A petrified oil slick? I don’t care, I want it anyway. On the wrist, this is a conversation stopper like no other wristwatch (save perhaps a domed MB&F), but at a knockout price. This is not the first, but the third collaboration with KITH, the New York-based streetwear chain and eponymous clothing label, and it’s based on the nineties classic GM-6900. But here, on its discretely elegant, logoed KITH resin strap (it even comes with another one), all the stops have been pulled out for the iconic case. Personally, I’d say this is the first time I’ve felt a real pang of desire for the rather bulbous case of the GM, too, I felt the last collab from Hodinkee was a bit too muted (I didn’t say boring). For their 10th anniversary…
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J Balvin is one the hottest Latin artists in the world with the Colombian musician commonly referred to as the ‘Prince of Reggaeton’. Selling over 35 million records worldwide, his status within the industry and high-income from his work allow him to engage with some of the most in-demand watches and brands in the world. His personal watch collection has received ample coverage on the internet, but his appearance on the latest episode of Hot Ones opened a brief window into his collector perspective – tackling topics such as the watch that was hardest for him to find, AP vs. Patek, and his views on “bussing down” watches. The most difficult watch for J Balvin to track down… Unfortunately for us watch enthusiasts he does not express the exact reference of Richard Mille he found the hardest to get, but perhaps the environment he received the watch in was tougher than finding the actual timepiece. J Balvin explains in his intermission between hot wings, “The most difficult one… It was a gift that someone gave it to me. A guy came to me, he was like, ‘Listen I respect you a lot and I want to give you this as…
As we have touched on before in our story here, the Rolex GMT-Master II Ref.126710 BLRO does actually live up to the hype. And while I would love to have one in my own watchbox, the two major hurdles of availability and cost can feel rather insurmountable. So how about the alternatives? Yes, there are some very good ones out there with their own takes on what is practically a separate watch genre. So let’s pop open a few different looking cans of Pepsi and have a taste of the sweet stuff with some fresh alternatives to the GMT-Master II. The original You might find it hyped, ubiquitous and topped by a prohibitively long waiting list. But still, the GMT-Master II Ref.126710 BLRO is for many a proper grail watch and epitomises the Crown’s catalogue of sports watches. Within the confines of a sleek, comfortable 40mm case in the warmth of 904L steel alloy, the comfort is sublime. It will take you all of five seconds with it on your wrist to appreciate Rolex’s unique brand of horological evolution. This story, however, is about finding an alternative to this, no matter how (very, very) comfortable it sits on your wrist,…
First impressions: a stealth black UFO. perhaps? And then a red pulsating zig-zag that I feel like illustrating with a comic book “ZAP!”. This is my introduction to the Hamilton Ventura Elvis80 Skeleton. Fresh from being inspired by the vintage purity of the Intra-Matic chronograph we recently covered here, I was not expecting this dark futuristic visage from the Hamilton brand. Anyone conversant with watches past a certain age instantly equates the Hamilton Ventura with Elvis Presley. This, however is not a vintage reissue of his quirky triangular wristwatch from 1957 that was the first-ever battery-powered watch. Pretty damn far from it, in fact. The Elvis Aaron Presley wearing this was not born in the US of A, but in a parallel universe, on The Death Star. Yes, this is the watch worn by Elvis the Sith Lord, a wristworn dynamic sweep of a soft alien shape – no easy circles or rectangles here, son. In order to wrap your head around it and make sense of it, you have to consider the visual references of ’50s American design. Because the basic shape, one suspects, is informed by that world of chrome tailfins and UFO-shaped diners. Theorising aside, it’s a…
Wearing a Rolex will invariably attract attention. Bragging rights aside, owning a Rolex comes with a host of benefits: they can make a great impression with your in-laws, they are built to last for a very long time, they hold their value better than most luxury commodities and, of course, they tell the time unusually well. Alas where there are pros, cons are often around the corner and this proved to be the case quite literally for three unsuspecting Rolex owners in the UK. Such is Rolex’s reputation and street value, they attract cons; a flash of a Rolex, however unintentional, will alert beady-eyed criminals. It’s one thing to assume that owning an expensive watch involves getting contents insurance and a half-decent safe. But enrolling in a self-defence course, really? Sadly, the dark side of the world does exist. We’ve heard about celebrities’ mansions being targeted for robberies and ultra expensive watches attracting criminal attention. But attacks in broad daylight? Hit and runs by gangs with the sole intention of stealing someone’s watch? That’s some dark shithousery, but these things are happening – in the sleepy Norfolk town of Hingham of all places, a two and half hour drive from…
