Watch Companies and Their Pets

Boucheron Grenoui

Representation of animals on peoples possessions have been around since the dawn of mankind. From the earliest cave paintings to the latest cyber pets, humans are fixated on animal motifs.
Exquisite depictions of creatures are found on many a watch.  Cartier Prowls around with a Panther; Maurice Lacrox  harbors a starfish and Boucheron has a thing for frogs and feathered friends.  MB & F took a Panda for a ride atop its Thunderbolt HM4 for the Only Watch Auction 2011, while Urwerk lurks in crevices with its Tarantula Timepieces.  Urwerk is not the only one with a fascination for venomous arachnids, the  Ladoire Black Widow  has quite a bite. Concord has let its Black Spider out the cage, while Urwek heeds the call of the Phoenix. Parmigiani summons in a dragon for the Chinese New Year and Cartier captures a croc. Vacheron Constantin lets loose a flock of birds or fish if you wish, while Hermes and Angular Momentum both reign in a herd of horses. Serpents slither across the dial of a Richard Mille RM 026 tourbillon and Piaget's glittering birds perch upon a branch in a Piaget Limelight Garden Party.


Van Cleef & Arpels needs special mention in this regard,  as superb enameling creates creatures of extraordinary splendor. In the 1950's Van Cleef & Arpels wanted to increase its elite customer base and cater to a larger group of admirers.  The result was a lovely catalog named “La Boutique” in 1954 featuring brooches of 'Curious Creatures".  These playful whimsical creatures were somewhat affordable and highly collectible. With the purchase of the Cat Brooch one wanted the lion or the giraffe  ,the adorable bunny brooch or the monocled bulldog. Van Cleef & Arpels used its whimsical representation of creatures to win the hearts of many.

Lady Arpels African Landscape

To this day, Van Cleef & Arpels has been adorning the watch dials with animals of all kinds. Many gracing the face of Van Cleef & Arpels Extraordinary dials. 

Check out my all time favorites.

Lady Arpels African Landscape

Van Cleef & Arpels took great inspiration from the pioneer of science fiction, Jules Verne, and created dial landscapes of incredible wonder based on his tales.  The "Les Voyages" collection and Poetry of Time Collection.  Born and bred on the African soil, I always gravitate towards African themed depictions.
A Van Cleef & Arpel dial is not simply a beautiful image surrounded by a frame.  A Van Cleef & Arpel dial exudes an emotional atmosphere activating a variety of sensory experiences.  The giraffe themed dial creates a vivid sense of the dry hot Savannah sun where rainfall is seasonal and dappled shade is cast from small leaved trees. A bejeweled giraffe protects her offspring against the backdrop of the yellow sand and pale blue sky.  The elephant and his young one resides in a rather more tropical area where rain is abundant and  the sky is often stormy with sudden storms.
It takes rare talent to create dials such as these and each dial undergoes many processes such as  inlaying, stone selection, cutting and setting, lacquering, hand engraving and enameling to create an "Extraordinary Dial."

One of the latest Van Cleef & Arpels Collection is the Extraordinary Dials Hummingbird Collection reminding me always of a Springtime garden tea party. There are quite a few models all beautifully created and full of life.  Three techniques were used in creating these dials: setting of precious stones, champleve enamelling, as well as three-dimensional enameling. One thing I love about these watches is the  830p mechanical movement.  Often times watch companies, especially when it comes to women's watches,  create a wonderful dial of magnificent splendor and then place a quartz movement within the case. However for the Poetry of Time timepieces and Extraordinary Dials, Van Cleef & Arpels goes mechanical.

Another Van Cleef & Arpels dial I simply love is this adorable depiction of mother and baby hippo wallowing in the water.  The intricate alternating shades of watery greens epitomizes the exquisite skill of craft applied to the dial.

From the hot African sun to the frigid Antarctic air - Van Cleef & Arpels utilizes a variety of colors, precious stones, materials and techniques to create the desired look.  The ability to create a still image into a living segment of time, well that's Extraordinary. 

Top Ten Valentine's Day Watches

Top Ten Valentines Day Luxury Watches.  See if you agree.

 1) A Chopard Happy Heart Valentine's Special Edition 2012 Watch

Limited Edition: 500 pieces.

