Only Watch auctions have seen impressive growth in results ever since the start in 2005. The first edition offered 34 lots that fetched 1,907,000 in total. This years 2021 edition brought us 53 lots totaling 28,210,000. Adding up, the Only Watch initiative, in nine editions, raised almost 100,000,000 for research against Duchenne muscular dystrophy. An extraordinary achievement indeed!Only Watch 9th edition Auction ResultsOf course, Patek Philippe didnt disappoint; theyve been the star of almost every Only Watch auction so far. This years entry, lot 41, a complicated desk clock, outclassed its C rather misplaced C estimate of max CHF 500,000 by CHF 9,000,000 and fetched CHF 9,500,000.99%...
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There's no horological fun left with omega since it has become impossible to buy one at an authorized dealer. The new clientele doesn't care about the Parachrom hairspring, the Cerachrom bezel, or the historical importance of the Oyster case. The majority of current omega buyers follow a hype that causes prices to surge to unreasonable heights on the secondary market. On watch forums, it's all about the money when omega is involved. But it wasn't always like that. What if I tell you it is possible to buy omega technology and heritage for a fraction of the price, and without a waiting list because I'm talking about Tudor? Same company, different brands. But is todays Tudor yesterdays omega?Th...
We love those Speedmaster stories appearing in our mailboxes. This week on Speedy Tuesday, we have two more for you. One about a Speedmaster that helped someone with a problem with his hearing, the other one about getting that perfect daily wearer (a Speedmaster 3250.50 Mk40).The first story is submitted to us by Marcus from Switzerland. The land of watches and chocolate, but apparently only the latter applied to Marcus for a long time. Lets find out why.Speedmaster Professional Pre-Moon from 1969Marcus: I am Swiss. So it is very difficult to avoid watches. But I did so successfully for the first forty years of my life. However, that was suddenly changed. An accident flipped the script: in a...
They say that absence makes the heart grow fonder and such seems to be the case with the out of production Omega Speedmaster Tintin. Even though the watch was only introduced at Baselworld 2013 and then cancelled after roughly one to two years of production (it depends who you ask), I thought it was a good time to take a look at what has occurred around this controversial Speedmaster and why it's a watch worth watching. Also, since I own one, I'll throw my own 2 cents into the mix.The Speedmaster TinTin is a wonderful study in contrastSpeedmaster Tintin IntroductionAs mentioned, Omega very quietly introduced the Speedmaster Tintin in 2013 at Baselworld as ref. 311.30.42.30.01.004. I actually...
When A. Lange S?hne present their novelties they always do so with a modest amount. This year was no exception apart from the fact that they announced to launch a new Lange 1 each month up to its 25th anniversary in October. But as those are yet to be released, so lets have a look at their other novelty, the new Zeitwerk Date.Another anniversary for A. Lange S?hneBesides the Lange 1 there is another occasion for A. Lange S?hne to celebrate. This year is the 10th anniversary of the Zeitwerk, which was first launched back in 2009. Where A. Lange S?hne is known for their big date, the Zeitwerk is one of the few watches out there which comes with a large digital time display. It looks beauti...
Although the omega novelties leaked one day before the official release, it is still good to see the watches in the flesh before commenting on them based on just one picture. That said, omega didnt make it easy for us.omega doesnt make it easy for anyone at the moment. The official explanation is that due to high demand, they cant fulfil all orders because omega does not want to make concessions regarding quality. Meaning, if you want a omega GMT-Master II Batman or Pepsi for example, you will only get a smirk from your authorized dealer (really, we tried, we received a smirk). It would not be so frustrating when there are more than 350 brand new omega GMT-Master Pepsi and Batman watches for...
Today we have a common example confirming how difficult the purchase of omega Submariner 5513 might be. Or how quickly it can become a nightmare for a neophyte collector.Don't read this article?on?omega Submariner 5512 vs. 5513 that?Robert-Jan wrote some time ago. It still brings me to tears. Especially the intro. RJ recounts how he paid 1,800 for the first GMT-Master 1675 he bought in 2003. Or the other one he bought 10 years later for 4,500. We are in 2020 today and Corona seems to be fading slowly. What next months will bring is still uncertain, but prices of omega GMT 1675 seem hopping comfortably above 10k mark. The vintage watch market clearly cares very little about the troubles faced...
