Feminine Machinery

By admin • Dec 8th, 2007 • Category: Cover Story

Online Special: Subscribe to hr: Luxury
4 Year Subscription US and Canada
Pay for 2 years and get hr: for 2 more years Free.
Save 50% off US newsstand price.
Subscribe Today!

However, mechanical watches are no longer solely the domain of male watch connoisseurs. For well over a decade, a few of the traditional watch houses have been providing the fairer sex with formidable feasts for the mechanically minded. This has been a reversal of the trend set in the late ’70s and early ’80s, when the Swiss industry was producing almost entirely quartz watches in an effort to simply stay alive.More recently, a number of etablisseurs (assembly houses) as well as Old Guard Manufactures (those companies capable of producing their own movements) have been opening windows into the mechanical world of watches. In this article, we’ll look at some of the brands that offer a woman fine mechanical wrist wear. From A. Lange & SÃ¶hne’s “Arkade,” with its sapphire crystal exhibition back to Zenith’s “Queen of Love” series where the open balance is visible from the front.There are also offerings by some of the traditional houses that offer the modern woman, with a taste for the classics, interesting complications without any visible moving parts.In this article we’ll look at some of the Haute Horlogerie that are seducing women the world over. (Men, beware! In these pages you’ll see pieces presented that may get your significant other into watch collecting as passionately as you, yourself. Ladies, indulge yourselves.)TAG-Heuer has been enjoying a rise in sales of its mechanical pieces for a few years now, even though when Techniques D’Avant Garde took over Heuer from the founder’s grandson, it focused on inexpensive quartz pieces. As mechanical watches have enjoyed a renaissance, so TAG-Heuer has slowly been increasing its o ering to match that demand.The Monaco, originally released in 1969, was the world’s first automatic chronograph with micro-rotor. It appeared in the film LeMans, starring Steve McQueen, and was forever immortalized as a result. With the popularity of shaped cases and women wearing ever-larger dials, TAG-Heuer has given the Monaco chronograph new interpretation.The square case with slightly curved sides is 40-by-40 millimeters across the bezel. The chocolate dial with sunray effect is either blended with a chocolate crocodile strap or is sensuously offset by a python strap with different shades of tan and brown in the scales.

Below the surface of the dial lies TAG-Heuer’s well-tested Caliber 17, based on ETA’s 2894-A2 ebauche with chronograph module affixed to it.To see the rest of the TAG-Heuer collection for ladies, please log on to www.tagheuer.com.

Here is another interesting post on the Tag Heuer Grand Carrera Calibre 17.

One of Switzerland’s best-kept secrets has long been the Manufacture Zenith. Zenith released the world’s first selfwinding chronograph with full rotor in 1969, aptly called the El Primero. Countless top-drawer companies have used the El Primero, including Rolex (in the Cosmograph) until 1999, when Zenith’s new owners, LVMH, decided to stop supplying movements outside of their own group of luxury watch brands. Zenith was the consummate “quiet company” until its new chief executive officer, Thierry Nataf, took the helm. Since 2000, Zenith has been a shooting star, releasing cutting edge designs and upgrading their movements through research and development.

The guillochÃ© pattern that emanates from the center of the dial, as well as from the center of the sweep seconds, gives the watch unmistakable class. The Breguet-style numerals at the quarter-hour are complemented by seven diamonds on the remaining number indices. Patek Philippe chose to color the moon to match the case material, so in this case, the moon is white gold (on the yellow gold model, the moon corresponds). The bezel of the case is adorned with 66 diamonds, weighing a total of .43 carats.Powering this little wonder is Patek Philippe’s own handwound Caliber 16-250 PS LU (petite seconds & lunar). This caliber is an ultra-slim complication, barely stretching the tape to 2.95 millimeters in height. With a high-beat 28,800 vibrations-per-hour cadence, this mini miracle keeps exquisite time, all the while looking like a women’s watch, and not a men’s watch adorned with diamonds. As with all mechanical pieces from Patek Philippe, this movement bears the Geneva Seal, proving its level of decorative finish is to the highest degree. To further complement the 4958G, Patek Philippe gave it a power reserve of 36 hours.To see the other lady’s complications, please log onto www. patek-philippe.com.After 200 years of practice, Breguet knows that you need to be a poet as well as a magician to capture the heart of a queen. “The Reine de Naples watch demonstrates Breguet’s uncanny skills at touching a woman’s most secret emotions and awakening subtle desires.” So reads a comment in Breguet’s 2002/2003 product book. One thing is for sure: the Queen of Naples is possibly the most unusually-shaped lady’s watch covered in this article.Breguet chose the a-symmetrically shaped case with an oval shaped, formed movement to power its lady’s haute horlogerie model. However, where most top-level brands would have chosen a hand-wound movement for its slimness and flexibility, the Reine de Naples houses a self-winding movement. With the case 38.5 millimeters long (from north to south), and 30.45 millimeters wide, Breguet managed to include a spring long enough to offer you 40 hours of autonomy.Not only does this small automatic tell the time, but the watchmakers from “the father of modern watch making’s” own brand have included a Reserve de MarchÃ© which sweeps in an arc over a precision moon phase indicator. With classic Breguet-style hands and Roman numerals, there it no mistaking which house built this horological beauty.Not content with haute horlogerie, the Reine de Naples is also an exercise in Haute Joiallerie, or high jewelry making. The 86 baguettes covering the bezel and case weigh a total of 6.85 carats. Additional round brilliants numbering 67 adorn the dial, adding another .168 carats. To top it off, the bracelet is pavÃ©d with 600 round diamonds weighing 3.228 carats and 151 baguettes, weighing in at 5.538, bringing the watch’s total diamond weight to 15.784 carats. That’s some serious eyecandy in both fields.

