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The Watches

Grand Seiko’s New Winter Scene

The patterned white dial on the latest model within Grand Seiko’s Elegance Collection is meant to evoke the beauty of freshly fallen winter snow outside its watchmaking studios in the wooded Shinshu region of central Japan. That particular scene is known as Shizuri-yuki, which refers to the moment when snow spills down from the branches of trees to create a shimmering cascade of light.

The new Grand Seiko Spring Drive SBGY008.

The new Grand Seiko Spring Drive SBGY008 could be considered the next in a series of Spring Drive debuts with dials meant to evoke the beauty of winter just outside the Grand Seiko studio.

You might recall the Grand Seiko Spring Drive SBGY007 we showed you earlier this year, with its hammered ice-blue dial that beautifully mimics a nearby frozen lake, a phenomenon called Omiwatari.

Grand Seiko cases this latest Elegance watch in a 38.5mm rose gold frame dotted along its sides with fifty-three hand set diamonds. Artisans nicely arranged the gems so that they gradually decrease in size from the center of the case to the end of the lugs, which appears to flow along the side of the case. This quite effectively generates the namesake Shizuri-yuki sparkle.

Grand Seiko then continues to evoke the winter scene on the dial with a wind-blown snow pattern. The scene is broken only by the very smooth Spring Drive seconds hand, and much more slowly as hour and minutes pass as indicated by matching, perfectly faceted gold hands.

The see-through sapphire crystal case back reveals the Spring Drive movement.

This is a fairly thin watch, measuring 10.2mm in depth, thank to Grand Seiko’s own Spring Drive manual-wind caliber winding Caliber 9R31, which offers an impressive 72 hours. As a Spring Drive caliber, it also provides incredible precision with accuracy rated to ±1 second per day.

The Grand Seiko Spring Drive SBGY008 is sold on a brown leather strap and comes with an additional satin gold-colored leather strap (above). The watch will be available as a limited edition of sixty at Grand Seiko Boutiques and selected Grand Seiko retailers worldwide in January 2022, just as winter peaks in the northern hemisphere. Price: $38,000.

Specifications: Grand Seiko Spring Drive SBGY008

(Limited edition of 60)

Movement: Grand Seiko Spring Drive Caliber 9R31 Driving system, manual-winding, 72-hour power reserve, accuracy of ± 1 second per day (± 15 seconds per month), dual spring barrel.

Dial: White ‘snow’ pattern.

Case: 38.5mm by 10.2mm rose-gold case and clasp with 53 diamonds (.38 carat), dual-curved sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating, see-through screw case back, water resistance to 30 meters, magnetic resistance to 4,800 A/m.

Strap: Crocodile with three-fold clasp with push-button release. Additional satin gold-colored leather strap.

Price: $38,000

 

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The Watches

Greubel Forsey Blackens Final GMT Earth

Greubel Forsey today unveils a new GMT Earth sporting a contemporary blackened titanium case, a black dial and black bridges.

The dark titanium Greubel Forsey GMT Earth.

A limited edition of eleven pieces, the newly darkened GMT Earth is Greubel Forsey’s third and final interpretation of the groundbreaking watch. When it first appeared in 2011 it featured a partial view of its dial-set titanium globe, which displays time around the world. Seven years later, in 2018, Greubel Forsey set the orb within a clear sapphire frame, which allowed unobstructed views of the laser-engraved globe.

The GMT collection has expanded in the years since that debut and now also includes the GMT Sport, the GMT Quadruple Tourbillon and the GMT.

This latest and final GMT Earth, with its titanium case, is the lightest of the trio (at 117 grams) when compared to the earlier white gold and platinum-cased editions. Titanium also brings with it full non-magnetic and hypoallergenic properties.

Darkest yet

The dial here is the darkest we’ve seen in the GMT collection. Underscoring its black theme, Greubel Forsey uses a black treatment to darken the globe, all the frosted bridges, the mainplate and the sectorial subdials. Even the natural rubber strap is black.

As a reminder, the GMT Earth features four primary displays on its dial side. These include the off-center hours, minutes and seconds display, the red-handed GMT indicator, the power reserve indicator (near the crown) and of course the globe.

