At Baselworld 2018, Bvlgari continued the expansion of its award-winning Octo Finissimo collection – and in the nicest possible way, with the world’s thinnest automatic and tourbillon watch, as well as a trilogy of automatic watches in sandblasted titanium, steel or gold. The latter – which we described in details here – clearly gave the collection its own personality. This...
This “chronograph vs. chronometer” question is an important?one. Certainly, most of our recurring readers at MONOCHROME?have the answer to this question. But what about the others, the ones who want to start their horological journey and are coming to terms with the jargon? As we still get asked this question quite often, we thought that it would be good to clarify the situation and to...
While the previous version of the?Ulysse Nardin Executive Tourbillon Skeleton wasn’t exactly what you would call a ‘shy watch’, Ulysse Nardin has decided to take it to a whole new level. Still based on a modern and aerial design, still featuring several impressive technical solutions (something dear to UN), Ulysse Nardin brings an entirely new architecture to the movement and the...
It's not hard to find vintage-inspired military watches as the market is now flooded with them. If you want something affordable and authentic, Hamilton has you covered. Want to go high-end, IWC and Panerai?have a lot to offer, among many others. Longines even has a wide variety in its Heritage collection. Most are excellent examples of a given time period and fine watches on their own, but few ha...
As IWC celebrates its 150th anniversary, the brand has inaugurated its all-new production facility, a milestone in its longstanding industrial tradition. Optimal working conditions, cutting-edge technologies and aerial design in order to optimize production and, in the end, the quality of IWC watches.This important step for the brand provides a modern, flexible and highly efficient setting to oper...
Beautiful beaches, barbecues, mojitos and sunshine… We don’t want to bring you down, but let’s face reality: summer is ending and very soon we’ll all be back at work. This doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy the beauty of a watch anymore, however, it’s time to put your colourful dive watch back in the safe and to treat your wrist to something a bit classier. For t...
Rado, for the large majority of us, is known for its ceramic watches – and obviously, the brand is good at it. However, Rado also wanted to remind us that there were other watches in its collection before the advent of ceramic cases and that the company has a (much richer) past. To this end, the brand introduced several vintage-inspired dive watches last year named “Captain Cook”...
We at MONOCHROME, just like you, love beautiful watches. And by that, we mean all kinds of watches: modern, sporty, iconic, elegant, dressy, vintage or simply classic. For this very reason, when we decided to introduce straps in the MONOCHROME shop, we had to make a choice based on what we’d like to see on our own watches. The result is the?MONOCHROME Alligator Leather Straps. A meticulous c...
Yesterday we took a close look at the history behind the modern icon that is the Overseas, today it’s time to understand everything behind the creation of the current, third-generation Vacheron Constantin Overseas. Launched in 2016, it was more an evolution than a revolution characterised by luxurious finishes, a simplified yet strong design, a sporty attitude, superbly decorated movements a...
In 1977, Vacheron Constantin, the oldest watch manufacturer in continuous operation, celebrated its 222nd anniversary. For this reason, the brand?decided to create a special watch, right in the middle of what was known as the “quartz crisis”. Swiss brands needed to reinvent themselves, making necessary and often, disruptive changes. This is when the Vacheron Constantin 222, a true luxu...
There are many reasons we love watches. For some it's their design, for others it's their historical significance. What really caught my imagination, when I received my grandfather's 1960s Omega Constellation on my 21st birthday, was that somebody had actually sat at a workbench and assembled this micro-machine by hand. It blew my mind. Since then I've had an unrelenting appreciation for all thing...
Roman numerals are one of the most classic designs found on clocks and watches. As far as we can go back in history, there have always been clocks, pocket watches and wristwatches with Roman numerals on the dials. However, owners of watches with Roman numerals might have noticed something weird, something rather unusual. While the numeral 4 is commonly written IV in the Roman?numeric system, most ...
Following Antonio Calce's departure a few weeks ago, French luxury group Kering has announced the appointment of Patrick Pruniaux as CEO of its Swiss watchmaking Maisons. Therefore, the current CEO of Ulysse Nardin will now also manage Girard-Perregaux, one of the most prestigious names of Swiss Haute Horlogerie and in turn guide the brand to meet current challenges.The reorganisation will most li...
Imagine Enzo Ferrari leaving his company after its reputation was well established, only to reemerge a year later with a new car brand offering affordable, compact sedans. As crazy as that scenario sounds, it's kind of analogous to the current situation we have with Peter Speake-Marin. It wasn't long ago that his name was associated with expensive, exclusive and complicated timepieces, featuring i...
At the SIHH 2018, Parmigiani Fleurier re-introduced one of its most emblematic models, the Kalpa. A shaped watch, it was originally introduced back in 2001 and, thanks to its bold and unique design, guided by ergonomics, it became a signature model in the collection. After three inaugural refreshed watches in January, the brand expands the range with a new, simpler time-and-date version – bu...
