Although the star attraction at Bulgari’s will undoubtedly be the new record-breaking Octo Finissimo Ultra, the Italian brand will also be presenting three iterations of the watch that started Bulgari’s trailblazing campaign of ultra-thin winners. Unveiled in 2014, the record-breaking Bulgari’s Octo Finissimo Tourbillon wowed the watchmaking world with the thinnest tourbillon mov...
The competition for ultra-thin watches is more intense than ever. Watches with a thinness that would have been unimaginable a few years ago have recently been unveiled, with manufacturers squeezing complications into minimal space and tirelessly chasing microns. Bulgari's Octo Finissimo saga has garnered widespread recognition in this realm. The brand’s remarkable series of records included ...
Ancient Rome is a constant well of inspiration at Bulgari that deftly transforms architectural motifs from the past into fresh, stylish designs. The dynamic geometry of the Octo Roma, released in 2012 and refreshed in 2023, is said to have been inspired by the octagonal coffering found on the vaults of the 4th-century Basilica of Maxentius in the Roman Forum. Now in its sportier, more robust and l...
One trend that was once dominated by the big players in the watch industry and caught on with independent watch brands is the luxury sports watch. As one of the most popular, if not the most popular, watch categories, there are many candidates out there vying for your attention. While some flaunt their maritime or racing credentials, there are others that could be broadly categorised as dressy lux...
Last year, the bold and ultra-modern SpaceOne Jumping Hour emerged from the visionary mind of Theo Auffret, a young Parisian independent watchmaker celebrated for crafting intricate timepieces like the Tourbillon Grand Sport?and Guillaume Laidet, the man spearheading the revival of Nivada, Excelsior Park and Vulcain. And it's now time for the duo to present its latest creation – helped with ...
The design for Doxa's signature diving watches, labelled SUB (and in particular the emblematic SUB 300 collection), was first introduced in 1966 and proved to be the blueprint for what we know and love today. While the iconic design has been retained over the years, Doxa has been playing around with the overall concept in recent years, with new materials and unexpected colour combinations, as foun...
In 2015, Ferdinand Berthoud, a brand with a historical name resurrected by Karl-Friedrich Scheufele, Chopard’s co-president, unveiled the Chronometre Ferdinand Berthoud FB1. Since then, we’ve witnessed the successful launch of numerous references in the FB1, FB2, and FB3 collections. These releases have showcased groundbreaking engineering innovations and distinguished themselves with ...
In 2001, Pascal Raffy, a passionate collector of haute horlogerie, acquired the prestigious name Bovet and embarked on a remarkable journey to revive the brand to its former glory. Mr. Raffy spared no effort in establishing a manufacture characterized by an exceptional level of integration. Among its various achievements, Bovet introduced a series of exquisitely crafted and complex watches. Notabl...
Watchmaking is often touted to be about creativity and expressiveness, but when it comes to dials, brands tend to be a touch conservative. Simple silver, black or blue, however beautifully crafted they are, can be a bit, well, plain. And to some perhaps even boring. Luckily there are brands who dare to break those boundaries of materials and opt for something spectacularly different. With that in ...
As the days gradually get longer, and the sun radiates us with its comforting warmth, the season of going for a leisurely cruise in your car or on your motorbike is finally here again. Done are the days of simply commuting to and from work, and here is the time of taking out your special baby over the weekend, just to put some miles on the odometer. And if you happen to be in the market for a new ...
Here it is the most exciting time of the year for watch enthusiasts, retailers, and journalists is upon us once again. The most important event of the watch industry calendar, Watches and Wonders 2024 is set to kick off on April 9th, 2024 at 08:30 AM Europe Time. The event gains even more importance this year, and with it, all the parallel presentations, which promise us a week full of fervour. To...
We, at MONOCHROME, rarely publish so-called “guest posts” and prefer to use our Collector's Series as a platform to share our readers' adventures with a watch. Today, we had to make an exception. The reason is simple. The story was just too good to not be shared. It tells a tale about a watch, something highly personal that, in some ways, will speak to a lot of us, watch enthusiasts. T...
This might well be the most unexpected release of Tudor in years. A couple of months ago, we already spotted something not supposed to exist, or at least, a watch that can’t actually be acquired by the general public. Released in the frame of the partnership with Visa Cash App RB F1 Team, Tudor created a Black Bay Ceramic blue dial “team watch” only for this occasion. Well, now i...
Angelus initiated its La Fabrique collection last year, with the idea to revive heritage pieces and pay homage to iconic designs (and we know that Angelus has a lot of them) The journey began with the launch of the Chronographe Medical, a purpose-built doctor’s watch inspired by a 1960s chronograph and developed in collaboration with Massena LAB. With this release, it seemed logical to antic...
When you think about astronomical watches, timekeepers that are capable of displaying complex indications related to the position of the moon, the sun, the length of days or the equation of time, you might have in mind watches with fairly loaded dials and an array of star-inspired textures. There’s surely nothing wrong with that, but it is far from being Ludwig Oechslin's approach to watchma...
