GONE IN 60 SECONDS: The Da Vinci Automatic shows the gentler side of IWC
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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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…
SIHH is as common an abbreviation to us as YMCA. It doesn’t have dance moves, it’s not the Nutbush City Limits, but it does involve the team covering some serious mileage early in the year, every year. The question is, what happens at SIHH? What is it actually like? We made a video, to complete our two-part series revealing the truth about watch fairs (part one is here).
This year it appears that the Submersible collection is a major focus for Panerai, with the brand releasing a veritable pack of new models in all manner of materials and sizes. But there’s one watch above all else that has inflamed the passions of the Paneristi, and that’s the PAM 00671 – AKA the Blue Bronzo. For anyone not familiar with the legend of the Bronzo, a little backstory. In 2011 Panerai released the PAM 00382, a green-dialled Luminor Submersible cased in bronze, limited to 1000 pieces, though we suspect they wouldn’t have had too much trouble selling 10 times that number. While it wasn’t the first ever bronze cased watch, it was the watch that started the bronze craze. Well, this year the Bronzo is back, and blue. And what a blue! Forget any notions of in-your-face summer blue. Instead this is the darker, more mysterious hue of deep oceans. In fact, under the halogen lights of SIHH, the dial looked almost black, with occasional brilliant flashes at just the right angle. The colour of the dial might be the most obvious change, but it isn’t the only one. The luminous material on the hands, dial and bezel has been given a vintage creamy tone to match…