Founded in 2017 by Etienne Malec and friends, Baltic continues its rapid expansion to the point of not being able to use the term micro-brand anymore… Now an established watch brand with a comprehensive collection, ranging from racing chronographs to dive watches and adventure-themed models, Baltic also ventured into the world of dress watches with success, releasing its Calatrava-inspired M...
MELB, does that mean anything to you? The acronym hides a discreet family group, active in various high-added-value fields including, of course, watchmaking. However, one of its components is well-known, through its collections: Endeavour, Streamliner, and Pioneer to name just three. We are talking about H. Moser & Cie and MeylanEdouardLeonoreBertrand (MELB), founded by the former CEO of Audem...
For obvious reasons, the watch world tends to glorify complexity and the accumulation of functions into a single watch. We, at MONOCHROME, are no better than the rest of the crowd and we can spend days contemplating a Grande Complication watch, or a timepiece with a novel, ultra-complex escapment. However, we also tend to forget the primary function of a watch; indicating the time. Mastering compl...
A few months ago, just ahead of the 2024 Formula 1 season, Tudor announced a rather unexpected partnership, signing its return in motorsport. The brand indeed announced its official partnership with Red Bull’s second team, Visa Cash App RB Formula One team, with drivers Daniel Ricciardo and Yuki Tsunoda behind the wheel. Only a couple of days later, we spotted Ricciardo during an official ph...
Customisation has fast become a watch industry standard, offering buyers a host of case materials, dial colours, strap options, etc… However, it's not often that you come across a watch with four different faces, or rather, four different fonts for four revolving numerals on the dial. Designer and former watch restorer John Byrne's Gyro Dial is not a traditional high-brow complication, but i...
Two years ago, Tudor announced its entry into the world of cycling, partnering with cycling legend Fabian Cancellara to create the Tudor Pro Cycling Team. Tudor soon developed a special edition Black Bay Chrono Dark for the team, which we discovered during a training camp with the team in early 2023. Just a few weeks ago, on the occasion of the Giro d'Italia, Tudor presented its first commercially...
Following the appointment a few weeks ago of Nicolas Bos as the new CEO of the Richemont Group (replacing Jer?me Lambert), the luxury conglomerate once again announces changes in managing positions, with a new CEO for its jewellery/watchmaking brand Cartier. Effective 1st September 2024, Louis Ferla (ex-Vacheron Constantin) will take over Cyrille Vigneron as Chief Executive Officer of Cartier.Cyri...
Audemars Piguet powerfully demonstrates the theory that two is better than one in the Royal Oak Double Balance Wheel Openworked, a coveted collector’s model with two balance wheels for increased chronometric precision and viewing pleasure. Following the recently released 37mm tone-on-tone gold version, AP proposes a trilogy of 41mm models in steel, black ceramic and 18k yellow gold cases pai...
Mr Roger Dubuis founded his eponymous brand in 1995, swiftly achieving success with timepieces that deftly balance traditional watchmaking craftsmanship and bold, expressive designs. Since 2003, the brand has been renowned for its expertise in tourbillon watches, starting with the calibre RD03. This fully integrated manufacture has since become a specialist in architectural skeletonised tourbillon...
“Racing is life; anything that happens before or after is just waiting.” Famous words by Michael Delaney, Steve McQueen’s character in the legendary 1971 movie Le Mans. And while there’s far more to life than racing, to a Petrolhead, it does make absolute sense. It’s the thrill of fast-paced cars being pushed on winding roads or, better yet, on a racetrack. The adrena...
Known for its countless (and often appealing) vintage re-editions, inspired by some glorious watches of the past, Longines last year relaunched an important historic pilot watch, the Czech Pilot watch known as “Majetek Vojenske Spravy” or more simply, the Pilot Majetek. A follow-up to a model of 2014, this re-introduction was done with style and boldness. It is now time for a limited e...
One of Hublot's more recent specialities has been the Essential Grey treatment of popular models, which essentially turns them into monochromatic variants for collectors. This started with the Big Bang Unico Essential Grey and continued with the Spirit of Big Bang Essential Grey, and now we have a third instalment, the Classic Fusion Essential Grey. Two Classic Fusion models, 42mm and 45mm, are in...
Known as the largest luxury group in the world, owned by the Arnault family, LVMH continues its development in all fields related to rare and artistic crafts. Already the owner, through its Watches Division, of TAG Heuer, Hublot and Zenith (as well as jewellery brands Bulgari and Tiffany, not included in this division), the group expands its portfolio by announcing the addition of a renowned yet n...
Oversized watches are a thing of the past…? Well, on paper yes. For two to three years now, many brands have been scaling down their watches. Timepieces can move back to 40mm or sometimes even less. Yet, some models are made to be big and bold. 1990s and early 2000s Panerai, the IWC Big Pilot (the real one, not the 43mm)… And then there’s the APROO, a.k.a the Audemars Piguet Roya...
