World Ranger Day

As frequent readers know I am the owner of 3thirty3.

And as many of you may NOT know it, today is World Ranger Day.  So take a moment and remember that they are out there, putting it on the line every day to protect the world's animals that can't protect themselves.

A Little Love for Tag Heuer

If it was good enough for Steve McQueen, well...

Courtesy of Tag Heuer

I think we all have those "it" watches that we dream about.  Some snap them up when they have the chance, other's like myself sit on the sidelines and wait.  This is one that I hope will someday sit on my wrist.

Tag Heuer have a few iconic models, and the Monaco is one of those that you recognize from across a crowded room.

So, let's see what's in the piggy bank ; )

Enjoy your watches - those you have, and those you hope to have!

A Day to Reflect

This morning I'm going to take a break from watches, accessories, etc.

The world is missing Cecil, and I am deeply ashamed that the callous man who killed, decapitated and skinned him is American - #WalterPalmer you are a mediocre man.

And to make this ONE MILLION PERCENT CLEAR - I am not anti-gun, I am not even anti-hunting (when it is done ethically and for rational reasons).

I AM anti-asshole.

While it is easy to knee-jerk and wish "an eye for an eye" - frankly that will not solve anything.  I would simply stress the need for the rule of law to be applied.  #WalterPalmer should be extradited if/when the request comes to stand trial for poaching if/when the charges are formally submitted.

Nothing will bring Cecil back, but hopefully something good can come out of this mess.

Be well everyone

The Orion 1989, Size 33

From NOMOS

Courtesy of NOMOS

This piece was originally offered to help celebrate the fall of the Berlin Wall back in 1989.

Courtesy of NOMOS

This particular piece measures 33 mm in diameter, but it is also available in a larger, 38 mm version.

Here are the "pertinents" -

Casestainless steel, tripartite; curved sapphire crystal glass; diameter 32.8 mm; curved sapphire crystal glass back, height 8.54 mm

Dial 
galvanized, November gray; stamped indexes, diamond-polished, gold

Hands 
gold-plated

Strap 
velour leather anthracite, lug width 17 mm

Water-resistant 
to 3 atm

Reference number 
326

Movement

α (Alpha)—NOMOS caliber with manual winding

Diameter10 ½ lines (23.3 mm) 

Movement height2.6 mm 

Power reserveapprox. 43 hours

CharacteristicsDecentralized seconds, stop-seconds mechanism, Glashütte three-quarter plate, 17 ruby bearings, Glashütte stopwork, Incabloc shock protection, balance spring from Nivarox 1A, adjusted in six positions, tempered blue screws, rhodium-plated movement surfaces with Glashütte ribbing and NOMOS perlage, ratchet and crown wheel with Glashütte sunburst

Endless Summer!

From GoS!

Courtesy of GoS Watches

Point of full disclosure - I represent GoS Watches in North America.  Further point of full disclosure, even if I didn't, I would say that the watches they make are the SHIT THAT KILLED ELVIS!

This is the Nordic Seasons Summer.

Doing Good Fondation d’entreprise Hermès - Australian Children’s Music Foundation

As we continue to review some of the good things that the Fondation d’entreprise Hermès helps make possible, here is a look at the Australian Children's Music Foundation.  All text and images are courtesy of Hermès and Fondation d’entreprise Hermès.  Photo credit copyright to ACMF.

© ACMF Courtesy of Fondation d’entreprise Hermès

Australian Children’s Music Foundation

Access to music for disadvantaged children 

Convinced that music should be a right, not a privilege, the trustees of the Australian Children’s Music Foundation work to provide disadvantaged children with access to the world of music as a universal source of emotional expression and personal growth.

Research shows that playing music can significantly enhance a child’s mental development and intellectual well being. In Australia, lack of funding means that 75 per cent of state schools offer no musical education. The Australian Children’s Music Foundation (ACMF) was established in 2002 to provide instruments and music lessons for disadvantaged children in isolated areas, or attending schools with no existing musical resources.

Music offers young people new ways to express themselves and their emotions, channelling their energy and creativity. In the words of the ACMF, ‘playing an instrument really is good for the brain. It enhances reading and arithmetical ability, impacts positively on school results, and develops and enhances self-esteem.’ The Foundation’s programme benefits all children, however lively or withdrawn, academically able or alienated from learning at school.

Active throughout Australia, the ACMF reaches audiences traditionally unengaged with mainstream musical culture, including Aboriginal communities. The Foundation provides free, regular music lessons and makes musical instruments permanently available at partner institutions. 

The Fondation d’entreprise Hermès supports the Foundation’s commitment to promote access to culture, and long-term social inclusion, for the least advantaged in Australian society.

The project was selected for support by the Fondation d’entreprise Hermès as part of the H³ programme: Head – heart – hand.

Learn more about the Australian Children's Music Foundation here:

http://acmf.com.au

The Piccadilly

From XEMEX

Courtesy of XEMEX

As we are rebelling again in all things XEMEX, allow me to reintroduce one of my favorite models - the Piccadilly.  This is the Piccadilly with small date.

One Bad Apple...

What I believe we will be reading in 10 years:
"SmartWatchMania - Back in 2015 Apple announced that they would have a smart watch and seemingly sane, rational, intelligent watch executives lost their shit.  And in the process cost their brands and shareholders several millions of dollars, and some of their most loyal employees their jobs."

While the "knowable" totals for Apple's "Smart Watch" sales are, well, not exactly "knowable", it it starting to appear that the "pooping of Wranglers" in Switzerland over the advent of the Apple watch might have been a wee-bit premature.

