Bespoke…

“Eventually, you reach a point when you want what others don’t have,” says Dominique Bernaz, director of Vacheron Constantin’s Atelier Cabinotiers.  Indeed.  Vacheron’s Atelier Cabinotiers is the manufacture’s special-order division established in 2006 to serve its most exclusive clients (more on Atelier Cabinotiers here).  Be it a unique dial or an entirely proprietary movement, Atelier Cabinotiers can make it happen.  For a multi-million dollar price tag, of course.

It goes without saying that at this high level of watch collecting, discretion is part of the unwritten rule of conduct.  In other words, it is likely that the existence of most of the spectacular commissioned creations of Atelier Cabinoteirs are not widely known.  They do not it make it into a press release or watch magazine — they exist solely for the pleasure and enjoyment of their wealthy owners.   What a nice surprise and pleasure it is then that the owner of this watch, the Vacheron Constantin Philosophia, has agreed to allow a glimpse of his (or her) amazing watch over at Vacheron’s self-hosted discussion forum.

Vacheron Constantin Philosophia

(pre-production graphic)

Minute repeater, Moon Phase, Power Reserve, Tourbillon

The word on  The Hour Lounge is that the owner’s original idea for this piece was to have a tourbillon minute repeater with no hands.  For reasons unknown to me, though, the owner obviously decided to add one hand (it advances in 24h cycles) and a moonphase indicator.  The base movement is Vacheron’s Caliber 2755, appropriately modified.  Most other details of the watch remain unknown, but I think the price was easily >$1 million.

Vacheron Constantin Philosophia, No. 1/1 (Un/Un)

personalised power reserve indicator on the caseback showing the Big Dipper constellation

Pretty cool, eh?

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

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!

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.

Alfa Romeo Tribute…

Florence, Italy-based watch designer Giuliano Mazzuoli has unveiled his Contagiri 8C Competizione watch.   Mazzuoli’s Contagiri collection — “Contagiri” means tachometer when translated from Italian – is a tribute to the world of motor racing with two out its four versions dedicated to Alfa Romeo.  8C Competizione is a specific model made by Alfa Romeo, and the dial of the watch closely resembles the dashboard instruments of this automobile, as you can see below.

Giuliano Mazzuoli Contagiri 8C Competizione Watch

44mm stainless steel+black DLC, automatic mechanical movement, black rubber strap with matching metal buckle, limited edition of 500

The central hour hand on the watch does not make a full rotation, instead after sweeping from 1-to-12 it jumps retrograde (backwards) 270° back to hour #1.  The watch does not use a crown to wind the watch or to set the time, instead relying upon a lever similar to a “gear shift” through which the functions usually done through the crown are operated.  Note also a triangular aperture at the 6 o’clock position (now showing four-leaf clover) which marks the position of the gear with number “1″ indicating the position to wind the watch, and number “2″ indicating the position to set the time.

Alfa Romeo Contagiri 8C Competizione Sportscar

sells for ~$200,000

Learn more at http://www.giulianomazzuoli.com

Like it…

Here’s a new and neat single-hand watch from a little-known German watch brand MeisterSinger.  Launched in 2002, MeisterSinger is a brand known for its single-hand watches that I liken to a more “relaxed” way of telling time.  So what’s up with the single-hand design?  Not much, really, but if you need help read on and I’ll tell you how to tell time.  This particular model is a special edition watch featuing a 43mm black PVD case and a bronze hand with matching bronze-color dial decoration.   Like other MeisterSinger watches, I’m pretty sure the movment is an ETA 2824-2 Swiss-made automatic but I need to confirm this.  Price is about $1,900 (1450 EUR), but distribution is limited so if you want to get one here in the United States you’ll probably need to drop an email to order-information@meistersinger.net.

MeisterSinger No. 3 Special Edition

Bronze Time Hand / 43mm Black PVD Case

Telling Time

The twelve-hour dial is divided by 144 markers. Each marker represents 5 minutes.  The 15-minute, 30-minute and the hour marker are increasingly bolder and in combination with the distinctive pointed hand make it easy to read the time.  It is 15 past 10 on the watch shown:

MeisterSinger Chief Designer Manfred Brassler appropriately reminds us that “timekeeping began with a single hand – sundials, the first church steeple clocks, the old Breguet subscription watches. For the people in the late 17th century, a second hand must have seemed as strange as a single one is to us now.”

Thus while this minimalistic method of telling time might seem unconventional by today’s standarsd, I think it should suit the modern luxury watch wearer and his iPhone 4 just fine!