At Watches & Wonders, you could easily forget the time – even though you are surrounded by watches all around you. With so many new models that deserve our admiration, there’s no time to worry about the passing minutes and hours. Here are our current favorites from the world of watches.
Sculptural
Piece of jewelry
1933 is not necessarily a year that is remembered with joy. However, most of us have no active memory of it – and the world situation doesn’t look much better today. But something good did happen back then: Jeanne Toussaint became the first woman to become creative director of Cartier in 1933. The “Tressage” jewelry watch is a tribute to her. What looks like braids woven from gold and silver offers space for, would you believe it, 916 brilliant-cut diamonds in the silver version.
Oldschool
Stopped time
“He who forgets time, enjoys it.” Hermès places this paradox at the heart of its current “Maillon libre” collection. Anyone who is so philosophical sooner or later ends up with revolutionary ideas and a desire to break with convention. In the watch industry, this can also happen quite harmlessly – by reinventing the old. The brooch watch, one of the oldest accessories in the men’s wardrobe, is back. But with a leather strap so that it can also be worn as a pendant.
Maximalism
Bling
What looks so futuristic was created 90 years ago. In 1935, the “Cadenas” surprised with its angled dial and a look that was more reminiscent of a jewelry bracelet or a decorative object. In 2025, it is back – modernized and just as eye-catching as it was almost a century ago. And with a pinch of maximalism, which is a good thing in times like these: yellow gold, white gold, sapphires and diamonds adorn the piece.
Heavenwards
Night blue
Color inspiration can be found, for example, by leafing through the Pantone color fan. But that is too mainstream for Audemars Piguet. In 1972, the watch manufacturer looked up at the sky above the Vallée de Joux and thought to itself: this blue and no other. The origins of time measurement also lie in looking upwards: Astronomical observations gave the starting signal. It took a few years to bring the dark blue night sky onto a case, but time is at the heart of horology. The dial of the very first Royal Oak was painted in “Bleu Nuit, Nuage 50”. Now the deep blue has been developed further. Three new models of the Royal Oak and Royal Oak Offshore shine in a new ceramic hue that still pays homage to the night sky above the Vallée de Joux.
Anniversary
Back to the Eighties
Anyone who deals with watches inevitably thinks about time. You learn how quickly time flies, for example, when you realize that Keith Richards has a 28-year-old granddaughter who is looking great as a Piaget model. The It girl with Rolling Stones blood wears the “Polo 79”, which, as the name suggests, was launched in 1979 and played a key role in shaping the 1980s aesthetic. Ursula Andress also once wore it on her wrist. To mark the 150th anniversary of the company, it is now back in a new form – and reminds us how fast time really does move.
Opulence
At the table
The most beautiful things in life are the extravagant objects that you don’t actually need. But who defines what we need and what we don’t need? Can you always check the time on your smartphone? Yes. Is that why you can’t place an opulent table clock in the middle of the table? Of course not. After all, we have free will. What you also need is a million in cash. For that you get the “27000M” from Patek Philippe, a complicated table clock whose caliber took seven years to develop and for which nine patents were registered. It combines a perpetual calendar with a display of the calendar week, which is shown in a movable window. But it can’t predict the future.
Cosmopolitan
World Wide Watch
Some watches show us what time it is, others show us the whole world. Just like the “Omega Planet Ocean Worldtimer”. Thanks to global destinations on the outer ring of the dial, you can see at a glance what time it is in which city. Should this trigger an existential crisis, a dip in the deep end will help. As the name suggests, the watch boasts impressive water resistance. 600 meters below the surface of the water, you can still see whether the sun is rising in New York and what time it is in Biel, Omega’s home town.
Limited
Adrenaline rush
For some of us, adrenaline rushes through our veins when the phone rings unexpectedly, while others need to climb the Seven Summits to feel alive. It’s called diversity. Reinhold Messner, Mont Blanc ambassador and extreme mountaineer, is more of the latter type. He scaled the seven highest peaks on the seven continents – something only 500 people have managed to do so far. A new timepiece from Montblanc’s “1858 Geosphere” collection pays tribute to the alpinist. The “0 Oxygen Mount Vinson” is limited to 986 pieces. A reference to the year 1986, when Messner climbed Mount Vinson, the highest mountain in Antarctica. Those who prefer to marvel at landscapes rather than be stressed by the advancing time will find a filigree image of Mount Vinson on the back of the watch.
Bellissima
Diamonds on the Wrist
Fortunately, glittering diamonds are not just reserved for jewelry. Chopard’s “L’Heure du Diamant” collection shows that they also look great on the dial of a watch. Why does it sparkle so much? On the one hand, it may be due to supermodel Bella Hadid. The second reason is a setting technique specially developed by Chopard, in which V-shaped prongs hold the diamonds securely and at the same time allow maximum light to reach the inside of the stones. The result: maximum sparkle.
