In the early 1960s, engineer Kelly Johnson of Lockheed Martin came up with “keep it simple, stupid,” which became better known by its acronym, KISS. Watches that employ clever levers and clearly adhere to the KISS principle are always something that can turn me into a giddy fan boy, and one such piece is the Konstantin Chaykin Genius Temporis. Heck, even the name implies some genius.
When perpetual calendars are too complicated but a simple calendar just doesn’t cut it anymore because nearly half the months have less than 31 days, it’s five adjusts a year too many for some: don’t fret, there is a middle ground between the most basic calendar watches and complex perpetual calendars. The annual calendar automatically adjusts for each month with 30 or 31 days, meaning just one adjust in February. Here’s a brief history of the complication.
There has long been a connection between fine wine and art. But as much fun as the packaging of the Longview Piece Shiraz 2015’s art label is, what ultimately counts is what is in, not on, the bottle. And for Ken Gargett, this shiraz delivers where it counts: taste.
In early June 2018, nearly 200 people from all corners of the planet traveled to the the quiet Vallée de Joux in Switzerland to celebrate independent watchmaker Philippe Dufour’s 70th birthday party. Ian Skellern thought the occasion might make for a nice film and asked a few old friends to help out.
It’s not just the Đông Sơn drum theme of these two quite different collector’s items by watchmaker Peter Speake-Marin and pen maker Grayson Tighe that caught Elizabeth’s eye: it was the actual pieces themselves, which were inspired by the indigenous people of the Red River Delta of Vietnam.
In honor of the 2018 FIFA World Cup of Soccer, Sabine Zwettler shares three new “soccer models” that recently caught her eye. And these cover every base and taste as they range through independent watchmaker, smartwatch, and mechanical flyback chronograph.
The vintage watch train keeps rolling right along – in great part thanks to enthusiast authors like watchmaker Sébastien Chaulmontet (who co-wrote ‘Chronographs for Collectors’) and vintage forum owner Alistair Gibbons, who has just published a book on vintage watches called ‘Chasing Time.’ Find out much more about the book right here.
Louis Moinet’s intergalactic Spacewalker celebrates the historic 1965 flight by cosmonaut Alexey Leonov, when he became the first human to venture outside a pressurized capsule and into the void of space, barely making it back. This timepiece (and story) will brighten your day!
Hublot really has embraced the World Cup with two new models and broad marketing efforts. But the brand has also secretly created a timepiece that could change the game for whoever holds it: as it has the power to predict and influence the future!
Late in 2015 the news came through that A.H.C.I. co-founder Svend Andersen had sold his company. But how did Andersen get here? Let’s take a quick tour of 53 years’ worth of independent horology the Danish way to find out, which includes an extravaganza of worldtimers, unusual erotic watches, and even poker-playing dogs.