Vacheron Constantin just released the Patrimony Contemporaine small model. It’s an incredibly elegant dress watch with a diameter of 36 mm. Do you think it’s a mens or ladies watch? We think it’s superb for both? The press release starts with these words: “Classic yet contemporary. Understated and refined. Moderate and yet sensual”. We can only agree. This is the R...
I recently stumbled across this photo of an Omega Seamaster Ploprof and I love it. It’s a great wrist shot of a watch that’s not so easy to capture.?Last Friday I visited the Timzone UK forum and it was a long time since I went there. If you’re a frequent forum visitor, you already know the Friday rollcall posts… everyone replies with a wrist shot of what’s on his wri...
Our contributor from Down Under gets hands on experience with the new Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Ultra Thin.?Earlier this year, you read about two special new Jaeger-LeCoultre models for 2011, the Memovox Tribute to Deep Sea? and the?Reverso Ultra Thin Tribute to 1931 on Monochrome. Recently, I was fortunate enough to be able to get hands-on with both of these watches at a local AD. A few weeks ago ...
Ochs und Junior just released the most accurate moon phase in a wrist watch ever created. And their moon phase complication comprises of only 5 (yes, five) parts! The new Ochs und Junior Selene Tinta is amazing…Ludwig Oechslin in the genius mastermind behind Ochs und Junior’s innovative timepieces. The main idea is to always search for the smart yet simple ideas. Ludwig Oechslin alread...
Patek Philippe did it again. They made a stainless steel version of reference 3939, which was only available in precious metals before, and it was auctioned for a record price of 1,400,000 Euro!?Unique for Patek Philippe is that stainless steel complicated watches, often sell for an incredibly high price. Often for much more than their siblings in gold. Why you might wonder? Well, the stainless ...
This year Montblanc celebrates the 190th?anniversary of the chronograph with an?anniversary edition of the Nicolas Rieussec. Monochrome had the chance to wear a Nicolas Rieussec Automatic for some weeks and brings you a full review with live photos.Montblanc is not only known for their beautiful fountain pens, leather bags and jewellery, but also for watches. The distinguished Montblanc style can ...
This is the first time a limited edition watch has been made especially for a Dutch soccer team and it’s made by a Dutch watch brand. Pellikaan Timing created the 2011 limited edition of 25?pieces for FC Utrecht and it’s a pretty cool watch!?See for yourself… the Pellikaan Timing LE 2011 for FC Utrecht.After Pellikaan Timing donated a Flying Dutchman watch to a charity auction he...
It is human nature to want it all, to want something better. It is this emotion that fuels ambition, is the thriving force behind development and in essence the reason why we continue to push the envelope. But sometimes there are quite a bit of boundaries between what we want and what is possible. The answer to that? Make it possible! It is what got us on the moon and how Piaget was able to give u...
When IWC launched the new Portofino Hand-Wound 8-days, they did something ingenious. This model comes on a hand-made strap by the famous shoe manufactorer Santoni and these straps became a much discussed topic on the internet.Luckily the owner of the Double Split also has very good photographic skills and that’s why this wonderful combination, resulting in a beautiful photo, made it to be Mo...
Today Jaeger-LeCoultre officially launches the new Master Geographic. Monochrome had the chance to wear it for some weeks and brings you a review of the all-new Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Geographic in rose gold.When we visited the Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie in January this year, Jaeger-LeCoultre presented an amazing number of very beautiful new releases. Just think of the Memovox Tri...
The Patek Philippe Nautilus is one of those watches that has been on my personal wish-list for a long time. A few days ago I had the chance to try the Nautilus Chronograph ref.5980/1A on my wrist and now I know it… it made it to the top of my wish-list instantly.?I know, I know… on Monochrome there has also been moaning about the yearly price increases and the price of this specific st...
Auction seasons has begun again after a brief summer recess. On September 14 Antiquorum auctions off 319 items in their New York auction. While going through their catalogue one cannot do anything else then to be surprised and wonder.for a wide variety of reasons.Take for example lot 13.?This features an IWC Aquatimer 2000 (ref. 3568) that was originally sold on May 20th?2011… One wonders ho...
Cartier just opened the Cartier Time Art exhibition in Zurich, Switzerland. A beautifully designed exhibition with an huge number of very rare vintage Cartiers. If you have the opportunity to visit… do so!?Cartier shows 156 of its historical timepieces, selected from the treasures of the Cartier Collection. Some timepieces are among the first wristwatches Cartier made and this is even more s...
Our own dr. Watch shares his ideas about the value and prices of watches. An interesting timing if we consider the second yearly price increase was just announced by and the Swiss National Bank promises to weaken the Swiss Franc. It was at least 7-8 years ago that a watch collector told me he stopped collecting recent Swiss watches. German watches, vintage watches, OK, but the new products from ...
Our contributor Martin Green shares some interesting thoughts on peer pressure. We are curious if you ever experienced this and how you handled it!?Does this sound familiar? Brand X just released a new model and you are blown away by it! You can already imagine how it looks on your wrist and can't wait to hear what your watch-buddies think of it. When you actually ask them, you wish you never brou...
