Archive for September, 2009
Ulysse Nardin Minute Repeater Sells for High Price
Auctions seem to be the one slice of the luxury watch market where watches are still selling for high prices. These are select watches, which are usually rare collectibles and that helps set the high price tag, but it’s another thing when they are actually purchased.
At recent auction in Las Vegas hosted by a rare 18K gold Ulysse Nardin minute repeater watch sold for a whopping $45,750, selling for over $10,000 than was expected and for more than any other men’s watch or women’s watch went for. This UN watch comes from the Clavius collection and is a special minute repeater that also features an automaton complication, which works like this: once the minute repeater lever is released, the small figurine’s arm with hammer strikes the bell as the watch gives off sound from the internal hammer that read out the time.
The dial of this 18K gold Ulysse Nardin watch is a beautiful blue lapis color watch and includes Arabic numeral hour indicators which are made from gold. This watch also features rare automatic winding minute repeater movements made by UN which alone can sell for around $100,000. There is also a power reserve indicator located on the dial.
At other recent auctions in New York City three rare Patek Philippe men’s watches sold for double what the Ulysse Nardin did. One of the Patek Philippe watches was a yellow gold model that went for $204,000, while two other gold watches sold for $162,000 and $156,000 respectively.
Stay tuned for an auction set to take place in October of this year where a very, very rare Patek Philippe watch, known as the 18K gold Sky Moon, is expected to go for between $1.1 million and $1.3 million dollars.
Limited Edition Moonstruck Watch by Ulysse Nardin
Ulysse Nardin founded his watch company in 1846 and became well known for manufacturing marine chronometers which merchant and military ships relied upon for accuracy when navigating the seas. Over time the company also began to produce complicated mechanical watches and set a world record in 1986 for making the world’s most complicated wristwatch. Called the Astrolabium, this watch was named after the device used by astronomer Galileo. The watch displays both local and solar time, the orbits and eclipses of the sun and the moon as well as the positions of certain stars.
Since then Ulysse Nardin has produced many watches that feature astrology, hence its new Moonstruck model. This limited edition Moonstruck watch imitates the rotation of the moon around the earth by using two discs to revolve around the map of the earth that is located in the center of the watch. The moon itself also makes revolutions that present the different phases of the moon.
Following suit with large watches being all the rage, the Moonstruck model weighs in at 46mm and 16.3mm thick, allowing ample space for the complexity of the movement. This watch also features a GMT hand, which allows the wearer to track a second time zone. Even though it’s made from either gold or platinum, it’s not fragile and is water resistant up to 100 meters. The 18k red gold edition comes in 500 pieces as does the platinum version.
Other outrageous Ulysse Nardin watch designs include the Genghis Khan Haute Joaillerie model and the San Marco Cloisonné watch. While most Ulysse Nardin watches are men’s watches, there is a substantial collection of women’s watches as well which include the Lady Diver Starry Night, the Golden Dream, the Michelangelo Lady and the Dual Time Ladies among many other gorgeous and unique selections.
New Eco-Drive Watches by Citizen
Citizen watches are “unstoppable”. They are fueled by light and therefore never need a battery. The Citizen Watch Company was founded in 1918 and the name was purposely selected to be “Close to the Hearts of People Everywhere”.
Citizen has become the world’s largest watch maker and created many new technologies, including the world’s thinnest LCD watch, the first voice recognition watch and the first professional diver’s watch with an electronic depth sensor. Wow.
No wonder when Citizen comes out with a new watch, the watch world pays attention. It’s Eco-Drive collection is “ecologically friendly.” What does this mean exactly one may ask.
Based on the “no battery” philosophy these Eco-Drive watches run on light, whether it comes from an artificial or natural source and they last a lifetime. The Eco-Drive technology uses a solar conversion panel and energy cell as power providers for the watch’s quartz movement. Through these watches, Citizen has changed the way time is told. The Eco-Drive collection comes in men’s and women’s watches.
At the 2010 Baselworld Watch and Jewellery Show, which is to take place in March in Basel, Switzerland, Citizen Watch Company will again be showing off its innovative Eco-Drive technology in a collection featuring both men’s watches and women’s watches, called the Citizen Ec-Drive Chrono Time A•T. Available in five different styles, these watches include world time in 26 cities with atomic timekeeping with radio-controlled accuracy.
The brown crocodile strap of the men’s version plays off the stainless steel rose gold-toned case, adding a real element of luxury to overall look. With a limited edition of only 2,500 pieces, men around the world will be actively looking to add this Eco-Drive watch to their personal collections. Another style option of the Chrono-Time is stainless steel with a black or blue dial, two-tone rose gold stainless steel.