“My name is Thor, and I am a strapaholic.” It’s only a matter of time before I get pulled into some kind of intervention with friends, family and a psychiatrist. I’m surely not the only watch lover who likes to swap my watch straps on a regular basis. But many brands seem to be stuck in the strap-tech stone-age and still rely on the fiddly spring bar that hardly offers a user-friendly way to change straps. What if we coul just click’em all off and on at our leisure, changing a strap to match up that outfit in 10 seconds flat? Thankfully this vision of the future is, in fact, already upon us with some forward-thinking brands leading the way. Now excuse me while I crawl under the sofa to find that missing spring bar… Omega Seamaster Diver 300m Americas Cup Chronograph For those of you that think the standard Seamaster Diver 300M is a tad vanilla-flavoured, the Omega Seamaster Diver 300M America’s Cup Chronograph offers a brand new look in a fresh oceanic blue pepped up by flashes of red, notably for the countdown indicator at 3 o’clock. The watch introduces a slew of new upgrades we can only…
Deepfakes are a phenomenon only a few years old, but already have governments around the world very worried. In essence, a deepfake is a fake video generated by a type of artificial intelligence called deep learning, which then creates a realistic impression of someone. Just think Photoshop in the 21st century with a slight Twilight Zone edge. You might have seen Jon Snow apologise for the terrible final episode of Game of Thrones back in 2019 and thought only an idiot would believe what they saw, but deep fakes have only got better and better since then. Last month a TikTok account @deeptomcruise was created that published deepfake videos of Tom Cruise doing amusing magic tricks and tripping over himself, which was impressive viewing just to see how good deepfake technology has become over the last few years. But if you look closer you see that Tom is wearing some very nice watches. Not just any watches, but the watches of someone who is seriously into watches. So who is this deepfake Tom Cruise with such good taste in watches? In the most recent video, the actor was pretty clearly wearing a Grand Seiko SBGY003, which was released in 2019…
I’ve said it many times, but I will say it again: blue was absolutely the colour of 2020. With such saturation of the dial colour, manufacturers really had to explore varying shades of blue to have their products stand out in the marketplace. Fast-forward to 2021 and the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Jumbo Diamond Set collection introduces a duo of light blue dialled references alongside a familiar black toned dial configuration – all of which are cased in precious metal and set with diamonds. As Jumbo models, each of the precious metal cases are 39mm in diameter and a sporty slender 8.1mm thick. On the front facing elements of the watch, where you would typically find brushed surfaces on the case and bracelet you are instead greeted with masterfully set diamonds all throughout its externals. Each watch is set with 1,102 brilliant-cut diamonds (〜7.09 carats), and each will likely become major candidates for celebrity watch collections. While almost all of its surface area is dedicated to diamonds, the 2021 Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Jumbo Diamond Set collection still boasts the renowned polished bevels to the shoulders of the tapering bracelet links, eight polished facets of the octagonal bezel, brushed…
Nearly every watch lover will harbour certain regrets. It is inevitable there’s a watch you wished you’d pulled the trigger on – wincing in hindsight that it is not in your collection today. In fact, this is such a relatable aspect of watch collecting that for the fourth weekly meeting of The Breakfast Club on Clubhouse we’ve decided to ask participants to share their own tales of the watch that got away. When it comes to such sob stories, our very own Time+Tide team is no exception. So in anticipation of this week’s meeting, I asked my colleagues to share the watches that slipped through their grasps. Please join us on Clubhouse (Friday 8pm EST / Saturday 11am AET) as we’d love to hear your tales, too. Thor Svaboe’s watch that got away: Girard Perregaux Laureato 38mm I’m sticking to my top choice of a 38mm Girard Perregaux Laureato. To such an extent that I recently sold my Black Bay 58, and am now waiting for another one to come up for sale at the champagne-for-the-price-of-soda price of the lost one. This Genta entry ticket at 38mm is a great version of the delicately bevelled Girard-Perregaux Laureato. I reviewed one…
Fears Watch Company is a big part of the renaissance of British watchmaking and yet another sign of the new roaring 20s as UK horology continues to regain its momentum. The most important model in the Fears catalogue is the Brunswick and I had the impression that it peaked with the beguiling vertical striations on the salmon-coloured reference we covered here. Today they turn their hand-crafted dial up to 11 with the Fears Brunswick Pt. I admit to this now being on my own wish-list, as I do have a tendency to wave the flag for the spirit and determination of the smaller, independent maisons. I had a peek behind the proverbial curtain last week, and the pleasure of chatting with their managing director Nicholas Bowman-Scargill, and was knocked out by the audacity of this launch. The sheer enthusiasm and intuitive horological understanding – while not adhering to trends – is thoroughly refreshing and apparent from the timeless designs in their repertoire. The Brunswick in itself is a wristwatch close to my heart in terms of its 38mm size with the pebble-smooth oeuvre of a Laurent Ferrier. This says a lot for the design nous of Bowman-Scargill and his team…