 

Situated between 7 o’clock and 9 o’clock, the Earth, which rotates once every 24 hours, features an engraved sapphire ring around the equator that acts as a day/night indication. This means you can quickly determine which hemisphere is in the daytime and which is at night.

 

A peek through the side of the case reveals the globe’s equator. And of course a wearer can enjoy the whirling Tourbillon 24 Secondes, positioned just below the power reserve display, which contributes to the watch’s high level of precision. Price: CHF 590,000.

Specifications: Greubel Forsey GMT Earth


(Limited edition of 11 pieces)

Movement: Greubel Forsey GMT with Tourbillon inclined at a 25 angle 1 rotation in 24 seconds. 72-hour power reserve, 21,600-vph frequency

Case: 45.50mm
 by 16.18mm titanium with titanium plates, engraved, hand-finished with text, screwed to the caseband, three-dimensional, asymmetrical, synthetic sapphire crystal bezel, water resistant to 30 meters.

Dial: Multi-level hour-ring in synthetic sapphire, galvanic growth hour indexes, engraved and lacquered minutes and small seconds, power-reserve and GMT indicators in gold, engraved and lacquered, circular-grained with black treatment.  Rotating globe with day-and-night UTC indicator in synthetic sapphire, engraved and lacquered. Indications: GMT, 2nd time zone, rotating globe with universal time and day-and-night, complete and global view from northern to southern hemisphere, universal time on 24 time zones, summer and winter time, cities observing summer time, hours and minutes, small seconds, power-reserve.

Strap: Rubber or hand-sewn alligator and titanium folding clasp, engraved with the GF logo.

Price: CHF 590,000.

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The Watches

Jaeger-LeCoultre Pays Tribute to Hokusai Waterfall Print

Jaeger-LeCoultre recently added an exceptional Japanese-sourced miniature enamel painting to the caseback of a white gold Reverso, expanding the watchmaker’s artisanal and eclectic Reverso Tribute collection.

On the back of the new Reverso Tribute Enamel Hokusai Kirifuri Waterfall, a limited edition of ten pieces, Jaeger-LeCoultre’s Rare Handcrafts artisans have reproduced a woodblock print of the Kirifuri Waterfall made by Katsushika Hokusai in the early 1830s.

The impressive back of the new Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Tribute Enamel Hokusai Kirifuri Waterfall.

To transfer the image, the artisans first needed to perfectly scale the image from its original woodblock size to fit the Reverso’s caseback. This required reproducing the image to a size one-tenth of the original. And if you look at the image, you’ll see that part of that challenge meant also miniaturizing a group of small human figures pictured at the base of the waterfall.

After more than seventy hours of work (per piece), the enamel artisans met that challenge.

On the Reverso’s flipside, artisans decorated the dial with a wavy guilloché pattern that nicely echoes the effect of moving water. Jaeger-LeCoultre reports that this was done by hand using a century-old lathe with a specially tooled cam. The artisan amplified the wavy effects with layers of translucent grand feu enamel in a soft shade of green that perfectly matches the painting on the reverse side.

The watchmaker adds that it takes five working hours to perfect the guilloché, followed by eight working hours for the layers of translucent green enamel.

The resulting rich green dial, paired with pristine enamel Kirifuri Waterfall painting on the caseback, combine to create yet another visual treat from Jaeger-LeCoultre.

Almost hidden beneath all this beauty is decades of Reverso dual-side case design and the robust manually wound Caliber 822, which powers a simple two-hand dial. All told, a stunning package.

Price: 80,000 euros, or about $94,000.

 

Specifications: Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Tribute Enamel Hokusai Kirifuri Waterfall

(Limited edition of ten)

Case: 45.5mm x 27.4mm x 9.73mm white gold. Water resistant to 30 meters.

Movement: Jaeger-LeCoultre Caliber 822, manually wound, powering hours, minutes. Power reserve of 42 hours.

Dial: Guilloché and Grand Feu enamel with Grand Feu enamel miniature painting caseback.

Strap: Black alligator.

Price: 80,000 euros, or about $94,000.

