December 30, 2008
Striking Time
In keeping with its sleek, innovative watch styling, Hublot opened an equally eye-catching boutique on Geneva’s Rue Céard in December. The store's front two windows feature LCD lights that illuminate the timepieces from below to give the appearance that they are floating in front of blue background. Upon entering the boutique, customers can get a sense of Hublot’s storied past through historical footage projected like a watermark onto large transparent glass surfaces throughout the store.
The opening of the boutique is timed with the release of the company’s latest creation: the One Million $ Black Caviar Bang tourbillion watch, a striking gold model with 322 black diamonds invisibly set to conceal any sign of metal. The $1 million watch, which takes more than 2,000 hours of labor to create, is available by special order only. (www.hublot.com)
—Alexandra Foster
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December 15, 2008
A Timely Impression
To create its latest limited-edition timepiece, craftsmen at Hermès spent nearly one year meticulously cutting and setting 149 baguette diamonds to create a seamless appearance for its new Cape Cod 1928 Baguette model. As a result of this arduous process, only two editions were created. Despite its 15 carats’ worth of diamonds, the sleek baguettes are set without any visible metal portray a smooth, elegant image. Beyond the extravagant setting, the $330,000 watch houses a self-winding Vaucher manufacture Fleurier movement with a 55-hour power-reserve and 28,800 vibrations per hour. (www.Hermès.com)
—Jill Newman
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December 3, 2008
Performance Time
Bell & Ross watch company specializes in timepieces with complicated movements and large, easy-to-read faces and has designed watches for French civil defense bomb squad, the Belgian Grand Prix, the French National Police Force, and the U.S. Marine Corps. The new BRS Collection comprises the thinnest, lightest, and smallest timepieces ever offered from the company, each with a diameter of 39 mm, about the size of a silver dollar. A ceramic casing makes the BRS virtually unscratchable, and each watch is water resistant up to 165 feet. The rose gold ($10,900) or satin-finish white gold ($11,900) models debuted in stores in November. (www.bellross.com)
—Alexandra Foster
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November 21, 2008
New York State of Time
The 140-year-old Italian watchmaker Panerai will open its first New York boutique in early December at 545 Madison Avenue. It’s the latest in a series of store openings worldwide that includes Portofino, Florence, Hong Kong, and Shanghai. Known for its sleek, sporty styling, the watchmaker will emphasize its signature Manifattura timepieces, which feature Panerai’s own movements. Featured in the collection is the Luminor 1950 Titanium Tourbillon GMT, shown, which has a P.2005 caliber executed entirely by Panerai. (www.panerai.com)
—Alexandra Foster
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November 4, 2008
IWC Exclusive Entrance
To celebrate the opening of its first California boutique in Beverly Hills, IWC Schaffhausen unveiled a new timepiece, available exclusively at the new store. Only 15 numbered models of the Big Pilot, $15,500, were produced. The timepiece features a mechanical movement with an automatic Pellaton winding system and a seven-day power reserve, a soft iron inner case for protection against magnetic fields, and antireflective sapphire glass. The Beverly Hills location marks the company’s first multilevel boutique, showcasing every style available from the watchmaker. (www.iwc.ch)
—Alexandra Foster
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October 21, 2008
Sports Luxury
In 1784, French watchmaker Jaquet Droz designed a pocket watch called the Grande Seconde. Almost three centuries later, Jaquet Droz will debut its first sport watches inspired by the iconic 18th-century pocket watch. The new sporty models incorporate intertwining subdials (evoking the mathematical symbol of infinity) and alternating Arabic and Roman numerals―features both seen on the original pocket watch. The collection, dubbed the Hommage Geneve 1784, includes two styles designed using sturdy materials such as ceramic cases and rubber straps to withstand various environmental conditions.