While the Aquis, which has been recently revised, represents the modern side of dive watches at Oris, the Divers Sixty-Five collection is, as you might have guessed by the name, its vintage-inspired counterpart. An instrumental model for the brand’s recent history, the ’65 has been presented in dozens of editions, with manufacture movement, a chronograph, original colours or compact ca...
Ludwig Oechslin's ochs und Junior original designs offer unique solutions to traditional complications. The ochs und Junior luna sole, a recent addition to the collection, is a testament to the brand's commitment to a minimalist style and the simplification of astronomical indications. This new watch elegantly combines timekeeping with date, sun, moon phase, and the moon’s position in relati...
One of my most memorable experiences when tumbling down the mechanical watchmaking rabbit hole is handling my very first tourbillon watch. I had already been writing for MONOCHROME for a while when it happened, and I knew about the complication and its function, but I had never handled one in person. It was at the SIHH 2014 that I happened to spot a stainless steel prototype of the Audemars Piquet...
I recently had the chance to see one of my car-related dreams being partially fulfilled; experiencing the Mille Miglia! It was a last-minute arrangement for me so I sadly could not get behind the wheel of a vintage sports or racing car, but it was a scintillating experience nonetheless. Spending a day-and-a-half in the rolling hills of northern Italy, in between some of the most desirable vintage ...
The Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra has carved out a unique spot in the Seamaster family as a stylish, versatile, and durable everyday watch, perfect for both land and sea. While not classified as a professional dive watch, it offers a comfortable 150m water resistance (aqua), classic aesthetics, and a precise movement that seamlessly transitions from the office to any adventure (terra). This Seamaster...
Audemars Piguet introduced the Royal Oak Selfwinding 34mm in 2020 as the smallest-sized option with mechanical movement. Since its debut, AP has expanded the range with several variations, ranging from simple stainless steel to diamond-covered pink gold versions. For 2024, Audemars Piguet added two new models to the Royal Oak Frosted Gold Selfwinding 34mm seriesone in yellow gold and one in white...
I’ve been saying it for years now; watchmaking is a universal trade. Gone are the days when it was for the Swiss only, or even Europe for that matter. These days, with virtually no boundaries thanks to the online world, there’s surprising and exciting watchmaking to be found all over the globe. Take China for instance, long perceived as inferior when it came to watch production. That s...
Gerald Charles Genta, one of our time’s most respected and well-known watch designers, sold his eponymous brand Gerald Genta to Bulgari in 2000. However, instead of resting on his laurels and enjoying a stress-free retirement, he created a new brand, naming it - again - after himself; Gerald Charles. In 2003, Genta sold the company to the Ziviani family, trusted long-time partners and friend...
Changes to the appearance are often a more frequent feature of the TAG Heuer Monaco series than groundbreaking innovation in its mechanics. And over the years the brand almost always successfully implemented the use of new materials and updated designs, with the recent 2023 introduction of open-worked dials to the collection preceding the launch of the timepiece we are reviewing today, the 2024 TA...
The Oris Divers Sixty-Five resurfaced in 2015, fifty years after its inaugural splash. Leaning on the design cues of its ancestor, the revisited Divers Sixty-Five oozed vintage pedigree. Although the looks of the first models were faithful to their ancestor, the watch was built with contemporary materials and powered by an outsourced movement (Sellita). The Divers Sixty-Five collection soared in p...
Imagine yourself being completely immersed in something of the utmost importance. Every single fibre is zoned in on the task at hand, whatever that may be. The outside world has ceased to exist for you in that moment of complete concentration. And then…. an alarm goes off, rudely breaking your concentration and bursting your zen-bubble. That very sensation is something we’re probably a...
If you ever had doubts about it, the Olympic Games are getting closer and closer… And, as so many times in the past, Omega will be the official timekeeper of Paris 2024. But today’s topic, even though related to one of the sports that will be represented in the French capital city, isn’t about the Olympics. Today, Omega introduces a new edition of its classic 41mm Seamaster Aqua ...
Retter isn't a brand that many are familiar with as its first watch launched only a couple of years ago, the 22 Automatic. It was a solid first effort with the always popular integrated sports watch aesthetic, but the follow-up Mistral is a more mature and elegant dress watch, with a truly ultra-thin case (a term a bit too loosely thrown around). Both the case and dials have interesting, well thou...
Like seasons throughout the year, there’s a constant ebb and flow in terms of design, shapes, colours, sizes and materials in watchmaking. Colour is perhaps the easiest to change for brands, but also the one that’s the most susceptible to the public’s opinion and demands. With green being “the hottest thing since sliced bread” over the past years, it now seems there&#...
Every year, a very select group of vintage cars and their owners are invited to the shored of Lake Como, for one of the most prestigious events on the calendar. The Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este, which we were lucky enough to attend several times before, is one of the highlights of the classic car world. And every year BMW, one of the organizing partners, brings along some of its mo...
While its name dates back to 1954, the Longines Conquest as we know it now is the brand’s vision of an everyday, versatile watch. Combining robustness with casual elegance, these watches effortlessly adapt to any occasion, from business attire to a weekend at the beach. Fully revamped in 2023, it became more appealing and more adaptable than ever – until now, as the Conquest Collection...