Now, please don’t take this title the wrong way: this list is not definitive. Which is why it is not entitled “The 5 Most Innovative Wristwatches Ever Made.” This list could have encompassed 15 or even 20 innovative wristwatches! And there are surely differing opinions. However, for Elizabeth Doerr these five timepieces encompass comprehensive parts of what is great about the modern world of wristwatches.
Every woman – nay, every person – is different. Which means their needs and wants will be different. All Elizabeth Doerr can do is tell you about her own experience with watches. But perhaps the most important thing of all to know is that any watch is a woman’s watch if a woman is wearing it.
Larry King (1933-2021) worked his way to fame with his hallmark rolled-up shirtsleeves and suspenders through half a century’s worth of interviews. In tribute to these years of great “infotainment” following his unfortunate passing on January 23, 2021, Elizabeth Doerr lists four times King showed that his watch taste was at least as good as his skill in drawing people out on air to say interesting things.
The GPHG Diver’s category contains watches linked to the field of diving, whose functions, materials, and design are suited to this activity. Diver’s watches are fairly straightforward and the most successful ones tend look very much alike. However most of our panelists selected a winner from the outfield that looked very different to the norm.
Ulysse Nardin offers the Blast in five different case versions, and each of these case materials has great impact on the look of the individual watch. In most watches, ceramic cases provide an edgy feel that Martin Green thinks often makes them look better than their metal-encased siblings. Not so with the Blast, he feels. Check out all of his thoughts on this new watch here.
If there is one complicated element that has been in a whirlwind (pun intended) of developments, it has been the tourbillon. And while tourbillons are still fairly expensive, you don’t have to spend $100,000 anymore, as many brands now have great offerings for even a third of that amount.
Five panelists, three to four predicted winners, and a possible Aiguille d’Or winner: the 2019 Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève Mechanical Exception category has it all, including an atomic clock and another time indication that is likely to make you think you have taken LSD!
The Freak X takes a bunch of what Ulysse Nardin has developed over the past two decades and cleverly combines them all into a simplified (in a sense) timepiece that is one-fifth the price of the regular Freak.
This sent a sizable shockwave through the industry that was palpable during the 2019 SIHH, and the reactions were definitely a mixed bag. Here’s what Joshua Munchow thinks.
Watches & Wonders 2019 took place at the Miami Design District over the long President’s Day weekend (February 15-17, 2019). Mainly a three-day weekend of luxurious watch browsing for consumers, this event is less geared toward industry and press and more toward connecting with prospective end clients. Here, Elizabeth Doerr highlights three complicated watches that were nonetheless launched during the Miami event.
It is now a real tradition for watchmakers to observe Chinese New Year by creating beautiful, decorative timepieces adorned with some symbolic depiction of the appropriate sign of the Chinese zodiac, often using rare, artistic techniques to pay tribute to the eastern calendar. And the Year of the Dog beginning on February 16, 2018 is no exception!