The Grande Seconde SW and the Reserve de Marche Ceramique are made in a limited edition of only 88 numbered models, and each utilizes a 68-hour power-reserve indicator and is housed along a rubber strap. The Grande Seconde SW, $13,500, and the Reserve de Marche Power Reserve, $20,000, are available for order now, and the first models will be delivered by the end of the year. (888.866.0059, www.jaquet-droz.com)
—Alexandra Foster
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October 14, 2008
Time Honored
Founded in 1755, Vacheron Constantin is the oldest continuous watch brand in the world, yet it continues to develop some of the most innovative timekeeping concepts. Its newest introduction is the Quai de l’Ile, which is the first luxury watch that can be customized in 400 possible variations by the wearer. Named after the brand’s historic Geneva address at Quai de l’Ile, customers can “create their own watch” by selecting the lugs, case, bezel, straps, engraving, and more. It incorporates a high-tech security system that makes it impossible for counterfeiters to duplicate the timepiece, according to the Swiss brand. London Jewelers, the prestigious New York watch and jewelry retailer, will unveil Vacheron Constantin’s watch configurator on October 18 at its Americana location in Manhasset during its first Petit Basel, which will present the world’s most coveted brands and their newest watches. Customized Quai de l’Ile models are priced from $29,900 for an automatic to nearly $60,000 for a day, date, power reserve in palladium. (London Jewelers, 516 .627.7475, www.londonjewelers.com)
—Jill Newman
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October 7, 2008
Impeccable Timing
Passionate watch collectors can wait several months or even more than a year for the delivery of a highly desirable, complicated new timepiece from one of the world’s most prestigious brands. But London Jewelers, the venerable New York jewelry and watch retailer, is bringing together some of the most coveted models for a special event being held Saturday, October 18 at its Americana location in Manhasset. Watch brands such as Patek Philippe, Rolex, Panerai, Audemars Piguet, Cartier, and Jaeger-LeCoultre are unveiling their newest limited edition models―many of which are being flown in from their Swiss workshops just for this event.
“We’ve created an environment to showcase our important watch brands,” says Mark Udell, who, with his wife Candy and two children, oversee the family business. The Udells recently renovated the two-story location to create expansive watch showcases for individualized brands. Among the exclusive pieces at the event are Jaeger-LeCoultre’s Master Grand Tourbillon (shown) , a limited-edition $75,500 model with a 48-hour power reserve; Patek Philippe’s diamond-encrusted Twenty~4; and a pink gold Breguet perpetual calendar and moon. Beyond the unique pieces, the event will also showcase a wide range of fashionable, classic timepieces for both collectors and style lovers. (516 .627.7475, www.londonjewelers.com)
—Jill Newman
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September 30, 2008
Time on the Auction Block
Antiquorum will offer more than 400 rare and historically important timepieces at an auction held October 16 in New York―including a 1930 yellow gold Longines wristwatch owned by Albert Einstein (shown). Another greatly anticipated item is an A. Lange & Söhne 1815 Cuvette automatic, made in collaboration with German jewelry company Oeding- Erdel. “The Oeding piece is exactly what collectors look for; something rare, beautiful, and with an interesting story,” said Julien Schaerer, director and watch expert at Antiquorum USA. “It’s the piece I would want for myself.” The 1815 style pays homage to the birth year of Ferdinand Adolph Lange, the brand’s legendary founder (estimate from $20,000 to $30,000). Other highlights include a 1956 Patek Philippe perpetual calendar wristwatch, featuring a square button chronograph and special tachometer, estimated from $800,000 to $1.2 million. (www.antiquorum.com)
—Alexandra Foster
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September 16, 2008
A Matter of Timing
Panerai’s caliber P.2005 is a new take on an old concept. But that doesn’t mean that the latest timepiece to house the caliber, the Luminor 1950 Titanium Tourbillon GMT, is any sort of copycat. The P.2005 uses an earlier version’s three-barrel configuration to create a six- day power reserve―even as it now powers a vertically rotating tourbillon―and for the first time the timepiece is offered in titanium. The back of the watch features a large sapphire crystal window, which reveals the entire manual winding movement, and sits along an alligator strap with a titanium buckle. The Italy-based company produced only 150 of the $122,000 watches for 2008. (www.panerai.com)
—Alexandra Foster
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