Another luxury brand collaboration with The Hour Glass…
I’ve long been a fan of Chopard‘s Mille Miglia collection of watches, and today I’ve got a special edition “all-black” DLC Mille Miglia watch to show you. Overall, the Mille Miglia timepieces are an excellent embodiment of auto-racing sport and culture, not to mention all-around cool looking watches. This particular model is the results of a collaboration between Chopard and The Hour Glass, a famous group of Singapore-based watch boutiques celebrating 150 years in 2010. The watch is limited to just 150 pieces worldwide, but you can only buy it through the aforementioned Hour Glass. Comes with the rubber strap (pictured) and also a black calf-strap with orange stitching. Available August 2010. No word on price, but I would guess upwards of $10,000.
Chopard Mille Miglia Speed Black Power Control
44mm black DLC (diamond-like carbon) case Orange accents and power reserve gauge
On a side note, this is the second high end boutique/brand collaboration I recall in recent months (see: Urwerk White Shark for Chronopassion Paris and The Hour Glass). I’m not quite sure how these arrangements work, but I would guess that in these instances the boutiques are somehow sharing the costs (production, marketing or otherwise) of having these pieces produced exclusively for their particular boutiques. And given the results that such collaborations can produce, I like these partnerships!
Also — You can check out all our Chopard coverage by clicking HERE>>
All the watch news that’s fit to print….
It goes without saying that for each watch featured here daily on the Perpetuelle.com Blog, there are several more we are not able to write about (for any number of reasons). But that’s not to say you can’t easily keep up on all of the latest watch news, because you can….by visiting the Press Release Feed on Perpetuelle.com’s World Watch Forum. Yes, the Perpetuelle.com Press Release Feed features official press releases from a diverse lineup of watch brands —> and it’s only a click away <—
So — here is the news for the week of August 23, 2010 (in no particular order) that was not already featured here on the blog – click through if you are interested in full details on any of these:
- Lamborghini Blancpain Super Trofeo & Le Mans Series
- Hysek Opens Flagship Store in Singapore
- Jaeger-LeCoultre Book: Extreme Watches for an Extreme World
- New Swiss Brand: Codex
- Franc Vila FVa35 SuperSonico 5 Minutes Repeater, Superligero Concept
- Roger Dubuis Excalibur Automatic Tourbillon
- The Hublot Polo Gold Cup Gstaad
- BALL Trainmaster Worldtime COSC
- Romain Jerome honoured by India’s prestigious Watch World Awards 2010
Rally time…
This is a cool new watch from Edox, specifically it is part of the brand’s WRC (World Rally Championship) Chronorally collection. While the also WRC-inspired Edox Chronorally (Ref 36001 3 NIN) watch has a slight edge in my book due to its the cool “rally racing” dial layout, I would be pretty happy wearing this watch because it has a better movement (automatic mechanical rather than quartz) and arguably better looking color scheme. Though at 45mm + oversized pushers, it may be a bit too much metal for my wrist. Ah well. Price is $3,100.
Edox WRC Rally Chronograph Automatic Watch (Ref 01110 3 NIN)
45mm stainless steel case (17.25mm thick), automatic mechanical movement, rubber strap
Master of meteorites…
I want to bring to your attention a special report by master watchmaker Antoine Preziuso that I recently posted on the Perpetuelle.com World Watch Forum (click here to view the feature story).
Antoine Preziuso is the only watchmaker to use meteorites to create entire cases for his watches. He’s also made some crazy watches such as the Antoine Preziuso Mega Tourbillon, but what he does with meteorite rock is really quite impressive — here is just a glimpse:
If you want to learn more about Antoine Preziuso, I highly recommend Masters of Contemporary Watchmaking by Michael Clerizo (ISBN 0500514852 / 978-0500514856, available for purchase on Amazon.com) as Preziuso has an entire chapter dedicated to his work.
Again, click here to check out the Perpetuelle Special Report: ANTOINE PREZIUSO AND HIS TIMELESS LOVE STORY WITH METEORITES.
Shaky Videos presents…
Well-known watch journalist Ian Skellern (give him a follow on Facebook @underthedial) did a nice job of putting together this short film on the new Urwerk UR-202 White Shark. You can see more photos and read my prior coverage of the timepiece here, but be sure to watch this video first. Thanks for taking us up close and personal with the Great White, Ian!
Another sponsorship coup for JC Biver?