Our contributor from Down Under gets hands-on experience with the Jaeger LeCoultre Memovox Tribute to Deep Sea. A memorable timepiece and one of the best re-issues that ever crossed our path.?Earlier this year Monochrome brought you the news of two special new Jaeger-LeCoultre models for 2011, the Memovox Tribute to Deep Sea? and the Reverso Tribute to 1931.? Recently, I was fortunate enough to be...
At Monochrome we really enjoy beautiful photographed watches and many of these pictures are made by watch collectors who are also passionate about photography. Today it’s Jocke’s A. Lange und Sohne 1815.?More and more watch aficionados with a passion for photography share gorgeous photos they shot from they collection. Just think of the Watch Photographer, Martin Wilmsen,?and?Peter Cho...
IWC has a partnership with the Volvo Ocean Race and just launched a ‘Money Can’t Buy Experience’. What does this mean? You can win an IWC Portuguese Yacht Club Chronograph and a VIP trip to the Volvo Ocean Race! IWC released the PortugueseYacht Club Chronograph during the SIHH 2010. This somewhat strange bird in the Portuguese collection is a sporty 45.5 mm large chronograph that...
Monochrome had the chance to wear a very rare Audemars Piguet for two weeks. We bring you a review of the Audemars Piguet Millenary Star Wheel!Recently a good friend said he was going to sell his Audemars Piguet Millenary Star Wheel. This is one of those watches we always enjoy seeing at collector's dinners and other watchgeek meetings. However this one is so rare that chances you come across one ...
Lange und Sohne donated a unique version of the Lange Zeitwerk to the Kidz Horizon charity auction and Peter Chong made the press photos. As always gorgeous photos of a gorgeous watch.?At Monochrome we love beautiful timepieces and great photos showing the beauty of them. In this particular case the gorgeous movement of the Lange Zeitwerk is visible and so is the superb finishing qualities of Lang...
The time that a small diameter watch with a row of diamonds was believed to be the perfect women's watch is long gone. A growing number of women in the market for a high end watch are seriously interested in the movement. Quartz is no longer the obvious choice, and a mechanical movement can proof to be a selling point.However, most brands that use high grade mechanical movements still have the ten...
Around some brands it is so quiet that you sometimes wonder if they still exist. For sure, Revue Thommen is such a brand. Why it ever got quiet around this brand is actually quite a mystery.Revue Thommen?has a long history of manufacturing movements of which the latest one was introduced in 2006. This by itself should be enough to make connoisseurs and collectors interested, but Revue Thommen stay...
Especially for the Friday we bring you a collection of videos of one of the best watchmakers of this time. We hope it’s not too busy at the office, so you can relax a bit and enjoy these videos of Roger Smith.?Roger Smith? Who’s Roger Smith? Well for those of you who know, feel free to scroll down to the actual video. When you google for Roger Smith and select the ‘pictures’...
Usually it’s no ‘biggy’ when a forum exists one year, however we from Monochrome have become fan of the Cartier forum at Revolution Online. To celebrate this we listed our favorite posts for you!Revolution Online’s Cartier forum is a magnificent place where you can read and learn a lot about the brand. Most people think of the Tank Francaise or Santos 100 when talking about...
Habring2 is the small independent watch brand of Austrian watchmaker Richard Habring and his wife Maria. Today we bring a hands-on experience with the Habring2 Jumping Second with Power Reserve.?Monochrome already brought you information about about the Habring2 Jumping Second back in 2009. Especially if you like to know more about?the jumping second mechanism Habring developed, after the n.o.s. D...
Monochrome’s contributor Dr. Watch shares his personal ideas about the strange breed called watch aficionados. Be prepared and join the discussion!A few years ago, quite a lot actually, Nike launched an intriguing campaign featuring a picture of an unattractive man who was clearly more worried about sports results than fashion. The tagline was something like “Runners are freaks; they d...
In the last couple of years it has become a trend; watches that the high-end brands make especially for one or more of their boutiques. Often this results in unique color combinations and very limited production. Today we found such a watch, but this one is so much more rare….??It’s a Cartier Tortue Monopoussoir Boutique Edition, but not just ?a Boutique Edition; Cartier issued this wa...
When Piaget decided to take the legendary Polo out of its precious metal solitude they did a very thorough job. They made the case a contemporary 45mm in diameter, hence its name; Polo FortyFive.To prevent that you need serious muscle in order to wear this watch they made it from titanium. Only the famous?gadroons?are made of steel (except on the Two-Tones Perpetual Calendar). This change gives th...
Vacheron Constantin releases three special edition to celebrate their first boutique in the US. One the three is a New York Limited Edition of the Historiques American 1921… and we found the original version of this gorgeous re-edition!Earlier Vacheron Constantin already launched the Overseas Perpetual Calendar Chronograph, exclusively for boutiques. Yesterday we received news they launch th...
The Panerai PAM386 Luminor Composite Marina 1950 is Monochrome’s favorite new Panerai of this year. The material of the case, the size and the rugged looks are simply awesome.?Monochrome’s Weekly Watch Photo is made by Martin Wilmsen who is specialized in watch photography and Panerai watches and his blog is on Monochrome’s daily reading list. We always enjoy to see nice photos o...