Is it possible to make a watch providing a novel and entertaining display of time that is wearable in a variety of settings and will be respected years from now? GaryG believes that he owns such a piece: the Upside Down made by independent watchmaker Ludovic Ballouard.
If cases get too little attention from watch collectors, GaryG feels that the straps and bracelets that turn a timepiece into a wristwatch seem to get even less. And of late, especially with the controversy surrounding the introduction of the “integrated” bracelet of A. Lange & Söhne’s new Odysseus, he has been pondering metal watch bracelets and what makes them so special.
There are more than a few people investing in watches that they can’t touch, wear, or wind: welcome to the sometimes murky world of watch funds. Here, Brendan Cunningham takes a look at what they do and their impact on secondary-market prices and scarcity.
Oh, those Geneva auctions! While GaryG’s intention is usually to browse the rare pieces on offer, gain an education from his auction-house friends and escape unscathed, it seems that more often than not there is a piece that puts him into bidding mode. And sometimes that piece is entirely unanticipated as was the case of the Vacheron & Constantin Reference 4560 triple calendar that he stumbled across at a Sotheby’s preview. Here is why he bought it.
De Bethune celebrated the tenth anniversary of its groundbreaking DB28 in 2020 and, as Ian Skellern’s relationship with the model goes back the full decade, it seemed an appropriate time for him to share the story of how he came to launch the DB28, own a DB28, and what he thinks of the DB28 after wearing one regularly for seven years.
Wouldn’t it be splendid to have everything your heart desired? Well, it’s a nice fantasy but it’s not going to happen for GaryG. And, besides, he’s not so sure that the experience of “selling to buy” isn’t actually a significant part, albeit a bittersweet one, of the collecting experience. Find out why here.
Here, GaryG outlines in some depth why he bought a Vianney Halter Deep Space Tourbillon, providing commentary on a collector’s mindset and the motivations, delights, and possible misgivings. And, of course, there are amazing photographs.
Many women choose to wear men’s watches. But why? And what are women looking for in a watch? More and more female collectors are changing the game. Join the conversation about a highly relevant topic with Beth Hannaway, head of Harrods’s Fine Watches, businesswoman and collector Lung Lung Thun, and Barbara Hans, head of marketing at A. Lange & Söhne.
Standing before What Makes Me Tick’s eyes was the most perfect of God’s creatures, a wonderful mix of Audrey Hepburn and Penelope Cruz. He thought his heart had skipped a beat, and he heard the chimes of every single minute repeater Patek Philippe had ever created – all chiming at exactly the same time! Six months later the gentle creature and he were married. This extraordinary story reflects the marvelous world of vintage watches: finding the rare bird, linking it to a story, and never letting it go.
A good friend of GaryG’s owns a cream-dialed Reference 2526, and Gary has often admired it over the years but hadn’t really understood the role that the 2526 plays in Patek Philippe’s history until talking with him and other watch pals and doing some late-night online research. Read on to learn why he bought this special “Gobbi Milano” edition from 1954 in an exciting spur of a moment.