Thailand holidays: be the only guests at this private Thai island resort October 9, 2023 Thailand is rethinking luxury with a new breed of private resort, finds Liz Connor The words ‘Thailand’ and ‘luxury’ aren’t always an obvious pairing. The hedonistic southern end of the country is famous for boozy full moon parties, well-trodden backpacker trails and hordes of tourists who flood to its shores to make the most of [...]
Wear your art on your sleeve: New watches with graphic dials October 8, 2023 Perhaps Instagram is to blame but whatever the reason, even the more dyed-in-the-wool watch nerds aren’t above an exuberant graphic dial these days. Here are three of our favourites. ROLEX OYSTER PERPETUAL CELEBRATION Just when you thought Rolex’s 2020 spectrum of five Perpetual models in five respective ‘pops!’ was jazzy enough for the premiere practitioner [...]
Cartier’s Tank is the watch that keeps on giving October 7, 2023 Luxury watchmaking’s newly, seasonally uncoupled ‘drop’ culture means, like buses, you wait months after the industry’s formal fixture in spring, then two showstoppers arrive within a week. To wit: a Cartier celebrating a full 170 years of the Parisian grande dame making watches in all their wild and whimsical shapes. Joining fellow Richemont watchmaker, Jaeger-LeCoultre [...]
We love the vampish dial of Jaeger-LeCoultre’s new chronograph October 6, 2023 There’s an intense richness to both concentric dial sectors of the Polaris Chronograph, laboriously lacquered in almost 40 opposing fades of grey. From black to snow white, this ‘graduated’ or ‘fumé’ (smoked) pattern is notoriously hard to apply – by hand – so consistently. Given the Swiss say the art of dial-making is already the [...]
What’s ticking? All the latest watch news, from Arcanaut to Zodiac October 6, 2023 Clerkenwell may not be the highly sprung horological hub it once was, but a visit to Kensington is all it takes to wind back the clocks, both sides of the Channel; while a visit to Leicester Square come November will strap you into all that’s ticking fast today, from Arcanaut to Zodiac. THE ENGLISH CONNECTION [...]
Head to Watches of Switzerland Knightsbridge this weekend for an amazing Patek Philippe exhibition September 28, 2023 If you’re looking for some horological inspiration this weekend, head over to Watches of Switzerland in Knightsbridge, where you can find a unique and inspiring collection of Patek Philippes. The exhibition is designed to celebrate the finest in watchmaking, looking at both the brand’s iconic timepieces and paying homage to the historic references that have [...]
What’s ticking? All the latest news from Rolex, Tissot and more September 11, 2023 Swiss watchmaking is a multifaceted beast. Here, Tissot does the digital time warp; one of its neighbouring Jura Mountains blue-bloods fast forwards to the materials future; while Germany’s finest ‘uhrmacher’ slides into top gear. The Crown hits the town In a shock move announced on 25 August, in the absence of any direct descendants, Jörg [...]
Tudor launches new versions of its ‘FXD’ Pelagos diving watch September 7, 2023 Setting sail with the elite Alinghi Red Bull Racing, Tudor has launched two new versions of its ‘FXD’ Pelagos diving watch. There is now a ‘time-only’ and a stopwatch-fitted ‘chronograph’ (pictured right), each inspired by regatta racing. Expect to see the Chrono model on wrists at the America’s Cup, whose 37th edition is off the [...]
Into the blue: Three great watches that are beautiful in blue September 5, 2023 Taking inspiration from the sea and the sky, these are some of our favourite new watch releases from Switzerland and beyond, all looking beautiful in blue. Oris Aquis Pro 4000m The historic watchmaker of Holstein has progressed in leaps, bounds and huge splashes in recent years – from designer savvy to in-house mechanical nous. This [...]
How Swatch hopes to recapture the MoonSwatch magic with new Blancpain collab September 5, 2023 The groundbreaking, plastic-fantastic, injection-moulded Swatch watch was a fashion-forward crutch for Switzerland’s ailing giants 40 years back. It bolstered household names like Omega, Longines, Rado, Tissot et al, all desperately consolidated by the late Nicholas Hayek following the devastation wrought in the Seventies by cheap, electronic quartz tech’ from East Asia. Ironically, at the hands [...]