Ralph Lauren Releases Luxury Watches
The all-American retailer Ralph Lauren has released three new collections of luxury watches. The Stirrup, Sporting and Slim Classique collections are the first examples of the designer’s watches since the company entered into an exclusive partnership with the Richemont Group in 2007 to form the Polo Ralph Lauren Watch and Jewellery Company.
The Richemont Group owns many luxury watch brands, such as Cartier, Panerai, Baume & Mercier and Jaeger-LeCoultre among many others.
Each of the three collections evoke the “Ralph Lauren” story, that being one of all things American, especially taking influence from the equestrian world. The Stirrup collection perhaps best reflects this lifestyle. The name comes from the fact that the watch face is shaped like a horse stirrup. Each is crafted from 18K gold and platinum. Lacquered white dials with Roman numeral hour markers add a classic feel. The movements for these watches were made for Ralph Lauren by Jaeger-LeCoultre. A limited platinum edition of 67 pieces of the Stirrup Chronograph is offered to commemorate the 1967 founding of Polo Ralph Lauren.
The Ralph Lauren Sporting watches are more casual in design than the Stirrup watches. The cases are made from polished stainless steel or 18-karat gold; feature a signature bezel with six round screws and classical dials with Roman numeral hour figures. Three models are offered: a chronograph with date, a hand-wound watch with small seconds, and a dual-time model with a a day / night indicator, and a power reserve complication.
The Ralph Lauren Slim Classique watch collection is the most elegant of the three. Although large in size (42 mm), the cases are slender and made from platinum or 18-karat gold. The elegant engravings on the bezel are complimented by guilloched opaline dials with black-oxidized or blued steel “Breguet” hands. The manual movement inside comes from Piaget. The Slim Classique watches come with alligator straps and an ardillon buckle in gold or platinum.
These new collections of luxury watches by Ralph Lauren will be available at the Ralph Lauren flagship boutique at 867 Madison Avenue in New York City.
The Half a Million Dollar Watch You Have Never Heard Of
There are so many high-end luxury watch brands that it’s impossible to know them all, but one would think that if a watch cost half a million dollars, you would have heard of the brand before, but (most likely) not in this case. It’s not a Cartier, Rolex, Patek Philippe, Ulysee Nardin, Hublot, etc.
It’s a Christophe Claret Dual Tow watch. You may not recognize his name but he’s been in the luxury watchmaking business for a long time, usually producing watches for others. The Swiss watch maker has been referred to as a genius and is the mastermind behind pieces like Harry Winston’s Opus 4 and Jean Dunand Tourbillon Orbital.
This is the first time in 40 years of watchmaking that a watch bears his own name: the Christophe Claret Dual Tow.
In an interview with Elite Traveler, Claret was asked about the technology and thought process behind his collection. This is what he answered:
“We are using very, very sophisticated computers for the design. In fact the software programs we are using are the same that movie studios use. It enables us to take the design of watches to a level that just would not have been possible before, but we still use the imagination and skill of the human being to create an innovation.”
He also uses a “super fast camera”, which “enables the watchmaker to see the watch operating in intervals of two-tenths of a second or a little bit less. We are one of only two or three companies in Switzerland that has an Ultrasonic Linear machine.” Claret has also invested in environmentally friendly machines and this costs money too.
He goes on to explain that millions of dollars are spent on the development of a watch and that really the only way to make a profit is to make about 50- 60 pieces at the prices that he charges.
The Dual Tow was released in a limited edition of 63 pieces. Each watch can be customized by the buyer through the designer’s website. Starting at $300,000, the price goes up depending on which options you choose. The entire case of the watch is available in either white or rose gold, platinum or PVD coated titanium. The watch itself is large; 42.75mm wide by 48.2mm tall. The lugs move to wrap around your wrist, while large sapphire crystals cover both the front and back of the watch, while smaller crystals allow for side view into the movement. The movement is an ultra complex tourbillon with mono-pusher chronograph consisting of 582 parts alone, and 73 jewels.
The Magic Behind Philip Stein Watches
Philip Stein watches do much more than tell time, they actually make you feel better. Yes, it’s true. Due to certain technologies that are embedded into the watch itself that then interact with your body; you can actually feel less stressed, less anxious, decrease the intensity of headaches, etc.
When celebrity “believers” like Oprah Winfrey, Madonna, and Rupert Murdoch agreed that wearing a Philip Stein watch actually did make them feel better, Philip Stein watches got quite an international boost as you can imagine.
