Showing posts with label Stars and Stripes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Stars and Stripes. Show all posts

Wednesday, July 4, 2018

Anchors Aweigh...

Unbeknownst to me (and I suspect anyone reading this), Ulysse Nardin (at least according to Ulysse Nardin's press release) has some deep-rooted, long standing relationship with the US Navy.  

Courtesy of Ulysse Nardin
And I have to be honest, I find all of this to be, well, I think it would be polite to call it contrived.  In fairness, I do a lot of marketing work for a growing number of brands.  I get, appreciate and understand the need to try and draw parallels and connections that will hopefully bear the fruits of actual sales.  But (and to be clear, this is just my read on the press release), it seems like a bit of a stretch on the part of UN to suddenly fall in love with the US Navy. and if I am being honest, it feels a bit disingenuous.  So owing to that, I am going to put up the press release exactly the way I received it,  and leave you to draw your own conclusions. 

Switzerland, July 4th 2018 - “Honor, courage, commitment”, as they say in the US Navy. Ulysse Nardin is celebrating over a century of dedication to nautical precision and values shared with the United States Navy by launching a special edition of its Executive Tourbillon: the “Stars and Stripes”. Created in homage to the American flag with its 13 white and red stripes and 50 white stars on a deep blue background, each piece in this limited line of 50 pieces, - one for each state in the Union – is as unique as its wearer. The Ulysse Nardin Executive Tourbillon “Stars and Stripes” will be launched on the 4th of July in celebration of America’s Independence Day.

The US Navy, known for mottos such as “We shall not perish” equips its sailors with the most precise instruments known to man. In choosing its nautical supplier in 1902, it looked no further than Ulysse Nardin for its superb accuracy and traditional craftsmanship. Winner several times over of the Washington Naval Observatory’s competition to equip its torpedo boats, Ulysse Nardin’s instruments have been an essential part of US naval ships for more than a hundred years.

With an ironclad reputation for excellence, Ulysse Nardin has allowed itself to take disruption to a new level with the Stars and Stripes. The arachnid-like
skeleton movement reveals the delicate ballet of perfectly-meshed parts, each working in symbiosis with the others. Open-worked movements, the apex of high watchmaking, are attempted only by expert horologers. A movement of this caliber has been stripped of all unnecessary elements, each piece angled and polished to perfection. Roman numerals add a touch of elegance and the titanium case ensures durability. The UN-171 manufactured model, with a tremendous and unequalled 170-hour power reserve (nearly seven days), is also an object of beauty topped with a blue ceramic bezel, blue crown and blue carbon effect leather strap. Painted using a micro-painting technique that at requires a paintbrush the width of a single eyelash, stars adorn the top and stripes decorate the cover of the cylinder. At its center is the distinguishing executive rectangle and each oeuvre is one of a kind.

As they say in the US Navy, peace through strength, freedom through strength and “vis per mare”: strength from the sea. With the Ulysse Nardin Executive Tourbillon Stars and Stripes, the journey begins!

Tuesday, October 18, 2016

The Stars and Stripes Forever

Ordinarily I am not super fussed about movement decoration.  That's just me, and should not be taken as any sort of definitive statement as to the importance or lack thereof.  I think the main reason is that it is usually something reserved for mega-high end pieces.  Or, as in the case of a certain would-be movement manufacturer based near the sunny Pacific coast, the end result of "finishing" of the movement renders a look not dissimilar to something being polished with a hot Hershey bar.

And that is why the Stars and Stripes offering from Stowa caught my eye.

Courtesy of Stowa
The look is at once industrial, and whimsical.  The basis is the ETA 2801-2.  And instead of trying to be something that they are not, the folks at Stowa laid out an achievable design that fills, but does not overwhelm the canvas of the base movement.

This is a limited offering from Stowa and there are a few incentives for those interested in purchasing a watch with this option:

If you order your hand wound Stowa watch with this option, you can get it at a very special price.  For the early birds who order a hand-winding Stowa watch priced below 750 Euros before October 24th, this movement upgrade will cost the princely sum of 50 Euros.  But wait!  If the price of the watch is 750 Euros or more, then the movement upgrade is free!

But as with anything special, it is time sensitive, and limited in scope.  After October 24th the price of this movement option will increase to 150 Euros, regardless of the model you order.

Stowa also stressed one final point 

(at this moment we have around 50 movements available, not knowing if we can do this version of movement anymore !) 

My understanding is that the Stowa website will be updated TOMORROW (that is Wednesday, October 19th), to add this option.

Monday, July 2, 2012

Red, White and Turbine!

This is one of Perrelet's latest limited editions -

This is Perrelet's Limited Edition AMERICA!  One of the newest members of the Turbine XL collection, this 50 mm version incorporates Perrelet's now famous double rotor technology.  The front "rotor" has been re-imagined to form a 12 blade wheel, or turbine.  As we know, the rotor of a self-winding watch turns and spins to help wind the movement - creating and storing power.  But you never really see it in action, as it is behind the dial.  Perrelet has taken the necessary and expanded upon it - taking something strictly functional, and making it both beautiful and fascinating.  The second "rotor" is in fact, part of the watch dial itself.  As the rotor spins, it reveals the stars and stripes of old glory in a constantly changing motif.

Courtesy of Perrelet
Here's the info straight from Perrelet -


Perrelet has taken the American flag to create a whole new interpretation of their famous double rotor technology. When the designers began to work on the AMERICAN LIMITED EDITION, they played with a deconstructed perspective of the American flag, and the results are stunningly graphic and distinctively iconic of images from comic books. Figures dressed in stars and stripes and pin ups with skirts blazing take the spotlight.

The Turbine collection's signature 12-blade wheel rotates over a dial painted with the red and white stripes of the American flag. Make it twirl and the colors begin a wild dance, performing endlessly varied random figures. Everything is a question of speed and nothing can be perfectly reproduced in an identical manner. Optical effects follow on from each other in rapid-fire succession in the center of an hour circle punctuated by blue squares bearing white stars. Divided into groups of eight or nine, there are 50 in total, exactly the number of states represented on the current American flag.

This is a very limited edition - only 777 pieces for you Yankee-Doodle-Dandies, so move sharply!