Perpétuelle

Bell & Ross BR03-92 Dive Watch (Blue & Bronze)

Editor — Wed, 27 Jun 2018 15:28:13 +0000

Following the surprise and positive release last year of its BR 03-92 Diver (below pictured), Bell & Ross has followed up in 2018 to make the BR03-92 a fully-fledged dive collection with the launch of the Diver Blue and Bronze models.

The Bronze is a limited release of 999 pieces and comes with a distressed-look strap.

The diving bell and wave motif caseback is very appealing:

The watches have a 42mm square case with rotating bezel (a dive watch essential!) and a rubber-clad screwed crown with crown guards. These watches really hit the bullseye — for both form and function! They look really great and also check all the boxes for the ISO 6425 standard for dive watches.

More details / direct purchase at Bell & Ross>>>

Happy Tourbillon Day

Editor — Tue, 26 Jun 2018 05:25:13 +0000

June 26, 2018 marks the 217th anniversary of the patent of the Tourbillon, a revolutionary invention by Abraham-Louis Breguet, father of modern horology. Not surprisingly then that “Tourbillon Day” is kind of a big deal for Montres Breguet. The anniverary is celebrated annually in Breguet boutiques such as Zurich, Taipei and New York (and there is often some “tourbillon cake” to be found on hand for tasting as well).

On June 26, 1801, Abraham-Louis Breguet patented a revolutionary mechanism that neutralized the effects of gravity providing incredible precision in mechanical timepieces. This invention was an engineering feat that cemented the illustrious watchmaker’s standing as one of the most innovative figures of all time. During his lifetime, Abraham-Louis Breguet created 35 tourbillon watches, and fewer than 10 of them are known to survive. The Tourbillon precision pocket watch No. 1188 sold to Don Antonio de Bourbon, Infante of Spain, in 1808, is one of the most fascinating pieces in the brand’s heritage and will be exhibited in its Zurich Boutique and Museum starting from June 26, 2018. The House of Breguet possesses two other historical Tourbillon pocket watches, No. 1176 sold by Abraham-Louis Breguet in 1809 and No. 2567 sold in 1812, along with original records listing every single historical creation.

Seen here is a modern day piece – the Breguer 5367, with enamel dial and a slim case measuring a thickness of only 7.45 mm. Inside is a 3mm thick movement wound by a peripheral rotor. Goregous watch!

Happy Tourbillon Day!

Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Tribute Enamel Ferdinand Hodler

Editor — Mon, 18 Jun 2018 21:26:19 +0000

These beautiful decorative watches from Jaeger-LeCoultre come from its “Métiers Rares” workshops and pay tribute to 19th-century symbolist painter Ferdinand Hodler (1853 – 1918), one of Switzerland’s best-known artists. Very rare (only 8 pieces of each), these are special pieces that will likely find homes in a handful of discreet collectors.

Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Tribute Enamel Ferdinand Hodler

limited edition 8 pieces per design

45.5 mm x 27.4 mm x 9.73 mm white gold case, manual wind Jaeger-LeCoultre manufacture Cal 822A/2

The front dial on the swiveling Reverso case features an engraved “woven” motif, achieved with the use of a century-old guilloché machine, which is delicately rendered by an expert artisan and then covered in translucent grand feu enamel in a color that reflects the predominant tone of the miniature painting on the watch’s back dial. Each of these enamelled paintings re-creates in intricate detail one of Hodler’s masterpieces depicting the landscapes of his native Switzerland. The artisans at the brand’s Rare Handcrafts atelier in Le Sentier required at least 50 hours of work for each painting in order to reproduce, as faithfully as possible, Hodler’s canvases on the dial’s 3 cm x 2 cm surface.

The first of the Tribute Enamel editions (below) depicts “Lake Geneva with Mont Blanc in the Morning Light,” which Hodler produced shortly before his death in 1918.

The second is Hodler’s 1904 painting, “Lake Thun with Symmetric Reflections Before Sunrise” (below):

And the third is the 1909 work, “Lake Thun, Symmetric Reflection”

Prices for each of the three eight-piece limited editions on request.