To see the other versions of the Reine de Naples, along with Breguet’s other mechanical women’s watches, please go to www.breguet.ch/en/welcome.html.Girard - Perregaux has a reputation for making some of the most celebrated mechanical pieces in the men’s world of watches. With an understanding that the average woman cares less about complications than about beauty, the watchmakers from La Chaux-de-Fonds have created a timepiece with some functional complications (day-of-the-week) and housed them on an oval watch which is one of the prettiest presented in the offering.One is immediately struck by the beauty of the pure white mother-of-pearl dial and white satin strap being offset by the soft, but lusty, rose gold case. On the dial are two retro-grade arcs, emanating from 4 o’clock and 8 o’clock. Reading from left-to-right, the first one at 8 o’clock is the watch’s sweep seconds hand. It counts the first 30 seconds, then snaps back to repeat the process.

This dance is continuous, as long as the watch’s mainspring has suffcient power.The second retrograde dial is the day-of-the-week. Day-Date models in the men’s world are not common unless the watch is either the Rolex “Presidential” or some assemblyhouse variant using ETA’s famous 2836 or 7750 automatic chronograph movement (with day-of-the-week option). Lady’s day-dates are even more rare. This fact, alone, makes the Cat’s Eye Bi-Retro unique in the industry.At the 12 o’clock position is a deeply-recessed moon phase with the flange in rose gold. This adds a certain cachet to the aperture and complements the rose gold moon and stars that are found on that subdial. Last, but definitely not least, an even more deeply-set date appears at 6 o’clock. It, too, has its flange in rose gold.Girard-Perregaux placed its own GP03390 automatic movement within the confines of the 35.25 x 30.25 millimeter case. This ebauche has a power reserve of 46 hours, which is best-in-class of the timepieces chosen for this review. On the side of the case, two correctors are set at 2 o’clock and 4 o’clock, to correct the moon phase and day-of-the-week, respectively. A finishing touch is an onyx cabochon, set into the crown.To see the other variations of the Cat’s Eye, please go to www.girard-perregaux.com.

Jaeger-LeCoultre’s Reverso watch has been an icon in the industry for more than three decades now. Although the design was first released in 1931, JLC had dropped it in the 1940’s, and didn’t begin producing it again until the 1970’s, when an Italian shop-owner requested it. The rest, they say, is history.In 1994, the Reverso Duo-Face was born. This watch had two dials, one on each side of the case. Although there was only one movement ticking away inside, an ingenious design allowed Caliber 854 to display two separate times, making the Duo-Face the perfect traveling companion. In 1996, JLC released the Duetto, where one side was casual while the other was set with diamonds, giving a woman two watches in one. Due to size, the original and subsequent Duetto Classique could only display one time, the same on each side.Fast-forward to 2006: women’s watches are growing and what once was considered a men’s watch is now a uni-sex watch. Jaeger-LeCoultre introduces the Duetto Duo where two different times can again be displayed, but this time the brand from Le Sentier puts diamonds on both sides, making this watch both practical and fashionable. The case, measuring 40.2 millimeters long by 25 millimeters wide is by no means “large,” especially when one considers the sizes of some of the fashion watches of the day.

This piece, like the Patek-Philippe 4958, is a manually-wound watch. What at first can appear a small burden quickly becomes a labor of love as the 45-hour movement is rewound by its owner each morning. It was necessary for this watch to be without rotor in order to have the two sets of hands back-to-back on the same movement.On the front face, a sunburst guillochÃ© dial with black floral numerals gives the dial a sophisticated touch, while the reverse face, set in black, offers a decidedly dressier dial. 1.1 carats of VVS1 diamonds are set into the top and bottom edges of the case where the Reverso normally has its Art Deco three parallel lines.On the side of the case, the crown is set with an inverted diamond and just above the crown is a small corrector. All a woman needs to do is to depress this tiny button with a pen or tooth pick, and the time on the black dial will advance in one-hour increments.To see the rest of Jaeger-LeCoultre’s mechanical women’s watches, please log on to www.jaeger-lecoultre.com.The world’s longest continuously-running company definitely knows a thing or two about making lady’s watches that don’t run on batteries. In fact, since 2001, when Vacheron-Constantin introduced its own in-house hand-wound Manufacture Caliber 1400, the brand has been increasing the number of its mechanicals for men and women on an annual basis.The Malte Moonphase, or Reference 83500, as it is also known, is an exercise in diminutive complications for the fairer sex. Housed in either 18kt yellow or white gold, this piece proves that a small watch can still be big on horology. Vacheron-Constantin has included a precision moonphase as well as a sweep reservÃ© de marche. As one gazes at the dial, it almost seems as if the power reserve arcs directly into the phases of the moon, creating a flowing motion.Ten diamonds are set into the mauve colored mother-ofpearl dial. Not satisfied with a few sparkling brush strokes, the gem-setters at Vacheron-Constantin adorned the bezel, horns and sides of the case with 184 diamonds weighing a total of 1.7 carats.