36 mm Stainless steel case and bezel surrounds a smoky mother-of-pearl dial beneath three gem encrusted  hearts - one diamond and two pink sapphires which float between two thin sheets of sapphire crystal providing the illusion of floating hearts. Quartz movement; water resistance to 100 feet (wouldn't suggest getting this baby wet on account of the silk purple satin strap) and all around a darling timepiece bound to sweep her off her feet.  Cost: Under $10,000 - but not much - due to its limited nature and collectors potential.

 2) Blancpain Saint-Valentin 2012 Flyback Chronograph - Limited Edition - 14 pieces.  Price: TBD

Announce your love with all your heart, your soul and your savings.  Give your loved one the most gorgeous Valentines Day Watch.  A watch ,like your cherished sweetheart, which is as beautiful on the inside as the outside. For the record - Blancpain has never ever made a quartz watch. Upon opening  the wooden box with joyous disbelief shining in her eyes, she will notice the bright red heart counterbalance - as women are emotional beings.  Then her eyes will stray to  the diamond encrusted bezel and diamond indices - 2.95 carats in all ... then the intriguing mother-of-pearl dial baring three mother-of-pearl hearts - a testament to unparalleled marquetry.

In amazed silence, she turns the watch over and gasps at the mechanical mastery resting on the palm of her upturned hand.  She may not know it just yet, but what she is gazing at, is the Saint-Valentin 2012 Flyback Chronograph calibre F185 with 37 jewels, and  an oscillating weight dressed in bands pink mother of pearl bands. Not knowing about automatic watches, she slowly comes to realize that this watch requires no batteries, but all its energy is gleaned from the gentle swinging motion of her arm.  A long while later, she will inquire about the sub dials... and you will explain to her how the chronograph and fly back function is controlled by  two push pieces, capped with cabochon-cut rubies at the 2 o’clock and 4 o’clock respectively; the date is at the 12 'o'clock position, the seconds subdial at the 6 'o'clock.  The long hand topped by a slim red feather, is the chronograph central sweep seconds hand and totalizers at the 3 and night 'o'clock counts off elapsed minutes and hours. As you fasten the soft white alligator leather strap to her wrist, and watch the diamonds twinkle in the candlelight you know this is your Valentine.

 3)Piaget Limelight Love Letter Secret Watch

Price:  $189,750.00

 If diamonds are a girls best friend then this timepiece is sure to win hearts. A 18k white gold strap is smothered beneath no less thank 1286 diamonds (appx 20.3 ct) The all encompassing bezel shaped like a letter holds 314 diamonds accentuated with the color of love - one deep red Cabochon ruby. Opening the letter, the time will be revealed on a mother of pearl dial set with an additional 12 diamonds. The movement is Quartz ( no comment). This watch is a grand example of haute joaillerie where timepieces and jewelry merge in seamless unison.

4) House of Graff: Lady Graff.

Limited Edition: 20 pieces

Price: Unknown but high six figures.

(2012)

LadyGraff sweeps into the ballroom in sparkling puffs of 109 (42.10 carats) delicately layered diamonds.  House of Graff has entered the room and all eyes are on the height of haute joaillerie timepieces.  The diamonds are securely set in full glory their brilliant clarity visible from the underside of the bracelet as well. Beneath a dial paved in 61 diamonds a Swiss quartz movement marks  the time. 

The London based House of Graff is one of the most prestigious diamond and gem suppliers in all the world and has first choice to the finest diamonds . 