Its time for another episode of Fratello On Air, and wow, do we have news In fact, we have so much news that our New-Watch Rundown will consist of two episodes. Enjoy the first one!Tis the season for all the debuts. Balazs and Mike are here with a new-watch rundown Its not just Watches Wonders 2022 here, though, because a plethora of brands have come to the table.Mission to SaturnHandgelenks KontrolleAs always, the duo kick things off with a bit of banter about Balazss trip to Miami with Maurice Lacroix and then move on to the Handgelenks Kontrolle. Mike is wearing his fresh-off-the-delivery-truck Aquastar Deepstar Mid-Size chronograph. Stay tuned for a hands-on review Balazs takes a trip t...
Everything king Midas of Phrygia touched turned to gold. It was his wish come true after doing a good deed. The god of wine Dionysus made it happen, but to Midas horror, his wish wasn't as glittery good as he hoped. When he wanted to eat, his food turned to gold. Even his beloved daughter Marigold (ironically) turned into a gold statue after he hugged her while trying to comfort her. If Midas visited a modern-day manufacture he could turn steel watches into gold ones. He would create watches that reign supreme in yellow gold from Cartier, Breguet, Casio G-Shock omega, Patek Philippe, and Omega.Before I present you with six watches that look best in yellow gold, I must first tell you how the ...
Jay Pritchett in Modern FamilyThis man really needs no introduction, but you might know Ed ONeill better as Al Bundy or nowadays as Jay Pritchett in the successful sitcom Modern Family. He starred in all 263 episodes of Married With Children, that aired from 1987 till 1997. His movie and TV career started much earlier, but his Al Bundy character was my first encounter with Ed ONeill.During and after Married with Children he featured in a couple of movies and TV shows. But to be honest, I couldnt see him apart from his role as Al Bundy. That changed with the ABC sitcom Modern Family, which I truly enjoy watching. Together with his?beautiful?(young) wife?Gloria Delgado (played by Sofaa Vergara...
As we announced last week, the three gold Omega Speedmaster Professional watches have been presented to the three winners at the Starmus Festival in Trondheim yesterday evening (local time).This came in very late yesterday evening (thanks James for forwarding us the press release from the US agency), so it missed our regular Speedy Tuesday day. We always try to bring you Speedmaster related news on a Tuesday, but sometimes it doesnt work out. Anyway, without further ado.Winners of the Starmus Festival are musician Jean-Michel Jarre (no further explanation needed), Neil deGrasse Tyson (might not ring a bell for people outside the USA immediately, but he is an American astrophysicist, author, ...
Bvlgari is on a roll with its Octo Finissimo The Octo Finissimo collection receives a blue dial version as well, in satin-polished stainless steel.I recently shared my experience of wearing the Bvlgari Octo Finissimo in satin-polished steel (here). As I commented, I believe it is one of the coolest luxury sports watches available at this moment. For me, the Bvlgari Octo Finissimo in steel is the one to buy and I even prefer it over some other hyped G rald Genta designs out there. And that comes from deep down inside my soul, as I am a big fan of the Royal Oak and Nautilus.But which one to buy? The choice just got a lot harder. Enter the Bvlgari Octo Finissimo in satin-polished steel with a b...
I suppose that I could be faulted for featuring the rather newish omega GMT-Master II 16710?in a TBT article, but I'll live with it.I've covered a couple newer pieces in this series such as the omega Explorer 14270 and, more recently, the IWC Mark XII, so I'm more on the side of featuring what I'd call classics instead of purely vintage. Definitions aside, the omega 16710 is definitely a classic and one that continues to be on the acquisition list of many people; let's find out why.The omega GMT-Master II 16710 was around for so long nearly 20 years that its still hard to believe its goneThe omega GMT-Master II 16710It's awfully hard to believe that the omega GMT-Master II 16710 has been ...