 

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The Watches

Arnold & Son’s Celestial Brilliance

After debuting its impressive Luna Magna earlier this year, Arnold & Son immediately started working on a high-carat version of the orb-set lunar phase watch.

You may recall that the premiere design features an eye-catching, extra-large 12mm spherical moon, with aventurine representing the moon’s ‘dark’ side with marble standing in for the illuminated side.

The new Arnold & Son Luna Magna Ultimate I.

Where that first model was crafted using a 44mm rose gold case, this new model, the Luna Magna Ultimate I, bases its jeweled interpretation in a white gold case of the same size. Instead a time-only dial of white lacquer, this jeweled edition features a white opal subdial the 12 o’clock position.

To represent the vastness of space Arnold & Son replaces the premiere edition’s aventurine with ruthenium crystals. Arnold & Son explains that ruthenium is an extremely hard metal that belongs to the platinum group. The Swiss watchmaker’s artisans reshape the ruthenium crystals, place them into the faceplate and then blue the plate–all to stunning effect.

Arnold & Son frames the light-refracting dial with a hefty row of 112 baguette diamonds (weighing nearly six carats), which also trail onto the watch’s lugs for extra effect.

The white-gold orb is divided into 161 brilliant-cut diamonds for daytime and as many blue sapphires for night-time.

Finally, on this Luna Magna Arnold & Son creates a new moon. Rather than the marble and aventurine lunar orb we’ve seen previously, this model glows with a three-dimensional moon paved with blue sapphires and diamonds set atop the same-sized white gold orb.

The Arnold & Son hand-wound caliber A&S1021 is designed around the lunar globe and has a power reserve of 90 hours. Note the second lunar phase display, for setting.

The movement

Underneath the newly jeweled Luna Magna Ultimate I is Arnold & Son’s own manual-wind A&S1021 caliber. Designed to propel the lunar globe, the movement has an impressive 90-hour power reserve. And luckily, all of the eight owners of this watch will be able to view the movement through a sapphire caseback, which also offers a second lunar phase display with easy-to-read graduations for correcting the globe setting.

Price: CHF 169,000, or about $184,000. The Arnold & Son Luna Magna Ultimate I is a limited edition of eight pieces.

 

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Ladies

Paul Forrest’s Beating Hearts

The Paul Forrest Heart’s Passion collection features a patented Magnificent Motion complication that causes the small heart motif on the pendant to “beat.” The high-carat kinetic jewelry incorporates a high-tech complication—much like the mechanical movement of a watch—inside a piece of jewelry.

Heart’s Passion, model HR-01, from Paul Forrest. The gem-encrusted heart appears to beat thanks to a mechanical movement inside.

Paul Forrest places an exclusive 145-piece movement, which is crafted in Fleurier, Switzerland, inside the case. The movement offers eight hours of power reserve and is wound by a small key that also serves as part of the pendant chain’s clasp. Paul Forrest refers to the one-way ratcheting winding system as the “key to your heart.”

It took nearly two years to develop this movement, which is built completely for Paul Forrest from the ground up.

“Many women are becoming increasingly aware of mechanical complications as seen on many high level watches in recent times,” says company founder and CEO Paul Forrest Hartzband, who is based in Connecticut. “Heart’s Passion is for women who appreciate beautiful and elegant jewelry, as well as its sophisticated inner life.”

There are currently two Heart’s Passion collections, Heart and Medallion, and each is presented in 18-karat white, rose or yellow gold embellished with various gemstone options including diamonds, rubies and sapphires. Pictured is model HR-01. Price: $46,000.

Specifications: Paul Forrest Heart’s Passion HR-01 (above)

Movement: Caliber PF-001, made in Fleurier, manual winding, eight-hour power reserve,145 total parts. Winding clasp in rose gold with fused titanium mechanical winding system.

Case: 18-karat rose gold, pendant set with 248 white brilliant-cut diamonds (2.406 carats), heart set with 27 pink brilliant-cut diamonds (0.351 carats), pavè dial set with 341 white brilliant-cut diamonds (0.962 Carats). Total carat weight: 3.719. Double curved sapphire crystal. Water resistant to 50 meters.

A Paul Forrest pendant from the Medallion collection.

Chain: Adjustable length from 24” to 18”

 

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