Let's just say that the numbers we are hearing are not exactly of the usual "orgasmic" level that attaches to a great Apple product launch.  In fairness, I think Apple will not live or die on the smart watch.  But - and this is really what we in the industry (selling, marketing and reporting) should really be asking - just how far the down the toilet did several seemingly sane and rational brands allow themselves to be flushed?

The initial sales were exciting, downright sexy!  But they have started to peter out.  And for Apple, no big deal.  To quote Celine Dion - Their Hearts Will Go On...

But what of Breitling?  A "Smart Chronograph" that is about as smart as Ralph Wiggum eating paste and realizing that if he stops picking his nose, it might just stop bleeding?

Tag Heuer?  On this particular front I am starting to wonder if perhaps it was a "Double Bluff"?  We know what it will be called and how much it will cost.  But this has got to be the watch equivalent of a non-existent girlfriend who suddenly dies when you're trying to win the National Championship for Notre Dame.  I have decided to refer to this model as the "Manti Te'o Dead Girlfriend" .    I am starting to wonder if the folks at Tag Heuer haven't "Catfished" us on this one, and it will drift away once all the SmartWatchMania subsides, never seeing the light of day.

The only folks who seem to have kept their composure while paddling out to try and ride this new wave seem to be Frederique Constant/Alpina.  Basic, simple functions that most people will actually want and use.  I think that they will, at the very least, cover their nut on this one.  But as for every other fool out there, well, to quote that great horological expert Gordon Gekko -
"...they're sheep, and sheep get slaughtered."


Enjoy your watches - be they smart, or not-so-smart.

Doing Good - Fondation d’entreprise Hermès

No that is not a typo!  Hermès through the work of their foundation does a LOT OF GOOD, and I thought I would take a few moments to tell you about it.

Just Like the Prodigal Son they've Returned - XEMEX!

With the troubles surrounding JEANRICHARD, Maurice Lacroix and certainly countless others we have yet to hear about, I'd like to focus today on a brand that had been up, then down, and now looks as if it might be poised for ascendancy again -

                             XEMEX 

Courtesy of XEMEX

Ruedi Külling brought XEMEX into life back in 1996.  And in many ways he is the perfect example of what the watch industry SHOULD be embracing much more than they currently are - an outsider with a fresh perspective.  Mr. Külling had already had a very successful career in advertising, and more pertinently design.  But the siren call of watches proved too strong so he left his former profession, and XEMEX was born.

The Future is Now

Still think that the only way to sell a luxury watch is brick and mortar?

Apparently Panerai did NOT get that memo!

Courtesy of Panerai

Panerai's online boutique is now open for business, bringing luxury watch shopping out of the "dark web".

www.panerai.com

The Silverstone RS Racing

From Graham -

Classic Fusion House of Mandela

Courtesy of Hublot

From Hublot

Not enough fanfare for this one, so thought I'd share it with you.  Here's the news, straight from Hublot -

ONLY (SMART) WATCH

From Frederique Constant -

There are a few brands that, if I am completely honest, can do very little wrong in my eyes.  Frederique Constant is one of those brands!  And further strengthening that feeling is their participation in ONLY WATCH -

Courtesy of Frederique Constant

So here's the scoop, straight from the source -

Courtesy of Frederique Constant

DO GOOD! FREDERIQUE CONSTANT SUPPORTS ONLY WATCH 2015 A UNIQUE HOROLOGICAL SMARTWATCH FOR A UNIQUE CAUSE

“Only Watch 2015” Horological Smartwatch

Frederique Constant is a passionate supporter of charitable causes, and especially those affecting children. We are proud to announce that in 2015, we will be continuing our avid support to Only Watch, and will be contributing a specially designed and totally unique Horological Smartwatch for the auction held to raise the crucial funds. After three years of research and development, Frederique Constant was the first Swiss watchmaker in the industry to unveil to the world the first model of its Horological Smartwatch model powered by MotionX-365® end-to-end solution, created by Silicon Valley’s Fullpower Technologies, Inc. last February.

Courtesy of Frederique Constant 

This incredible timepiece possesses the precise style and finesse of a classical luxury watch, added to its ability to record activity and sleep.

The Only Watch unique model is displaying central hours and minutes hands, with a smart counter positioned at 6 O’clock. With its timeless, analogue dial designs, Frederique Constant has created the first dreamed Smartwatch, the one that combines the classical design that we love with the technical innovation that we want.

Courtesy of Frederique Constant

Equipped with activity and sleep patterns, the watch will become an integral part of your life. As you wear the watch, the data accumulated in the model is synchronized to the app on your handheld device. The “Only Watch 2015” model, created in unique piece, is a Horological Smartwatch with an elegant 18 carat rose gold case, combined to a unique dark green dial and with a delicate hand-engraved reminder of the reason of the watch on its caseback.

The watch is delivered into a unique luxury gift box, together with an Apple Iphone 6 for you to enjoy right away the connected functions.

Courtesy of Frederique Constant

And the technical "pertinents":

Courtesy of Frederique Constant

Reference                 FC-285DG5B9

Case

Polished 18K rose gold 2-parts case, 

diameter of 42 mm

Convex sapphire crystal

Water-resistant to 5 ATM

Movement 

MMT-285 quartz caliber

+2 years battery life

   

Functions      

Always on time & date

MotionX® activity tracking

Sleeptracker® sleep monitoring

Sleep cycle alarms

Get-Active alerts

Dynamic coaching

MotionX® cloud backup and restore

MotionX^®, MotionX-365^®, and Sleeptracker^® are trademarks of Fullpower 

and are used under license.

Dial

Green dial with hand-applied rose gold plated indexes

Rose gold plated hands

Bracelet 

Green alligator with white stitches

Folding buckle 18k rose gold