Variety Watches

Michele watches in vibrant colors

Michele Watches new, 2010 Tropical Paradise line puts the fun back into buying a watch.  The limited edition timepieces are all girl…fusia, flirty, and shimmering.  Of course, the line also comes in brilliant turquoise and canary yellow, for those who prefer something other than the, stereotypical pink…but that’s not me. 

 The pink version is appropriately named, Tropical Paradise Fish.  The face is decorated with a scene from under-the-sea, gone Technicolor.  A total of fifty-six diamonds on the face and dial of this watch, light it up and serve to accent the brightly colored underwater scenery.  The bracelet is made of brightly colored alligator and is interchangeable with other Michele straps.  

If you happen to be more into turtles, I recommend the Sea Turtle version with turquoise alligator strap and featuring diamond embellished turtles, crawling from the sand, back into the sea. The combination of hues in this creation, truly remind you of the ocean.  The blues and greens, paired with the tan of the sand, produce a lovely effect.  

And finally, if you’ve gone completely bananas…there is always the Tropical Paradise Monkey.  This watch highlights a jungle scene, with a playful monkey searching for bananas.  It’s fun and the golden-yellow alligator strap allows you to wear this watch with gold or silver jewelry.       

The entire line is priced around $1100.00 and any of these watches would make an interesting statement.  C’mon, step out of the box and show your jovial side.  These watches are well-made, eclectic, and beautiful, not to mention…they just plain make you feel good.

Watch Tags: jewelry watches, michele watches, women's watches

The list is long and by now we all know that one of the biggest luxury watch trends to come out of 2009 was that of women opting for larger watches i.e.: men’s watches.

Celebrities are the ones that really drew our attention to this trend, as men’s watches were gifted to girlfriends and seen on the wrists of everyone from Rihanna to Fergie.

In addition to being a talented singer, Rihanna is a fashion icon, so everything she wears is always duly noted. In one of her top videos she wears an 18K-gold Piaget Polo watch with a 38-mm case. Due to the nature and message of the song, the watch serves a double function, exuding her independence as a woman, which I think is why a lot of women prefer men’s watches. They do, as I wear one also, give you a sense of empowerment. Anything a man can do a woman can do (better). Isn’t that a famous quote?

To accommodate this new trend, many watch brands have stopped classifying their collections as “men’s” and “women’s” but rather just go by name and size, so as not to accidently insult anyone.

Other female celebrities that love men’s watches include the Olsen twins, who even on their tiny wrists, have no qualms about wearing a Rolex Daytona , Sienna Miller goes for a Rolex as well and Fergie choose a large size Cartier Ballon Bleu (as does Usher).

They say fashion trends come and go and eventually circle back to what they were years ago. I think it’s safe to say that for now and a good while to come, the new woman’s watch is simply a man’s watch.

Watch Tags: cartier watches, jewelry watches, Luxury Watches, men's watches, women's watches

Luxury watch companies are always trying to think of some new angle with which to pitch their watches; it’s hard given that a watch can really only do so much. However, the Swiss company Horus has come out with a new watch called the Ultramarinum Marine watch that promises to give its owners “the power of time”.

What does this mean? Well, by pressing a button the wearer can adjust the seconds, minutes and hours; making them “follow the pace of his or her choice and then return to the current time at any point.”

What? Who has the time to play with time? Well, Horus is betting that millionaires do and this makes sense given that the cost of this men’s watch, in U.S. dollars is about $664,000. Horus is hoping that the illusion of being able to control time appeals to a millionaire’s taste. For example, if someone is sunbathing and wants to pretend that time has slowed down; that the world has stopped moving, this person can (on his / her watch) stop time. When it comes time to snap back to reality (find out if it’s time to flip) he / she pushes a button and the time returns to normal.

The design f this watch was inspired by the 1920s steam yacht the SS Delphine, which in the eyes of Kat Hannaford, the contributing editor of Gizmodo, makes it “clearly aimed at yachtsmen.” However, anyone knows that when you’re out at sea, the idea of manipulating time is not a smart one.

Perhaps the Ultramarinum Marine will appeal to rich owners of yachts who never really leave the harbor. After all, this watch is only available for purchase in Horus boutiques which happen to be located in Montreux, Switzerland, Monaco and Abu Dhabi.

