Watches NEWS
Introducing: The Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Concept Flying Tourbillon x Tamara Ralph
Collaborations between watch brands and designers, artists, musicians, trendsetters, artisans, comic characters, action heroes, etc., are the order of the day. You’d be hard-pressed to think of a brand that has not succumbed to some outside input to generate a buzz among younger collectors or even wizened collectors looking for something fresh. Since the unveiling of the then ‘shocking’ Royal Oak in 1972, Audemars Piguet has always had a finger on the pulse of contemporary trendsetters. The latest collaboration involves Australian Haute Couture designer Tamara Ralph. Using the Royal Oak Concept Flying Tourbillon as a base, Tamara Ralph has dreamed up an impressive watch with warm shades of bronze, gold and brown, contrasting textures and loads of volume unveiled during her recent Spring/Summer 2024 runway show in Paris.Destined initially as a one-off edition to celebrate the Royal Oak’s 30th anniversary in 2002, the Royal Oak Concept or ROC became a collection i
Christopher Ward C9 Harrison 5-Day Automatic with the brand's first in-house movement - Monochrome Watches
The introduction of a new in-house movement does not happen every day and is an important moment for any watch brand. Well, maybe not so much for Jaeger-LeCoultre, who have more then 1,000 calibres on their repertoire. However it definitely is a very important moment for a relatively young watch brand that isn’t even Swiss. British watch brand Christopher Ward introduce their first in-house movement, calibre SH21, in the C9 Harrison 5-Day Automatic.?The newly developed movement first appear in Christopher Ward’s flagship collection – the Harrison collection. Aesthetically this is the best that Christopher Ward has to offer, although the C5 Malvern Slimline that we recently showed as value proposition is also in line with the same aesthetic codes. The design is clean and strong. The finish of the case is nice, and comprises brushed and polished parts, and it features a rather thin bezel and therefore relatively large dial. With a diameter of 43mm and 13.45mm in height,
Introducing: New Red Gold Versions of the Updated IWC Portugieser 40 and 42 Automatic
2024 was all about the Portugieser at IWC, the brand’s most classic and elegant collection. Of course, the star of the show was the Portugieser Eternal Calendar, a secular calendar watch that made it to our list of the best watches of the year. There were many more updated versions of this emblematic watch launched at W&W 2024, including superb colours for the chronograph, updated QPs and revised editions of the Portugieser 40 and 42 Automatic. In both cases, a classic combination was missing: a gold case and silver dial, which is the maximum expression of timelessness. Problem solved as IWC presents red gold versions of the 40mm IW3584 and the 42mm IW5017 of its icon.?The update that these models underwent in April 2024 was subtle, to say the least. We were looking at slightly retouched cases with thinner middle cases combined with box-shaped crystals – front and back – adding to the slenderness of these models. For the Portugieser 40 Automatic, a watch first lau
Mido Commander Big Date 60th Anniversary Limited Edition Review
Back in 2018, Mido released the Commander Big Date to celebrate 100 years of watchmaking, an impressive feat for any Swiss brand given challenging events like World War II and the quartz crisis that ravaged the industry. The following year, a special edition debuted to mark the 60th anniversary of one of the brand's most prominent lines, the Commander. The Commander Big Date 60th Anniversary Limited Edition adds some red accents and dial changes for a new personality, and it just might be my favourite piece in Mido's entire portfolio.?BackgroundThe Commander debuted in 1959 and was chosen over the popular Ocean Star and Multifort lines to celebrate the brand's centennial. There are several Commander variants in Mido's collection, such as the vintage-inspired Commander Shade that harkens back to the 1970s and Commander Gradient Calibre 80 with a skeletonized aesthetic under a smoked dial. The Big Date models are the standouts with, according to the company, the largest big date aperture
Event Report - Behind The Scenes With Tissot at The Tour de France
Pain, passion, glory The Tour de France is widely considered the most prestigious and most difficult cycling race. 3,350 kilometres are being raced in 2022, split up over 21 days of racing. Every detail counts in this challenging competition between 176 riders, and, against time. Cycling fans all remember the 1989 Greg LeMond victory over Laurent Fignon, by just 8 seconds, the smallest ever in the history of the Tour de France: timekeeping is essential to the dream of racing cyclists. Tissot has been involved in a range of cycling events for over 50 years and, as the official timekeeper of the Tour de France, the brand plays an essential role in the captivating narrative that unfolds every summer. We were lucky enough to be invited for a formidable weekend in Lausanne, to go behind-the-scenes of timekeeping at the Tour de France 2022.Yours truly participating (above) – below: inside Le Tour, a unique opportunity to ride the last 50 kilometres of Tour de France 2022 Stage 8, with
[Rating:(5 / 5 stars)]
