Brad Pitt recently purchased a Patek Philippe Minute Repeater for his future bride Angelina Jolie. The $390,000 watch, from one of the most expensive timepiece brands in the world, was specially designed for the celebrity couple. The gold dial and oyster shell luxury watch took over two years to make, and was personally checked and supervised by the member of the Philippe family. The family-owned Swiss company was founded by a Polish businessman named Antoni Patek and a watchmaker by the name Francois Czapek. The company was initially known as Patek, Czapek & Cie in Geneva.
Monthly Archives: August 2012
Established in 1875 by Jules Louis Audemars and Edward Auguste Piguet, Audemars Piguet is one of the largest manufacturers of luxury watches in the world. The Le Brassus based company is known for fine watches with complex mechanisms and precision. Over the years the company has been a pioneer in watch manufacturing. It developed the first minute repeater wrist watch in 1892. The first jumping hour wrist watch was made in 1921, while the world’s thinnest wrist watch was made in 1946. Audemars Piguet launched Royal Oak, the first steel, high-end sports watch in 1972. This was the beginning of the highly popular Royal Oak collection. It modified the successful collection in 1992 and called it the Royal Oak Offshore collection. The watches have undergone many changes in the last two decades into decently proportionate, fine timepieces. The Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Chronograph watches with self-winding technology, date display, and a seconds display at 12’o clock have also gained immense popularity.
The watchmaker Romain Jerome has always had a way of capturing a moment. His unique designs have always involved getting the entire watch into the theme. His line of Titanic inspired watches definitely gives a look and feel like the watches came right off the ship itself. When you look at his watches, it is unmistakable as to what kind of theme he is going for. To help celebrate the 125th anniversary of the Statue of Liberty, Romain Jerome has released a limited edition watch that will only be available for a short time. When you see this watch, you will understand why it is destined to become another classic Romain Jerome design that is unmistakable in its homage to Lady Liberty and New York.
High quality and craftsmanship you can literally see are the two main qualities of the Richard Mille RM 055 Bubba Watson watch. The face of the watch, and the back plate, are both clear so that you can see the inner-workings of the tiny elements that make up the watch’s moving parts. The process of displaying the working parts and then enhancing those parts to be better seen is called skeletonization. A similar technique was used in the 2011 version of this watch which was called the RM 038 Bubba Watson. It is a look that gives this watch a rugged texture that became extremely popular when the 038 was released.
Omega has built a reputation for creating timepieces that seem to have a simple design, but yet offer more to the eye than most people realize. If you are trying to remember where you have seen the name Omega, you are probably a sports fan that watches events that are based in Britain. Any golf fan who has watched the British Open has seen the Omega signs at every tee. Tennis fans will remember seeing Omega signs all over the grounds of Wimbledon each year. That simple, yet elegant, design that you see on those corporate signs are very similar to the design you see in the Seamaster line of watches. They are sleek, elegant and extremely well-designed. The watches themselves are durable and have earned the respect of the entire watch making world.
The IWC Big Pilot watches are becoming known for their quality and distinctive look. Unlike many luxury watch manufacturers, IWC has no problem putting large numbers on the faces of their watches to make sure the owner can see what time it is. There are no Roman numerals or indistinctive dots on these watches. All you see is big numbers and bold hands to show you where your attention needs to be placed. The date dial and the day display are also very clear and easy to read. The IW5004 model and the IW5002 model make it very easy to use your luxury watch as a timepiece as well as a showpiece.
The back story behind how Leo Messi and the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak design came together is an interesting as the watch itself. Leo Messi is an Argentine footballer who won his first Liga title in 2005. To help him celebrate, the owners of his football team gave him an Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Chronograph watch. As soon as Messi put his hands on the watch, he could tell it was something special. When he learned of the history of the watch design, he knew that he had to get involved in the next generation of the Royal Oak. That is when the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Chronograph Leo Messi limited edition precision timepiece was born.