Andre Grossmann, the founder of Horus, defends his masterpiece saying “It took four years to create this breathtaking time-piece. We used avant-garde materials and revolutionary technologies to create a watch with a time-control system. I am really pleased to be able to offer people the possibility of controlling time. That, for me, is the very essence of true luxury. What could be more precious than time?”

The watch itself is made from teak and titanium and the mechanism inside includes 45 rubies. It is water resistant to 100 meters and shockproof. The strap is made of canvas and leather. The speeding up and slowing down mechanism is controlled by “a marine tourbillion function”.

Watch Tags: horus, jewelry watches, Luxury Watches, men's watches, Ultramarinum Marine

Cephee, a Swiss luxury watch brand is bringing its goods into the U.S. for the first time. With a price tag of $350,000 who knows how many potential buyers there may be for this luxury women’s watch, but hey.

Perhaps Cephee has made this decision based on the findings by the London-based form Ledbury Research, whose research shows that very wealthy people will “continue to spend but that their purchasing decisions will be based more on exclusivity as well as quality and dependability.” Bottom line: luxury is not disappearing. When it comes to men’s and women’s luxury watches, the rich are looking for limited edition timepieces and other unique features that make such a purchase worth their while.

The master designer behind the Ether watch by Cephee is Christophe Golay. The Ether without a doubt fits the above description; it is exclusive, luxurious and expensive. According to the Cephee website, “in the Greek mythology, Ether’s was the fifth element, filling the void in the universe, and giving the sky its shine. The Céphée ‘Ether’ personifies the magic of this notion of emptiness in a defined space.”

Magical is a good word to describe this watch. It has over 150 precision set baguette diamonds, all of which are exceptional in quality. A technique called “invisible channel setting” allows each diamond to “reflect all the light that it absorbs, without interruption by a metal bead.” Not only are there diamonds galore, there is also a sapphire cradle which houses the watch’s movement. This cradle was produced exclusively for the Ether watch and has “two perfectly adjusted lids so that precious face and side diamonds are completely encased.”  The hands are also made out of a certain type of sapphire called colored spinel.  Assembling this watch, with its delicate sapphire hands, is a feat all of its own.

The case is made from 18k white fold and the strap is a complimentary blue made from soft leather and comes with a hand crafted diamond buckle. Each and every step of the manufacturing process of this watch is done in house at the Cephee workshop in Geneva, which shares its factory with another luxury brand: Lamborghini.

Watch Tags: cephee, cephee watches, ether watch, jewelry watches, Luxury Watches, womens luxury watches

Nekta believes that men’s watches should have diamonds too. Typically, consumers and brands associate diamonds with women, after all, who hasn’t heard the saying “diamonds are a girl’s best friend?”

Nekta Watch Company has come out with a diamond men’s watch (see first picture). Although it is slightly feimine looking, perhaps due to the strap color, the Nekta Empire SS & Diamond Men’s Watch is proof that men today are confident enough of their manhood that they don’t mind and in fact, want to wear some bling. When watches come with diamonds they are known as jewelry watches and this is a great example of that as well. Both the case and the bezel are filled with and studded with diamonds

The stainless steel case measures two inches wide by 13/4 thick and comes with an interchangeable leather strap, so of the blue is too much for you, you can select a darker color band. Other features of this watch include a Guilloche engraved dial with Arabic numerals in a yellow-green color. The face of the watch reveals three metallic sub-dials to indicate the day of the week, alarm and the date, which is located at 4 o’clock position.

Of course, Nekta would not forget to make women’s luxury watches as well and that’s what you see pictured here.

The Nekta Magic SS & Diamond Watch - MG1. The rose stainless steel case measures 39mm x 47mm and there is a total of 148 diamonds, weighing 2.50 carats that adorn the bezel. The dial is also rose colored and the minute indicators are black, making for a great contrast. The Roman numerals 4, 8 and 12 are peach colored. The subdial is done in mother of pearl and has luminous hands. A date window is located at 4 o’clock, while a red seconds hand with a rounded peach pointer rotates around it. This watch is water resistant up to 330 feet and perhaps the best news? It’s quite a steal at $5,160.

Nekta is a family run business and one of the very few that are based in the U.S. The flagship store is located in Times Square in New York City.

Watch Tags: diamond watches, jewelry watches, Luxury Watches, mens luxury watches, nekta, Nekta Empire SS & Diamond Men’s Watch, Nekta Magic SS & Diamond Watch - MG1, nekta watches, womens luxury watches