Offsetting what would otherwise be a lop-sided dial, the words “Vacheron-Constantin” are placed to the right of the dial’s center. Below them the name of the city of Geneve is printed, while above them is the Maltese Cross, the brand’s medallion.Caliber 1410 is a 28,800 vibrations-per-hour (vph) highbeat movement, based on the now-famous ebauche Caliber 1400. Even though the watch is only 32 millimeters across, this tiny movement boasts a 40-hour power reserve. The Hallmark of the seal of Geneva, the most coveted award from that canton, appears on the movement. It, alone, is a testimony to the attention to detail applied to the finished movement within. An exhibition back allows the proud owner to gaze at the beauty of this mechanical marvel, with its Geneva Seal, if it can be pried off her wrist.To see other models from Vacheron-Constantin, please go to www.vacheron-constantin.com.

GlashÃ¼tte Original (GO) hails from a little town of the same name in Germany’s Saxony region - GlashÃ¼tte. While there are a number of German brands located there, only a few are hand-made manufactures. GlashÃ¼tte Original, which traces its roots to the 19th century and has become a shooting star since it was privatized in 1995 after German re-unification, is definitely the most dynamic.Although this venerable brand has produced smaller lady’s mechanicals in the recent past, it was in the 39.4 millimeter case of the men’s PanoMatics that GlashÃ¼tte Original found new-found freedom for creativity. Various models offer automatics with moon phase, automatics with circular power reserve and, as with the Golden Dragon, manually winding with pointing power reserve. All models include GlashÃ¼tte Original’s signature large date display, a welcome addition to any watch-lover with aging eyes.GO watches in the Pano variants all have their time subdials slightly offset, running north-to-south between about 11:30 and 6:30. In the Golden Dragon, diamonds and rubies are the theme of the watch, so a red crocodile strap was chosen to match the red dial. In addition, the watch also comes with a red satin strap, in case she wishes a “softer” look.If you look from the side, the case’s sides are engraved and set with rubies and diamonds to complement the top view. The dial has 174 diamonds, weighing .7 carats, set into the time subdial, the seconds subdial and the tail of the dragon. One ruby is set into the dragon’s eye. The bezel, on the other hand, is set with 64 matched rubies. This is actually quite difficult as rubies can come in quite a few different shades.A subtle touch added to the dial is slightly curving sunrays emanating from the dragon’s mouth, where the power reserve is mounted. The watch’s mainspring holds a total of 42 hours of autonomous power, so re-winding is daily, or a little longer if the wearer wishes.To see the other fabulous variants in the lady’s Pano series, please go to GO’s website at www.glashuette-original.com.

The other truly high-end Manufacture from the town of GlashÃ¼tte is A. Lange & SÃ¶hne. In 1994, the name was privatized and sold to Richemont (at that time called LMH).The objective was simple: produce watches of the finest fit and finish found anywhere in the world. Since then, the brand has garnered even more love and respect from the watch community.For ladies, A. Lange & SÃ¶hne presents the Arkade collection, which is based on a rectangular shape with curved top and bottom. Crafted from 18kt white gold, the Arkade offers women two pieces of information which are vital for the business woman, and sometimes needed for the evening affair: time and Lange’s patented “outsize date” mechanism. Additionally, a sweep seconds hand subdial tells the lucky owner whether the watch has power or not. The dial itself is crafted from solid German silver then painted with a color to complement the metal and the strap.In a watch case that is 29-by-22 millimeters, this is the smallest wristwatch covered in this article. However, A. Lange & SÃ¶hne is a somewhat conservative company and this more traditionally-sized wristwatch fits in well with the brand’s philosophy. Seen through the sapphire back, the exquisite Caliber L911.4 offers every finishing touch a lover of horology could want: gold chatons held in place by blued screws; GlashÃ¼tte ribbing and a Swan-Neck regulator, beneath which is a hand-engraved balance bridge.Along the bezel of the case are 38 baguettes weighing in at 2.2 carats. Other variations use round brilliants or no diamonds at all.To see the rest of the Arkade collection, please log on to www.alange-soehne.com . Arkade by A.Lange & Soehne