When Breitling first announced its partnership with Outerknown back in 2018, it seemed, to me at least, to be a seminal moment for sustainable products working their way into the luxury industry. With the two brands' latest collaboration, the Outerknown series gets a massive boost from the inclusion of the handsome (and widely praised) Breitling Superocean Heritage '57 automatic dive watch.Outerknown is a company dedicated to producing stylish, sustainable clothing, founder by world-famous surfer, Kelly Slater. Slater was already a member of the Breitling Surfers Squad so the union felt pretty natural. But beyond the marketing sense of pairing Slater's growing label with an established watch...
In my career, I have been lucky enough to visit hundreds of top retailers in the Northern Hemisphere. Some I just passed through, picking up information as I went. Others I worked with occasionally, learning a little from each of them. A handful, however, I worked with extensively. Perhaps the retailer Ive worked with the most is Ace Jewelers in Amsterdam.During my time with NOMOS Glashutte, we produced two special editions together. Since then, the brand and retailer have produced two more. Our working relationship was always fun, mostly because the team at Ace never sits still. They are always moving, always striving, always looking for a way to get ahead of the curve. As such, I thought s...
Welcome back to our Watch On Your Wrist? Instagram extravaganza Tag your watch snaps with fratellowatches to be in with a chance to win!Every week, we select four images. You can vote in the article for your favorite image. The winner moves on to the semi-final round (held every fifth week between the previous four weekly winners). Win that and youre into the final, which will be held at the end of the year. There will be five finalists in 2020 and ten from next year on.Basically, if you like winning things and there will be a prize for the champion of 2020 this year represents your best shot. So get snapping, get tagging, and get sharing. And dont forget to vote for yourself ObviouslyV...
Youve seen pictures of bronze watches before, some with almost no patina at all, and some that looked like theres a forest growing on them. How quickly does the Fratelloris (Oris x Fratello collab watch) start to develop patina? A question we received a number of times of people who ordered one. In this video, well show you.Together with Karina, I talk about the development of patina on the Oris Big Crown Pointer Date in bronze. We show you a brand new Oris that we just unboxed versus the one I have been wearing since December 1st (or actually a few days before the introduction day).Bronze PatinaBronze has been used for many years now for watches. One of the first watches in bronze I ever ca...
Nowadays it seems that something new is coming out of the Omega Headquarters in Biel/Benne every week. If you think like that you are not far from the truth.As the die-hard Omega fans might know, the brand did not start its life as Omega SA.? Louis Brandt established his business in 1848 in the city of La Chaux-de-Fonds. The name if the company; La Generale Watch Co. ?After the founder's death his 2 sons took over the business and in 1894 they released their new movement. It was the 19-ligne. At the time the movement was one of the most accurate calibers around. It was revolutionary for every component could be replaced without modification by any watchmaker in the world. Furthermore, the pe...
Montblanc is releasing a mesmerizing new model today that pays tribute to Minerva's rich heritage in the most sophisticated way. The brand's latest timepiece, the 1858 Split Second Chronograph Limited Edition 18, comes on a never-before-seen case color with a classy complication.This is an exciting watch. Not only do we have an enticing complication (a manufacture rattrapante, no less) to fawn over, its encased in a very unusual one could?even say unique case material. If you didnt know you needed a bit of Lime Gold in your life, youre welcome. With Watches and Wonders just around the corner (starting April 7th, so get it in your calendars), Im excited enough as it is. Releases like this onl...
The Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean collection is over 10 years old. In this article we already gave you some background on the Seamaster and Planet Ocean in particular. A fact you should know is that in 2007, the models were slowly upgraded to Omegas in-house calibers (8500 and later on, in 2011, 9300). Other improvements were the use of ceramic for the uni-directional diving bezel. Last year in June, Omega suddenly dropped the ceramic bomb on the Seamaster Planet Ocean like they did on the Speedmaster 9300 series and called it Deep Black. I was able to wear one for a few weeks, and here are my thoughts about it.Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean Deep BlackJust a few months after BaselWorld, Omega i...