What Makes Me Tick loves watches made by small independent artisans because they fully embody the visions of their makers, who have put blood, sweat, and tears into creating them. Among the independent brands, De Bethune is most probably his favorite. In fact, no “probably” about it: De Bethune is his favorite. Here’s how his customized DB28 Maxichrono came to be.
“Complications: Skeletons & Tourbillons” is the title of the upcoming Ineichen two-part watch auction on October 29 and December 3, 2022, and it’s a title that attracted Ian Skellern’s attention. There are 50 watches in the auction, a nice mix of both big and independent brands, so it’s well worth scrolling through the online catelogue, especially if money is burning a hole in your wallet because you can’t find a retailer with stock.
Is the chronograph still everybody’s favorite complication? The brands most certainly think so as a vast number are introduced each year. An the six that are nominated in this category represent the cream of the crop, though our peanut gallery thinks only two are real contenders.
While watching television, Ian Skellern spied a Kudoke Real Skeleton in a feature film called ‘Last Looks’ starring Charlie Hunnam and Mel Gibson. That watch is now being auctioned in New York in December. Here’s its backstory.
Now we are onto the big bad boys of the GPHG. Mechanical Exception is where we put the most mechanically incredible watches head to head, and the name of the game is horological creativity. Aesthetics help but a wild, avant-garde watch can easily win this category because there is no limit. So how does our panel choose?
Chantilly may be known for its famous whipped cream, lace, and horse racing, but since 2014 this town in northern France, an hour’s drive from Paris, has played host to the most beautiful cars on the planet at Chantilly Arts & Elegance Richard Mille, a car lover’s garden party uniting both classic and contemporary cars.
Sabine Zwettler dives back through time to have a closer look at five vintage-style diver’s watches. With their robustness and air of discovery and adventure, diver’s watches leave a striking impression on the wrist – whether on dry land or in the water.
Fellows auction house is still something of a hidden gem, so if you look hard you might find incredible bargains. The author herself has gotten very lucky here, once even managing to find a timepiece that she had long been searching for at an unpredictably good price. See what you can find in the next timed auction!
Ferdinand Berthoud was known for passing on his knowledge, taking in his first apprentice shortly after he opened his first workshop, which resulted in H.M.8, a fantastically accurate ship’s chronometer. The new FB 2RSM.2-1 is the modern spiritual successor to the H.M.8 and it originated with a modern apprentice.
Astronomical complications are poetic in nature, more emotional than practical. Calendar complications are the exact opposite: perfectly practical and useful complications for time management. Since the category doesn’t dictate specifically what should be valued and only outlines what fits into the category, it leaves a lot up to our panel on what we subjectively value more and why in this latest round table of 2022 GPHG nominations.