Vintage watch specialist, Boris Pjanic

Meet Quill & Pad’s Vintage Virtuoso: Boris Pjanic, An Expert In ‘Pre-Loved’ Rolex

Boris Pjanic does not come from a family of retailers or jewelers, the watch collecting bug simply bit him at some point. “I carried this passion deep inside me for years before finally admitting to collecting rare vintage watches and even trading them among a very knowledgeable clientele out loud,” he confesses.

Moonwatch Only: The Ultimate Omega Speedmaster Guide

Moonwatch Only: The Ultimate Omega Speedmaster Guide

Still looking for the perfect Christmas gift for your favorite WIS, collector, or watch lover? Look no further than the ultimate Omega Speedmaster reference book ‘Moonwatch Only: The Ultimate Omega Speedmaster Guide.’

4N

The Jump Hour: A Love Story

The jump hour has a long history, but first things first, it can’t technically be called a complication since the accepted definition of complication is a mechanism that provides information other than the time. However, anyone who gives a hoot will say in the same breath that there are many complications that don’t fit that definition. And I couldn’t agree more.

Standing on the outside looking in towards the Rille Mille boutique in Mayfair, London

The Richard Mille Boutique In Mayfair, London

It’s no surprise that it took Richard Mille many years to find a suitable location for a flagship London boutique: the brand was not looking for the right space in London, it was looking in the right space in Mayfair.

And in 90 Mount Street, Mayfair, London, Richard Mille found it.

Like many (though certainly not all) of the luxury brands in the area, the Richard Mille boutique is relatively unassuming from the outside. However, two large, frosted images of Richard Mille’s instantly-recognizable, tonneau-shaped case on the front windows provide a fairly substantial clue for those familiar with the brand.

Everose

Spending Time With The Most Complicated In-House Rolex: The Sky-Dweller

I recently had the superb opportunity to try out the most complicated wristwatch made at modern-day Rolex for a week: the Sky-Dweller. The Sky-Dweller hides its complexity in the simplicity of using it: despite being complicated, the Sky-Dweller is an extremely practical timepiece that takes the businesslike philosophy that Rolex habitually utilizes to new “heights” by adding an interface like a function selector for setting and adjusting the time zones and annual calendar.

The Urwerk UR-110 "Eastwood" with Ebony bezel and Duke of Windsor tweed strap. The triangles are tailor's chalk for marking cloth

The Urwerk UR-110 Eastwood: A Tailor-Made Farewell Of Timber And Tweed

The fact is that Urwerk is a small brand, albeit an extremely imaginative and talented small brand, with very limited resources available. That means that if Urwerk wants to use resources to develop and produce a new model, it first has to stop producing one of the older models. So unfortunately it’s soon to be bye-bye to the UR-110. But fortunately it’s hello to the final UR-110 model: the “Eastwood”!

HYT H1 Alumen Blue. The case is in ALUN 316B, a new alloy made from aluminium, magnesium, titanium and zirconium

When Opposites Collide: Microfluidics Of The HYT H1 And H2

The HYT H1 and H2 have changed the landscape of what many thought possible in mechanical watches, and they may have even inspired other talented watchmakers to think outside the box in mixing unusual things with the old-school mechanics inside their timepieces. A lot of this is due to the incredible quality with which it was done, and the other is the sheer engineering that went into the concept.

Hermès watch display case at SalonQP 2014

Heartbeat: Hermès’ Eye-Catching Displays At SalonQP 2014

SalonQP isn’t simply a watch exhibition: it’s a watch exhibition inside an art gallery (the Saatchi Gallery), a setting that both the defines and enriches the brands and watches on display. And Hermès, very cleverly and very creatively, especially attracted visitors’ attention at SalonQP.

Philippe Dufour (left) and Henry-John Belmont

Philippe Dufour And Henry-John Belmont Win FHH Homage To ‘Passion’ And ‘Talent’ Awards

This young award is just barely three years old, but indeed it has already managed to reward some of the greatest personalities in the world of watches for their “passion” and “talent” – which are undeniably the most essential ingredients for the finest watchmaking. A jury from the Cultural Council of the Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie (FHH) honored two exceptional personalities in 2014: Philippe Dufour for his “talent” and Henry-John Belmont for his “passion.”

"Le Vautour" and "Le Chef" Petite Heure Minutes by Jaquet Droz in homage to the Bejart Ballet

Béjart Ballet Glissades Its Way Onto The Jaquet Droz Petite Heure Minute In Tokyo

Earlier in 2014, Jaquet Droz announced a partnership with Lausanne’s Béjart Ballet. A ballet dancer perfectly masters the movements of his or her body, which makes for perfect allegory to Pierre Jaquet Droz’s lifelike mechanical androids using flow, flux, movement, and human expression through motion. Meet The Vulture and The Chief, two extraordinarily artistic Jaquet Droz timepieces paying homage to the dance.