de Grisogono's Glow in the Dark Watches

Mon, 13 May 2013 00:00:00 -0400

Tondo by Night, de Grisogono ($9,400–$17,500).

As glamour-loving women know, not every timepiece is serious and conservative. Some are downright whimsical, such as the hit Tondo by Night watches from de Grisogono. Unveiled last year, the collection has just begun to make its way into luxury jewelry stores in the last few months. In addition to being mechanical works of art, these timepieces possess an unusual quality in the luxury watch world that begs them to be worn.

Designed by Fawaz Gruosi, the founder and president of de Grisogono, the Tondo by Night is intended to be a capricious, playful timepiece that stores light during the day and then frees it after the sun goes down. The case is created from a pearly photoluminescent fiberglass composite—with pieces of mother-of-pearl blended into the fiberglass for extra shimmer—then further bedecked with color-coordinated gemstones.

“It has such wide appeal because it is fashionable, hefty, and different from everything else on the market,” Gruosi says. “Still, I never dreamed Tondo by Night would be such an amazing success. The demand is much higher than what I produced, which was extremely unexpected.”

Each Tondo by Night watch is equipped with an exclusive in-house mechanical movement, specially developed to display the gem-set oscillating weight on the front side. Built in collaboration with an outside lab, the Tondo by Night timepieces are offered in an array of colors, each with a row of 48 gemstones on the bezel, plus another 60 on the dial (and a black diamond on the crown). The colors include white with white diamonds, yellow with yellow sapphires, pink with pink sapphires, green with tsavorites, purple with amethysts, and orange with orange sapphires. And three new shades were unveiled at the Baselworld show in April: a vivid green case with a tourmaline bezel, a blue case with a blue sapphire bezel, and a coral case with a spinel bezel. The most expensive watch in the collection is currently the white (diamond) version, which retails for $17,500.

“I dedicate this watch to happy summer days and glamorous nightlife,” Gruosi says. “It’s not only a luxury timepiece but also can be worn as a magnificent jewelry piece, with a twist.”

Women Turn to Mechanical Watches

Tue, 07 May 2013 00:00:00 -0400

Savvy women expect more than just a pretty face when it comes to what they wear on their wrists. Fresh off the heels of this year’s BaselWorld, the category of automatic and mechanical watches, once reserved for men, is undergoing its own women’s liberation movement.

Not reliant on battery power, mechanical watches come in two categories: hand-wound and automatic. With a wind watch, turning the crown transmits energy to the main spring, where it is stored. As the wound spring uncoils, it releases the energy necessary to activate movement in the gear train and causes the watch to tick. An automatic watch is fitted with a rotor that allows the timepiece to wind itself, when the wearer moves her wrist and the rotor or oscillating weight spins.

Typically, mechanical calibers are hand-assembled from hundreds of tiny parts to form a horological marvel that keeps time in perfect harmony. The movements are often elegantly finished with engraving and detailing that is visible via a transparent caseback.

These highly engineered timepieces feature such functions as calendars, moon phases, and chronographs. The Roger Dubuis Excalibur 36, for example, offers classic craftsmanship within a beautiful case that is popular here. “The combination of form and function offers an incredible keepsake with a style that transcends time and trends,” says Gianfranco D’Attis, president of Roger Dubuis North America.

“We have been improving the ladies’ line,” says Thierry Stern, president of Patek Philippe Worldwide, which has been creating women’s mechanical watches for more than a century and a half. “Even though we have a lot to offer women, our female clients have been requesting something more complicated. Now we can deliver that.” Stern’s wife, Sandrine, is head of the design division and is bringing a woman’s eye and touch to the newest ladies’ complex mechanical watches.

Similarly, Blancpain has been dedicated to building a key collection of women’s mechanical timepieces, focusing on alluring, modern designs and functions that run the gamut from complete calendars to the just-unveiled grande date chronographs. All of its calibers are built in-house.

Hamptons Magazine

de Grisogono's Glow in the Dark Watches

Women Turn to Mechanical Watches