When Vacheron Constantin announced the introduction of a new collection, the?FiftySix, just ahead of the SIHH 2018, we were (in all honesty) rather sceptical. I can recall discussions with Frank about the design, the way the brand communicated the model, the “entry-level” approach or the millennial?target. But as they say, first impressions can be wrong… So we decided to give thi...
When you think Jaeger-LeCoultre, you immediately think Reverso. Thin, elegant, discreet and with the iconic reversible case. There had been some highly complex versions though in the collection, just like the?Reverso Tribute Gyrotourbillon for the 85th anniversary of the model or minute repeaters. Today, La Grande Maison is bringing back complexity in its emblematic watch, with a slim, visually cl...
The world's thinnest minute repeater is revisited in 2018 in a high-tech carbon case and bracelet. Upholding the record-breaking title of its 2016 titanium predecessor, this carbon model goes one step further in breaking with the aesthetics of traditional luxury minute repeaters proposing an edgy industrial look. Chosen as much for its stealth aesthetics as for its physical properties, the Carbon ...
Laurent Ferrier watches are often defined as “simple”.? Well, at least when it comes to the design. But when a 3-hand watch is fitted with a tourbillon double hairspring or a natural escapement (direct double impulse) and a micro-rotor, you can’t be labelled “simple” anymore. With its latest creation, the most complex in the collection so far, Laurent Ferrier doesn...
In January this year, Europe’s largest watch retailer announced the acquisition of US-based group Tourneau?from Green Equity Investors IV LP,?an investor group that owned Tourneau for decades. While this represented a first (and major) step in the American strategy of the Swiss retailer, the group didn’t stop there and yesterday,?Tourneau's parent company Bucherer USA?announced it has?...
Fitted with a refurbished Valjoux 92 Calibre from the 1960s, Speake-Marin's London Chronograph pays tribute to the English soul of the brand and flaunts some dandy design tweaks on the dial. Originally released in 2016 in a hyper-limited edition of just 3 pieces, Speake-Marin revisits the London Chronograph in 2018 in another limited edition of 15 watches. A winning combination of classic watchmak...
The combination of a chronograph and a perpetual calendar is the epitome of what Patek Philippe does best. This year we were regaled with not one but two 5270 references, one in platinum with a much-praised salmon-coloured dial and this rose gold model with an ebony dial. Dripping in 18k rose gold from head to toe, Patek's Ref. 5270/1R is as different from its platinum brother as chalk and cheese....
Chopard celebrates its 30-year anniversary as the partner and official timekeeper of the Mille Miglia race with two limited edition chronographs designed to bring the spirit of this classic car rally to the wrist. Fitted with COSC-certified movements, both the stainless steel and the two-tone steel and rose gold model of the Mille Miglia 2018 Race Edition are more vintage-inspired than the Mille M...
Collecting watches is hardly a full-contact sport, but there are perils for hapless buyers. As collectors we are victims of desire: we see pieces out in the wild or here on MONOCHROME and lust sets in. Getting new models is simple enough; you go directly to the boutiques that line the shopping districts of most major cities. What if your desire takes you beyond the new and pre-owned case into the ...
The popularity of microbrands is rapidly spreading and unique mechanical watches are being sold at cut-throat prices. An interesting piece can be had for well under USD 500, but odds are you'll be getting a Chinese movement and parts that are far removed from Switzerland. That doesn't mean that many of these watches are bad products, but from both a reliability and collector’s standpoint, th...
The segment of luxury sports watches remains an interesting and intriguing category in the world of watches. Since the very first luxury sports watch was introduced in 1972 – the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak ref. 5402ST – many brands have tried to enter this segment, most of them without the success they had envisioned. The watch we will be looking at today did succeed, and might just hav...
Less than a week after Swatch Group announced it would not be participating in? Baselworld 2019, MCH Group (the company operating Baselworld) has issued a press release announcing that the “Board of Directors of MCH Group and CEO Rene Kamm have reached the joint and mutual conclusion that the time has come for a change in the operational leadership of MCH Group in view of the fundamental tra...
Renowned for its technical, modern and robust-looking watches, Oris started to introduce some vintage-inspired designs in its collections a few years ago, notably with the Divers Sixty Five collection. While the pilot’s watches hark back to the 1940s and the diving pieces play on the 1960s trend, the motorsport collection?recreates the spirit of another era, the 1970s. In keeping with the bo...
No need to hide the truth, the?Bvlgari Octo Finissimo Automatic was one of the highlights of 2017 – if not the most impressive watch (ultra-complicated ones excluded) of the year. Not only it is ultra-thin, but it is also ultra-bold, modernly designed, inspired and innovative. Certainly, some other brands created even thinner models (like this one) but not with the same stylistic?audacity. F...
Over the past few years, TAG Heuer has established a series of partnerships in the world of football/soccer: brand ambassadors (Mats Hummels), championships (Premier League, LFP, LaLiga, Bundesliga, Major League Soccer…) and several clubs, including Manchester United, one of the most popular and successful sports teams in the world. Born 140 years ago, Manchester United has won 66 trophies i...