5.) Van Cleef &Arpels Poetic Wish Watch Pair - Unveiled SIHH 2012

The dials of Van Cleef & Arpels are vivid depictions of romance. The latest pair are set in paris, one by day and one by night. By day a young women stands upon the Eifel tower searching for her love.  Her love is waiting for her - wishing upon a star for her return as he stands upon the Notre-Dame Cathedral, gazing at the Eiffel Tower where she stands.  The 39mm Women's Poetic Wish Timepiece is smaller in frame than the Men's 43mm case.  Designed by Jean-Marc Wiedderecht, both watches are equipped with a five minute repeater and automatons.  When a crown at the 2 'o'clock is activated, the hours begin to chime setting the young lady across the girders of the Eifel tower towards her love waiting at the Notre Dame. A mother-of-pearl cloud moves towards her and the place at which they they meet indicates the hour on the horizontal scale. As the minutes chime, a kite flies up the River Seine indicating the five minutes. When all is done and the chiming ceases the automatons return to their original positions. The chiming and movement is but a moment in time to make a wish. Her lover is standing upon the terrace of the Notre Dame and when his hour of wishing arrives, he paces towards the cloud meeting at the hour.  His minutes are marked by a shooting star heading towards the Eiffel tower to the place of his heart. Van Cleef & Arpels in the Master of Romantic Depictions. The enameling on the watch is superb, and the movement including the gongs and hammers visible via a sound amplifying raised sapphire crystal case back. The 458 component hand wound movement is capable of a 60 hour power reserve.

6) Roger Dubuis Valentines Day Watch (circa 2011) -

Limited Edition: 28 Cost: 6 figures ????

watch is the epitome of technical elegance incorporating the Valentine motif into the actual components of the in-house movement. Two synthetic heart shaped pink Sapphire crystals accentuate the shapes while a tourbillon of uncanny craftsmanship flutter beneath a skeletonized rose.  I love the fact that Roger Dubuis has focused on mechanical technicalities for a woman's watch.  The majority of woman's watches nowadays are powered by quartz movement, which I feel a bit of a let down.  Diamonds smother the 18k white gold 36mm square case. Beneath the bezel a flange indicates the hours a ruby at a time... and the red satin strap adds an evocative innuendo to the rest of the watch.

7) The Frédérique Constant Love Heart Beat Watch. (circa 2009) Price: Around $2,000.00

Even though these two beauties were unveiled 3 years ago (a lifetime in watch models), I think about them every time Valentine's Day draws near.  I think these watches affirm love in shimmering elegance without appearing too gaudy and sickly sweet.  The Frédérique Constant Heart Beat Collection is iconic for an aperture in the dial revealing the escapement of the in-house FC 310 calibre  movement.  The aperture in this case is the diamond encrusted "O".  The dial is blanketed with guilloche engraving with heart shapes framed by a magnificent bezel set with 64 diamonds. The watch is available in steel or rose gold plated case. A satin strap completes the look.  The great thing about this watch is that it is really affordable.  You can pick one up on Ebay for less than $2,000.00.

8) The Swatch Love Collection 2012 is perfect for your first love. Limited Edition : 777 

Price: $60 for one $110 for both

The red Swatch is "My Heart" - inscribed with the passionate scrawl of "Only You".  The depiction almost screams "puppy love" - a white figure emerging from the heart of a rose.  I can so picture the watch being presented with a blush and uncertain glances - the terror of being rejected and the irrevocable need to proclaim love.

The "Lovely Mine"  Swatch is so irresistibly cute - I can almost pinch its 33mm round plastic case.  "I Love You"  is printed boldly below a dial featuring a our white figure now dressed in a rabbit costume - a little naughty perhaps.  In any event these watches are so cute and true Swatch Collectors Items.  Manufactured specially for Valentine 2012, in a limited quantity of 777, which raises my eyebrows as to why that particular, if not telling number was used.  These cute watch are sold as a pair or alone. 

 9) Jaeger-Lecoultre Valentine's Day Reverso. (2012) 

Since 1931, the Reverso popularity has never wavered.  Set in the ultra Reverso Case, the Valentine's Day Model is an attractive elegant combination of pink gold and steel with a whimsical depiction of a heart engraved on the reverse side of the case.  In a unique move, Jaeger Lecoultre teamed up with Valextra,  high end Italian Luxury Bag Manufacturers, to create a strap of exceptional quality and trendy style.  The product of their partnership is a high quality attractive double tour strap available in three colors, creating an admirable fashion statement.  

 

10) DeLaneau's Delicate Collection.  Heart Shape Watch. 

Limited Edition: 20 pieces - including the round, diamond, flower or heart shaped models in this unique piece collection.