The secret behind these “feel good” watches? Two technologies, one called the electromagnetic frequency and the other called a natural frequency, both which work within key frequency of 7-9 hertz, which according to the official Philip Stein website “encompasses the chief resonant frequency of the natural earth and is a frequency that is harmonious and grounding to life.”
The frequencies emitted from these technologies enter your body’s biofield. Your biofield is your “master energy field” that regulates all your bodily functions; both physical and emotional. These frequencies carry a message of relaxation to your biofield and when we relax, take adeep breath and calm down, we become less stressed. Unfortunately stress is something we all have too much of, so learning how to decrease its intensity and effect on us is important to living healthier and longer lives. It’s a known fact that too much stress can kill you. Stress provokes heart attacks.
There are three collections of Philip Stein men’s watches and Philip Stein women’s watches: the Signature, the Modern and the Prestige. Within the Signature collection is where one will also find Philip Stein bracelets that house the same teslar technology as the watches do.
The other good news about Philip Stein watches and bracelets is that they are not overly priced; many pieces come in at under $1,000. You cannot put a price on your health, so wearing one of these watches (every day, all day as Philip Stein suggests you do in order to reap the full benefits), may well be worth the investment.
Check out more about the “man behind the scenes” at PhilipSteinReviews.com.
Kudoke And His Labyrinthine-Like Watches
Stefan Kudoke, a 30 year old German watchmaker, is gaining a global following for his one-of-a-kind watches. He uses a technique called “skeletonising” that is so complicated that he’s able to produce only 50 watches per year. This technique requires time-consuming drilling and sawing with teeny tiny tools. What this does is expose the inside workings of the watch, which is why it’s like looking at a labyrinthine.
Kudoke works out of his parent’s home and people from around the world have begun to come visit him there to watch him create his watches, of which about 80 have been sold aboard. Kudoke has the Internet to thank for this, since most of his buyers are American and Japanese. Each watch, which are engraved and encrusted with jewels, sells for about €3,500 euros or $5,000 dollars.
Kudoke fell in love with watchmaking when he was in the 10th grade and began an apprenticeship in his hometown of Brandenburg. At 21 he began working for the well-known German manufacturer, Glashütte Original, and after that did stints in the service department for Breguet, Blancpain and Omega in New York, before moving onto the Swiss Swatch Group with a job customer services. He left that job to pursue a spot at the Lusatia craft school in Senftenberg to begin perfecting his technique and skills to be able to create his own watches.
“I had a vision – I wanted to stand on my own two feet in the luxury watch market,” said the 30-year old.
As all other people and companies in the luxury goods market, Kudoke is waiting for the economic crisis to pass before he expands his one-man business. As for now, his growing fan base will have to join his online waiting list.
A Swiss Army Watch Hits the Road
Anybody selling anything these days will go to any means to get the word and their product out. New, interesting ways; ways that will attract attention and hopefully buyers!
The watch brand Swiss Army did just this; they plastered a huge picture of their “Infantry Vintage Limited Edition” watch on the side of a 34-foot Airstream trailer and hit the road. The trip started in April in Vancouver, British Columbia.
In addition to watches, Swiss Army is most known for making pocketknives, “cutlery”, as they call it and travel gear, like suitcases, but who would have known that they also manufacture clothes and fragrances?
Although it’s the special anniversary watch that brandishes the side of the trailer, the inside was probably packed with all sorts of other products they were advertising as they cruised the country. People were welcome to climb aboard, check out the inventory and then log onto laptops to make the actual purchase.
Not only was this road trip a chance to market their products, it was a chance to tell the Swiss Army story. The company was founded in 1884 when Karl Elsener opened a workshop in, yes, of all places, Switzerland. Seven years later the company took off when it started producing Swiss-made knives for Swiss soldiers, who had up until that point, been carrying knives made in Germany. This “Soldier’s Knife” is what became known around the world as the infamous “Swiss Army knife.”
After this famous knife, Swiss Army is most well-known for making watches and has been making them for a long time, but they are one of the few watch companies that have realized they shouldn’t necessarily differentiate between men’s and women’s watches – as many women prefer to wear men’s watches. Although the company has recently expanded its collection of women’s watches, adding diamonds and even creating a pink watch that benefited breast cancer research for the Susan G. Komen for the Cure organization, they make many of their watches to be unisex.
If you live in New York, you are welcome, this Saturday, September 5, to join Swiss Army as they sponsor an “Adventures NYC” event in Central Park. From noon to 4PM you can participate in the company’s campfire cook-out challenge, using their famous cooking knives.
Other “less dangerous” activities include trampoline acrobatics, a Jet Blue Climbing Zone, kayaking, obstacle courses and arts and crafts.