Stopover
Craftsmanship
In an age in which more and more people are generating questionable AI mishmash with three clicks and calling it art, it is all the more pleasing to see genuine craftsmanship. Brushes, hands, ideas that have grown in your own head – and, in the case of the “LVKV-02 GMR 6” by Louis Vuitton and Finnish watchmaker Kari Voutilainen, machines from the 18th century. Century. These were used to create the intricate pattern on the dial. The look is also based on last year’s Escale design – which means “stopover”. In keeping with the travel theme, each of the five pieces is presented in a travel case in the unmistakable Louis Vuitton style. louisvuitton.com
World record
Skinny Legend
We are actually skeptical about the ultra-thin trend. But when it comes to watches, we make an exception. The “Octo Finissimo Ultra Tourbillon” has set a world record for its slender figure for the 10th time. The latest edition of the Octo Finissimo is just 1.85 millimetres thin – so it has lost 0.1 millimetres since 2014. Her secret is not a strict diet, but the skill of the watchmakers. Despite its flat appearance, there is a lot going on inside: a manually wound mechanical movement beats at 28,800 vibrations per second. Bulgari exhibited for the first time at this year’s Watches & Wonders – and naturally had the thinnest watch in its luggage. Fabrizio Buonamassa, Executive Director of Watch Design at Bvlgari, also ensures that the watch is visually impressive.
Figurine
Madame Coco
Classic two-piece suit and pumps: Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel can be recognized by an outfit description alone – or as a miniature figurine, like the one adorning Chanel’s “Necklace Watch Coco Black Jacket”. If you want to know the time, simply open Madame Coco’s black hat and a tiny watch will tell you.
Hidden
Put it in Reverse
Jaeger Le-Coultre actually invented the iconic “Reverso” to prevent damage to the dial when playing polo. If you don’t come from the richest family, you are less likely to play polo. Nevertheless, the “Reverso” surprises season after season with new colors and patterns. Anyone who has trouble accepting the fact that you can’t stop time can practise suppressing it. Fold it over and it’s gone, the eternal reminder that no one can stop the seconds and that everything is fleeting.
Vroom
On the home straight
What does a racing car have to do with a luxury watch – apart from the fact that both are in the top price segment? The car accelerates at full throttle, while the watch has the ability to measure elapsed time. A dream couple. The relationship between Ferrari and Richard Mille began back in 2021, and now a limited-edition timepiece has been born from this “it” couple: the “RM 43 01 Tourbillon Split-Seconds Chronograph Ferrari”. In the time it takes to pronounce the name, Lewis Hamilton has already completed five laps. To get your hands on one of the pieces, however, you have to be almost as fast as the racing pro behind the wheel, as the watch is limited to 150 pieces. 75 of them are made from finely blasted titanium, the other 75 from Carbon TPT®. Visually, the complex geometry of the Ferrari engine blocks and crankcases served as inspiration for the three-dimensional architecture of the movement.
Elegance
Paint me Silver
What do you need to stand out in the ticking jungle of watches? Recognition value. Ebel has this with the wave pattern on the bracelets. And with the Sports Classic collection. The latest piece from this collection, the “Sport Classic 29 mm White Silver”, features the characteristic pattern on the dial for the first time. The whole thing remains classically elegant thanks to the white silver and the black lacquered Roman numerals.
Two-colored
La Dolce Vita
Some fashionistas like to keep a blacklist of fashion sins – and anyone who combines silver and gold ends up on it. We don’t take the rules quite so seriously. Neither does Longines. Because the “Mini Dolcevita” collection is launching new bicolor models that combine stainless steel with either yellow or rose gold. And when actress and supermodel Barbara Palvin also wears the angular models, even the fashion police fall silent.
Tribute
Ode to Geneva
270 years ago, Jean-Marc Vacheron turned Geneva into a watchmaking city: the headquarters of Vacheron-Constantin are still located in the multicultural mini-metropolis today. Located on a small island in the middle of the Rhone, the Tour de l’Île is the last remaining part of a castle built in the 13th century to protect Geneva. From 1843, the workshops of the Maison were located in the tower. The first boutique opened in 1906. Three clocks, whose dials could be hung in a museum – or in a small display case – celebrate the centuries-old tower. Miniature enamel paintings, guillochage and engraving adorn the three timepieces of the “Les Cabinotiers” tribute. But who are these Cabinotiers? A team of artisans and watchmakers who create these intricate one-off pieces, continuing the legacy of their 18th century ancestors.
Superlatives
Test passed
The “Oyster Perpetual Land-Dweller” from Rolex has its own testing process – which is at least as intensive as that of a student during the examination phase. First, it undergoes certification by the independent Swiss testing institute Contrôle officiel suisse des chronomètres (COSC). This is followed by even more stringent tests carried out by Rolex in its own laboratories to ensure that the watch meets the highest standards. The result? A certification as a “superlative chronometer”. This level of precision not only attracts admiring watch enthusiasts, but also personalities such as Chinese pianist Yuja Wang. One wonders whether she also wears her Rolex while playing the piano.
Time and desire for even more watches. This way.