Ben Kuffer hit the ground running with the launch of his start-up watch brand Norqain in 2018. Thanks to a good network of family and friends associated with the watch industry, Ben counted on the support of his father, Marc Kuffer, who owned and managed a prominent Swiss private label manufacturer, Ted Schneider, a member of the family that owned Breitling for decades and other heavyweights like ...
Piaget is world-famous for its vibrant creations in the field of watches and jewellery. In this video, we are taking a look at an important yet sometimes lesser-known side of the brand: its expertise in the field of movement creation and manufacturing. Everything started in the small village of La C?te-aux-Fees in the Swiss Jura mountains, where Georges Edouard Piaget set up his workshop in 1874. ...
No brand, it seems, is immune to the allure of the luxury sports watch, sporty-chic watches with integrated bracelets. The latest brand to dip its toe into the highly infested luxury sports watch waters is Arnold & Son, which introduces its first integrated sports watch at Watches and Wonders 2024. Christened the Longitude in honour of John Arnold’s historical marine chronometers, the la...
With the new year well on its way, there have already been a ton of immensely cool watches being presented. Whether it’s new materials and colours in existing collections, completely new models or even entirely new brands, there’s no shortage of news in 2024. News from mainstream brands, but also from indie watchmakers and everything in between. As we do every week, we take a look at w...
What would your initial thought be if you uncovered a run-down Oldsmobile, or a Hudson, in a dusty old barn? Would you think “piece of junk” or “diamond in the rough”? Would you see potential or just a bottomless money pit? If you have the right mind- and skillset, any derelict car can be turned around into a running and driving machine. And if you?really know what you are ...
If you're on this website, reading the latest article in my diving test series, there's a pretty good chance that you have at least a passing familiarity with Sinn watches. There is an equally good chance that most of your non-watch-nerd friends, family, and colleagues do not. Flying just under the radar, Sinn has been producing beautifully well-made toolwatches for over 60 years now. If there's a...
First released in 2019, the Heritage BiCompax Annual quickly became a best-selling watch for Carl F. Bucherer. Merging retro design elements with modern complications and practicality, it is one of the very few timepieces on the market to combine a chronograph and an annual calendar – something you’d imagine only Patek is capable of manufacturing… After multiple editions (Panda, ...
Next to the vintage-inspired Legend Diver collection, the Longines HydroConquest is a more utilitarian, robust, classic diver, with water-resistance up to 300 metres, a unidirectional, external rotating bezel, a screw-in crown and a screw-down caseback. Following the introduction of the practical, versatile and mostly visually appealing HydroConquest GMT last year in a 41mm case, Longines now laun...
When two masters of their respective crafts meet, it’s very likely greatness will ensue. However, while masters may strengthen each other, it’s difficult to find common ground when crafts might seem at odds. Despite this, a positive and uniquely intriguing outcome is still a possibility. Such is the case with the collaboration of Ral Pages, the esteemed independent watchmaker, and Ani...
MB&F undertook its maiden voyage into the galaxy of women’s watches with the launch of its Legacy Machine Flying T in 2019. After 14 years of masterminding complex watches for men, Max Busser’s Legacy Machine Flying T flaunted all the attributes associated with MB&F watches but in a more feminine format – or even a very feminine format when teaming up with Bulgari. For 20...
A veteran of the Swiss industry, Dominique Renaud joins forces with a young independent watchmaker, Julien Tixier. They aim to revisit fundamental principles of mechanical watchmaking and micro-mechanics introducing innovative solutions. The first opus of this newly created brand Renaud Tixier reimagines a classic of fine watchmaking, the micro-rotor, with an auxiliary mechanism to enhance its win...
For most watch enthusiasts, Citizen is probably best known for its wide range of affordable quartz, solar-powered and mechanical watches. Watches like the Promaster series, for instance, have been fan-favourite models for years. More recently, the Tsuyosa collection made quite an impact for its honest yet compelling proposition. There is one collection that, however, delivers much more, the Citize...
Watches come in all shapes and sizes, ranging from very affordable to very expensive and everything in between. Throughout our weekly Buying Guide search to group together a selection of watches with a common theme, we thought it was time to take a look at some of the classiest watches you can buy at the moment. Classy watches with a healthy dose of personality of course, as we don’t want so...
There was a time in Formula 1 racing where not one, not two, not three but pretty much half the field had the talent and material to compete for race wins, and thus the championship. During the 1970s, a time that’s considered the golden age of F1 racing, many stars rose to the top. Think of names like Gilles Villeneuve, Mario Andretti, Emerson Fittipaldi, Jackie Stewart, Niki Lauda, James Hu...
Five months in as CEO of one of the most luxurious watch brands, Audemars Piguet, Mrs Ilaria Resta offers her view on the current market and how she sees the future of the esteemed Le Brassus-based Maison.Dressed in a green suit with a 38mm purple dial Code 11:59 on the wrist, Italian-Swiss Ilaria Resta looks relaxed and concentrated when I meet her in the Armani Hotel in Milan. We are here for th...