Monochrome visits Belles Montres 2013 - Monochrome Watches
Apart from Baselworld and SIHH, watch enthusiasts around the world also have the opportunity to admire nice timepieces in smaller, more intimate exhibitions, such as QP in London or Belles Montres in Paris. As you know, we from Monochrome, we never miss the chance to present you with nice photos, great watches and fascinating stories. To begin a series of captivating articles, let's see what Belles Montres 2013 has for us.Belles Montres is the meeting of the year in Paris to contemplate timepieces. This show is far away from the madness of Baselworld and gives visitors a warm atmosphere and a closer look into an incredible selection of brands. 2013 is a transitional year for the exhibition - the French press group Le Point bought it in June 2013. This year, we have seen fewer exhibitors, slightly fewer visitors, but the quality of both, in our opinion, improved. Most of them are enthusiasts, connoisseurs that can meet directly with the owners of brands, discover exclusive models or unc

Hands-on with the Zenith Pilot Type 20 Extra Special Bronze 45mm (specs & price) - Monochrome-Watches
Bronze… Not your typical material for a watch – and especially when it comes to a pilot watch. Bronze had been used several times in watchmaking but it makes more sense on a dive watch (even if, to be true, bronze remains quite an odd choice for a timepiece. We’ll get back on the reasons why later in this article). When you think bronze, you immediately?think Panerai but other brands used it (like IWC with the Aquatimer). Now it’s Zenith’s turn to introduce a watch made in this green metal. It’s a pilot watch, it’s big but it looks really cool. Here is the?Zenith Pilot Type 20 Extra Special Bronze 45mm.The Zenith Pilot Type 20 became, among all the pilot-oriented watches, quite an icon and an easily recognizable timepiece. Even if it shares many of the classical pilot-style attributes, the Type 20 (nothing to do with the Breguet Type XX?but it’s rather link to a specific serial number of an instrument dedicated to the French Navy) has its

Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Titanium 43mm 2021 - Review, Price
The Blancpain Fifty Fathoms is, without a doubt, one of the most emblematic dive watches. You hardly can find a dive watch with more historical background, the model being one of the earliest watches of its kind and one that has helped define the very concept of the dive watch. But behind the name Fifty Fathoms hides two sub-collections, and that since the early days of this model. First is the classic watch, with its more robust case and often larger diameter. Then is the Bathyscaphe, a more focused, slightly simplified watch that can be traced back to 1956. And while the modern version of this watch is today a very well-established model, the brand has decided to bring an update, with the new Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe 43mm Titanium, which we’ve presented first here and, as promised, we now have them live.?Quick backgroundThe story of the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms starts in 1953, making it one of the very first dive watches ever manufactured and commercialized – it

Hands-On Atelier de Chronometrie AdC21 for Only Watch 2021
Atelier de Chronometrie makes its first appearance at the Only Watch auction with the donation of an absolutely stunning handmade watch to raise money for research into Duchenne muscular dystrophy. The AdC21 is not part of a collection and was specially designed for the Only Watch charity auction. Like other timepieces created by the independent brand, it evokes a vintage 1930s and 1940s design ethos with its elegant two-tone sector dial and pink gold case. A time-only watch running on a heavily reworked vintage Omega calibre 283, this exquisite unique piece will be highly contested during the auction.With its French name, you could mistake it as a Swiss or even a French watch brand. However, Atelier de Chronometrie is a Spanish company. Founded in 2014 in Barcelona, Atelier de Chronometrie creates unique watches by hand using artisanal methods and restored vintage chronometer movements. Just two years after its inauguration, the independent brand produced the AdC1, an Observatoire Chr

Mido Multifort Patrimony Chronograph (Specs & Price)
Mido is one of the brands owned by the Swatch Group that, together with Hamilton, Tissot or Rado, plays on the accessible luxury trend. Still, it has both?a storied history and portfolio that shouldn't be overlooked. A couple of years ago, the brand introduced a very appealing retro-styled 3-hander watch that pays tribute to the most famed collection of the brand, the Multifort. This Mido Multifort Patrimony and its pulsometer dial encountered quite some success and today, the brand is enlarging this collection with a vintage-inspired chronograph. And once again, this Mido Multifort Patrimony Chronograph is an interesting mix of retro look and modern mechanics.Mido was founded in Biel/Bienne, Switzerland by George G. Schaeren in 1918. The brand's Multifort line has been in production since 1934 and was the first Mido with an automatic movement. The watches were anti-magnetic, shock and water-resistant, offering a rare combination of robustness at an impressive price to quality ratio. S