Watch Dandy

For a kid growing up in rural Victoria, Australia, England always seemed closer than the 16,000 or so kilometres away that it was in actuality. We had to sing God Save The Queen once a week. There was a picture of the Queen in our classrooms, and my dad had a serious penchant for English literature. The only books in my childhood house were about steam trains and wars that England won. Little England, for real. The bedtime book most favoured, Paddington Bear. So, in my mind over the years, I’ve dreamed of the place. When I could finally visit it, in my early 20s, I was not disappointed. The people reading books on the Tube. The markets. The accent that makes everyone sound so blooming intelligent. The apologising for everything. The shitty weather. London felt like home. Which is why, 20 years later, I am quietly overjoyed to be opening an office in my second favourite city (I do quite fancy Melbourne, where I live and where T+T is based). It’s a humble beginning, very much like ours in 2014. Where back then it was a couple of people sitting in a small office one floor above a laneway…

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Although it’s never really taken off as an uber-popular complication like a chronograph or moonphase, the alarm function of JLC’s Memovox watches has, since they were first unveiled in 1968, been exceedingly practical. But it’s a complication that’s usually been found in the watchmaker’s daintier, and perhaps less practical, dress watches. This has meant that one of the sharpest tools in JLC’s shed has remained pigeon-holed, and off limits for those who prefer a sportier, bolder option. That is, until now. Introducing the Jaeger-LeCoultre Polaris Mariner Memovox, a bulletproof stainless steel diver’s watch that — as its name suggests — houses the brilliant Memovox alarm function. This is an exciting watch from JLC, so let’s take a closer look. The top-line development here is that this model – a boutique only exclusive in Australia – blends two of Jaeger-LeCoultre’s worlds in one watch. The borderline aggressive sportiness of the Master Compressor range, for example, with the refined, superbly finished elegance of the current Polaris range. If the existing Polaris range went to Oxford for a second degree after attaining their first, this sibling went to the gym. If the existing Polaris range went to Oxford for a second degree after attaining their…

The post INTRODUCING: The Jaeger-LeCoultre Polaris Mariner Memovox is an alarmingly different type of Polaris appeared first on Time and Tide Watches.

Jaeger-LeCoultre is widely regarded as making some of the finest dress watches on the market. But for those not familiar with the Le Sentier firm’s full collection, JLC also makes a very good stainless steel sports watch – the Polaris. And now the legacy watchmaker has decided to up the ante with the Polaris, broadening its breadth of abilities and unveiling an entirely new model aimed squarely at taking on some of the best steel dive watches on the market. Introducing the Jaeger-LeCoultre Polaris Mariner Date. The case JLC has described the new Mariner as being both sporty and elegant, and, to their credit, the 42mm x 13.92mm stainless steel case of this watch appears to be exactly that. Short, tapered lugs, with a decent amount of inwardly concaved articulation, give way to a simple and round body that looks inoffensive yet purposeful. The aforementioned lugs are horizontally brushed, which definitely gives off a dynamic aura; however, the lugs’ edges are chamfered, and the plain steel bezel is also highly polished, so there’s visible opulence on offer too. Now, a dive watch without a rotating bezel would be about as useful as an oxygen tank without O2, but don’t fret,…

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