Watch Dandy

Editor’s note: We remember back when times were simpler. Back before there were half-decade waitlists, before secondhand watches were doubling retail prices, and before everything Tudor made was in-house. It was back in 2014 when Tudor first showed us the versatility of the Black Bay range, and the brand deeply impressed the watch community when they released the Black Bay Blue. This was also the year when Time+Tide started, and Felix’s review of this new Black Bay Blue was one of the most popular stories on the site for a long time. So we thought we’d look back at this simple sports watch to see how it’s aged over the last half-decade, and reflect on just how much the industry has changed in that time.  Introducing the Tudor Black Bay Blue As a brand, Tudor is a lot like Rocky, in that Rolex’s little brother is a plucky fighter come good again. UNLIKE Rocky, Tudor’s releases just get better and better with each passing year. Baselworld 2014 sees two big crowd-pleasing releases from Tudor, and a new range that is understated in the extreme, though still enticing. We’ll talk more about the Ranger and the Style later, but for now let’s focus…

The post Half a decade with the Tudor Black Bay Blue appeared first on Time and Tide Watches.

The other week, Nick showed us some of the highlight pieces from the upcoming Only Watch auction. There was a bunch of spicy pieces destined for charity greatness, but one watch kept drawing my attention — the Louis Vuitton Spin Time.  There are a few reasons why this watch stands out. Sure, there’s diamonds (3.33 carats of them) — but that’s par for the course in a watch playing at this level, and then there’s the unique Spin Time display, which is quite cool, as Andrew discovered here. And, of course, being Louis Vuitton, this watch comes with a pretty dope hand-painted, high-watchmaking trunk.  But really, the reason this watch stands out is the dial. Grand Feu enamel on a white gold base, hand-painted with an LV logo and a pretty awesome, ’90s-inspired rose motif. It’s an arresting enough miniature picture on its own, but the fact that it’s the work of Anita Porchet takes it to the next level. There aren’t many people who can do miniature enamel painting at this level (it was one of the dying arts that the fine watchmaking renaissance of the ’90s prevented from being lost forever) and Anita Porchet is — along with…

The post The detail is in the dial for Louis Vuitton’s Only Watch entry appeared first on Time and Tide Watches.

The other week, Nick showed us some of the highlight pieces from the upcoming Only Watch auction. There was a bunch of spicy pieces destined for charity greatness, but one watch kept drawing my attention — the Louis Vuitton Spin Time.  There are a few reasons why this watch stands out. Sure, there’s diamonds (3.33 carats of them) — but that’s par for the course in a watch playing at this level, and then there’s the unique Spin Time display, which is quite cool, as Andrew discovered here. And, of course, being Louis Vuitton, this watch comes with a pretty dope hand-painted, high-watchmaking trunk.  But really, the reason this watch stands out is the dial. Grand Feu enamel on a white gold base, hand-painted with an LV logo and a pretty awesome, ’90s-inspired rose motif. It’s an arresting enough miniature picture on its own, but the fact that it’s the work of Anita Porchet takes it to the next level. There aren’t many people who can do miniature enamel painting at this level (it was one of the dying arts that the fine watchmaking renaissance of the ’90s prevented from being lost forever) and Anita Porchet is — along with…

The post The detail is in the dial for Louis Vuitton’s Only Watch entry appeared first on Time and Tide Watches.