Hey — is that Marcos Heguy (called out below) accepting a Hublot watch?!?! Or is it just TEAM BANQUE BARING BROTHERS STURDZA SA graciously accepting a prize for winning the 2010 Hublot Polo Gold Cup Gstaad — a Hublot Big Bang Polo De Paris. I saw this pic and I had to laugh and say “what Piaget will have to say about this?” After all, they did make a Heguy, one of the very best polo players in the world, his very own Polo FortyFive! LOL!
I say this all lightheartedly — I don’t think Piaget has anything to worry about….or do they? 
click here for more official event photos
An extreme looking minute repeater…
It was in 2008 that Franc Vila launched his Superligero Concept collection. The common element in all the timepieces introduced under this collection is the use of Lightnium, an aluminium-lithium based alloy used in state of the art aeronautical engineering — generally speaking, the alloy is super light but super strong. According to Vila, Lightnium also offers good “sonority” aka it makes the 5 minute repeater mechanism sound very nice. Like all Franc Vila watches, these watches are very extreme, but cool, looking (have you seen the EVOS 8 Estrella Roja?). But for the right personality (and bank account–prices start around $15,000 and up from there), they will be a perfect match. This particular model is the FVa35 SuperSonico 5 Minute Repeater. It has a gnarly looking skeletonized dial that chimes every 5 mins. Not sure on price, but probably well past $30,000. Limited to 88 pieces.
Be sure to check out my other coverage of Franc Vila watches, here. I hope to one day meet Franc Vila the man — he seems like a very passionate watch guy.
Also — stay tuned for my video review of the Franc Vila FVa8 Chronograph — Dog days of summer and other activities have it on the backburner for now, but just as soon as I allocate the time to edit the video I will get it posted.
LW gets sexy…
Favorite of the house and oh-so-hot Swiss watch brand Linde Werdelin announced the launch of its first women’s watch today — a 51 piece limited edition run being called “The White Watch”. Far as I can tell, we are talking a simple change of color to the standard 3-Timer model and that’s about it. LW says the model has been softened up a bit but really the modifications seem subtle. Also, so far as I can tell the size of the watch is unchanged from the previous (men’s) models – 46mm x 49mm x 12mm, though LW is quick to point out that it “wears like a 42mm”. Not that I am complaining — I like the look of a 42mm watch on a feminine wrist, particularly a watch like this:
Linde Werdelin White Watch
Limited to 51 pieces worldwide, get yours soon at LindeWerdelin.com for €4,680 (taking wait-list now)
Seems to me that the launch of this watch is all about about having a feminine, hip and sexy color looking 3-Timer for the ladies who have been asking for such a version, and kudos to LW for delivering.
Come to think of it, this watch would pair up nicely with the some of the fair ladies one might see hanging poolside on oh, say, a Saturday at Wet Republic (caution: BSFW)…don’t you think?
Screw the watch…check out the building!
Chanel brings us this special J12 “101″ in celebration of one of the largest buildings in the world, Taipei 101. Only 101 of the special black ceramic J12′s have been made, available exclusively in the Chanel shop in the Taipei 101 tower for approximately 3900 EUR ($5,000). The watch is a standard Chanel J12 in every regard except the specially marked red “101″ on the bezel. In other words not too exciting, but it does give us a chance to check out one of the coolest buildings in the world!
Setting this otherwise unremarkable watch aside for a moment, don’t you just love mega-tall buildings?!? I know I do. The feats of engineering and construction that go into building these structures are semi-miraculous, and of course Taipei 101 is no exception. I recall watching a very cool show on Discover Channel about how this building was made and I remember being especially awed and inspired by the 660 ton turned mass damper stabilization system.
Discovery Channel Video on Taipei 101 and its “Damper” System
Taipei 101 In All Its Beauty and Splendor
Until the erection of the Burj Khalifa in Dubai in 2010, Taipei 101 held the title of “tallest building in the world.” Fun reading over at Wikipedia: List of Tallest Buildings and Structures in the World.
Don’t Miss the Joke of the day…
It took Omega this long to come up with this? Yes, another boring “me-too” watch app for the iPhone. Breitling Panerai, IWC, Bell & Ross, etc. etc. are no better and their iPhone apps are BORING as well. Which brings me to the…
Joke of the Day
Q: What is a Swiss luxury watch brand’s idea of e-commerce?
A: Having a “Find Nearest Authorized Dealer” function in its iPhone App.