DeLaneau knows how to please the ladies with the distinctly  feminine timepiece. The DeLaneau case is a true classical depiction of a heart.  The 18k heart shaped wrist watch is outlined in pink sapphires crowned surrounding a diamond paved dial.   18K white gold bracelet is decorated with 19 heart-cut pink sapphires and 40 navette-cut diamonds. Beneath the heart beats a Frederic Piguet caliber 6.10 manual wound mechanical movement. The lack of a seconds hand creates a quiet presence in which time seems to stop in the face of beauty.

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!

Van Cleef & Arpels Whimsical Display of Space for Only Watch Auction

Van Cleef & Arpels Only Watch "From the Earth to the Moon" is a whimsical childlike representation of space. A perfect choice for the Only Watch Auction in Monaco to benefit the research and treatment of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.  A terrible debilitating childhood disease.  The dial of the watch is a display of color depicting bright stars and colorful planets.   A vivid orange and red planet encircled by rings or is it the sun  indicating orbits (I can't tell - my knowledge of astronomy needs some work) command the top of the watch and separate the retrograde hours and minutes.  A tiny rocket ship travels from 0 to 60 pointing to the minutes, whilst a shooting star travels from 1 to 12 indicating the hours.  At their end points, both rocket ship and star shoot back to the 0 or 1 respectively.  The watch is a true retrograde displaying the time in an arc as opposed to the traditional analog dial.  The earth displayed at the very bottom of the watch is a healthy  green and blue planet spilling over onto the bezel.  Mars - The Red Planet takes center stage.  Van Cleef & Arpels uses inlays of jade, agate, meteorite and Champlevé-style enamel, to achieve true primary colors.  The watch is powered by a JLC Caliber 846 manuel-wind mechanical movement equipped with a unique retrograde mechanism found exclusively in Van Cleef & Arpels Timepieces. 

The Van Cleef & Arpel "From the Earth to the Moon" is part of the exquisite "Poetic Complication Timepieces"

Video of Van Cleef & Arpels Magnificent  "Les Voyages Extraordinnaires"Dials

Artistic Dials

Dials emerge among complications, chronographs and sports watches, vibrant in color and baring works of art worthy of display in many a museums. These dials fuse mechanical craftsmanship with
artistic masterpieces creating horological wonders.

The Van Cleef & Arpels Midnight Tourbillon Lac is an extraordinary example of the mastery of mother-of-pearl inlay resulting in a dreamy landscape. The rocky outcrops surrounded by swirling colors are perfectly crafted pieces of mother-of-pearl originating from all the oceans of the world. At the 12 'o clock position, a tourbillon ensures gravity does not hinder the watch's impeccable timekeeping.





Cartier's Le Cirque Animalier Collection captures three dimensional bejeweled animals and contains them within the finest enclosures constructed from hand picked gems. Scratch resistant sapphire crystal ensures the utmost viewing pleasure and
incomparable clarity.








Alain Silberstein adds vibrant primary colors to his dials creating child-like images like pages from an infants hard board book. The Tourbillon D’Art Marine Blue Sea with its congenial date pointing star fish, maritime themed hand indicators and flustered looking fishy is wonderfully unique. Not to be swayed by the preschool presentation, a meticulously crafted tourbillon hides beneath the reeds.







Dimier, a sub brand of Bovet, presents recital 2. In this attractive timepiece flames lick the dial in dramatic curves cut out from the dial to display the Calibre DT7 movement beneath.

Magnificent dials nurture passion for timepieces, and nurture the passion for the movement that lies beneath.

5 Exceptional Timepieces for Women

At Baselworld 2011, Patek Phillipe SA demonstrates unsurpassed watchmaking skills with the release of a Ladies watch sporting a skeletonized movement.

The manually wound watch is ultra thin, gracefully decorated and engraved by hand. Both front and back of the 31.40mm case are protected by a scratch resistant sapphire crystal with brown tinted parameter creating a window to the Caliber 177 SQU movement. A slender yellow gold linked bracelet elegantly encircles the wrist.

Comprised of 110 components and 18 jewels, this Patek Phillipe SA timepiece is an example of worth.

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Hublot's Big Bang Leopard is a Timepiece of note. In the wild leopards are elusive secretive creatures, who spend much of their time in trees. On the other hand Hublot's Big Bang Leopard is meant to be noticed.