Introducing: Unimatic Modello Uno Dive Watch (Nous Paris Retail Collab)

Editor — Tue, 12 Jun 2018 16:14:25 +0000

Niche brand Unimatic Watches, designer and maker of the “Made in Italy” Modello Uno dive watch series, is set to drop a new special edition piece next week. I love what these guys are doing! Great design, great price, great build quality — awesome watches (which is why I’ve got more than one in my collection!). This new piece will be the third design in is Special Editions collection, and will again be highly limited in production and sold in collab with a boutique retailer. This time it is hip retailer Nous of Paris. (I’m not sure if e-tail will be an option, so but keep an eye on the U1-NU product page). The watch, official designation “Modello Uno ref. U1-NU” is a Made in Italy diving watch with a matte black “California” dial with maxi marker in C1 Super-LumiNova lume matching the pearl on the diving aluminum bezel insert, off white open second rail and graphic trims. I love the look!

Unimatic X Nous

unique edition of 50 pieces

41.5mm brushed DLC-finished case, automatic mechanical movement

Time is displayed thanks to matching phantom ladder hands set and the black reverse lollipop second hand with off white tip. The case is 316 stainless steel case with brushed DLC finish, which along with screwed crown and caseback offer a respectable 1,000 ft (300m) water resistance. The caliber is an automatic mechanical NH35A by Seiko, providing 41h power reserve and hacking seconds hand.

The watch on a 22mm heavy duty nylon nato strap, and a black Unimatic fluoroelastomer strap is also included (both finished with black DLC signed custom buckle).

The case-back features the Unimatic x NOUS conversion scale engraving and the individual progressive number.

Check out the entire Unimatic lineup at: https://www.unimaticwatches.com/

available from 18/06/18 only at Nous, Rue Cambon 48 – Paris

Meet the Manufacturer: Louis Moinet

Editor — Mon, 21 May 2018 05:13:31 +0000

I had the pleasure to meet Jean-Marie Schaller in Las Vegas several years ago, and I was immediately impressed by his passion for his watches bearing the name Louis Moinet. He has done a very good job unearthing the amazing history of Moinet, including establishing him as the inventor of the chronograph in 1816 (!!!) and other notable watchmaking-related achievements.

Join along now with our friends at Montredo in the latest episode of Meet The Manufacturer as we take a deeper look into the world of Louis Moinet. CEO & Creative Director Jean-Marie Schaller leads the conversation:

More About Louis Moinet

Louis Moinet, eponym of today’s brand, was born in 1768 in France. From his early days on, he spent his leisure time with a master watchmaker and therefore got into touch with Haute Horlogerie, making it just a matter of time until the student ultimately became the master. Louis Moinet, eponym of today’s brand, was born in 1768 in France. From his early days on, he spent his leisure time with a master watchmaker and therefore got into touch with Haute Horlogerie, making it just a matter of time until the student ultimately became the master. At the age of 20, the young Moinet started to travel around Europe to follow his passion of aesthetics and sophisticated arts. During his journey, where he studied in Italy and met various important watchmakers in Switzerland, he further deepened his watchmaking knowledge before eventually returning to his home country again. Upon his return in France, he became friends in 1811 with another exceptionally gifted expert in his field, namely Abraham Louis Breguet. The two watchmakers would spend more than a decade together and it was also during this common creative period, when Moinet achieved something truly astonishing: In 1816, he developed the world’s first chronograph, as approved by the Guinness World Records, making him without a doubt one of the greatest watchmakers ever. His creation went by the name “compteur de tierces” (thirds timer) and yielded some game-changing features, such as the measurement of a sixtieth second and an unprecedented beat rate of 216,000 vibrations per hour.

To put this into perspective, most modern wristwatches these days usually beat at 28,8000 v/h. Moinet, who initially designed this first chronograph to time the passage of stars and planets, is therefore rightly thought of as the father of high-frequency time measurement. Moinet’s stellar watchmaking skills were by not means a well-kept secret and quickly got around. His customer base eventually included some of the most notable persons of the 18th and 19th Century, boasting names like King George IV of England, Napoleon and Thomas Jefferson. Thanks to Jean-Marie Schiller, Moinet’s spirit can fortunately live on, since he decided in 2008 to revive his legacy in the form of “Les Ateliers Louis Moinet”. These days, the brand is not only known for its use of exotic materials and highly innovative technologies, but also for its vast exclusivity, as all timepieces are either launched in strictly limited editions or are completely unique pieces.