The dial is decorated with a leopard rosette pattern and matching leopard print denim strap. Matching smoked quartz, andalusites, and citrine baguette cut stones punctuated by Hublot's signature H-shaped screws accentuate the bezel. The 18k red gold ,41mm case house a HUB4300 automatic chronograph movement. 18k red gold hands and yellow diamond hour markers indicate the time.
A timepiece created for the inner wild.





Van Cleef & Arpels awakes the spring in its latest unique Poetry of Time Haute Jewelry timepiece. It is a jungle scene. A pink flower in full bloom supported by diamond vines shelter a dial beneath its sapphire encrusted petals. If the skies fill with rain, the flower moves over and protects the dial. Monkeys crafted in white gold and set with high quality hand picked stones, as with the entire timepiece, frolic among leaves of emeralds and sapphires. Alternating bands of onyx and diamonds accentuate their tails crafted to simulate their boundless energy. With this timepiece Van Cleef and Arpels has, for now, come to the end of its Voyage Extraordinaire and what a voyage it has been.
The white gold case ,ringed with diamonds, houses a Swiss Quartz movement. A jewelry bracelet set with diamonds completes the look.


Flowers, jewelery or timepiece? Flowers, jewelry or timepiece? What does a women want? Breguet has solved this dilemma with its Petite Fleur Haute Jewerly watch. 43 baguette-cut diamond petals attached to hidden pivots flutter and quiver with the movement of the wrist. The concave dial is set with 141 diamonds arranged in the snow setting technique concealing the white metal dial beneath. Blued steel hollow tipped hands are hand molded to precisely move across the concave surface of the dial. A domed sapphire Crystal baring the individual number of the timepiece protects the dial. A sapphire Crystal case back displaying high quality finishing ,including circular grained bridges and barleycorn guilloché motif embellishing the platinum oscillating weight, has earned the mechanical automatic timepiece the Geneva Seal.

DeWitt Golden Afternoon Collection is quite fitting for this blog - being an entire collection dedicated to women. The collection was inspired by the Pre-Raphaelites ,a group of English painters, poets, critics who formed a brotherhood in 1848 in celebration of women, romance and symbolic nature. They were none to pleased with the current state of affairs at the Royal Academy and wished to enrich the Academy with a more direct and honest artistic expression overflowing with details, color and complex compositions.

DeWitt's The Golden Afternoon Collection embraces the stages of a women's life capturing her changing perspectives as time moves on. Adding a light sense of fantasy, DeWitt intertwines poetry and art to create a moving collection. The Golden Afternoon Dial depicted to the left, is a mother-of-pearl garden of delicate flowers which seem to float towards the dial. Dark clouds serve as the backdrop adding a powerful contrast quality to the dial. Feathers or "the wings of an angel" dial hands ,depending on how you wish to interpret the dial, indicate the time with the aid of 12 diamond hour markers. A DeWitt logo seems to waft across the dial on a sudden breeze in preparation of a storm. This watch creates a sense of powerful symbolism. Stay tuned for more remarkable additions to DeWitt's Golden Afternoon Collection.

To all the Mother's out there - HAPPY MOTHERS' DAY.

The Inspiration of Van Cleef & Arpels

Whenever I lay my eyes on a Van Cleef & Arpel's timepiece, something catches in my throat triggering an emotional reaction I cannot quite grasp. The work is so fine, almost magical; it is as though Van Cleef & Arpel luxury watches have been crafted by a workroom full of angels.

A collection seeming to stem from a whimsical world of fairy tales is Van Cleef & Arpels "Poetry

of Time"

The latest addition is inspired by Jules Verne's 1863 tale "Five Weeks in a Balloon" where three men float in Hydrogen hot air balloon above darkest Africa. Jules Verne, the father of science fiction, weaves a tale of harrowing adventure, great explorations and remarkable inventions.

The story is depicted upon the dial of this men's rare timepiece where a bright yellow balloon is floating above a thunderous gray cloud. A soaring bird indicates the hours and an anchor tied to a rope indicates the minutes. In 2011, the clouds will part and the "Five weeks in a Balloon" Van Cleef & Arpel's timepiece will appear in the wondrous world of Horology.

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