Girard-Perregaux’s classic Laureato—an integrated-bracelet, luxury sports watch that originally launched in quartz—turns 50 next year, but the brand can’t wait that long to celebrate it. So to mark the model’s 49th birthday (yes, really), GP has debuted a new version in Grade 5 titanium…and it looks good. Measuring 42m in a polished and satin-finished case with an octagonal bezel, it features a particularly striking gray Clous de Paris-pattern dial with PVD-treated, applied baton indices. The Girard-Perregaux Manufacture Calibre GP03300 that powers the watch’s triple-register chronograph features a whopping 419 components, automatic winding, and excellent finishing—though a more traditional, solid caseback prevents you from taking a gander at its goings-on. Priced under $20,000, it’s a beautiful and compelling Royal Oak competitor.
Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Selfwinding Flying Tourbillon Openworked Sand Gold
It’s not every day that a manufacture debuts a new shade of gold, but today—or sometime a couple weeks ago, rather—was that day. 18-karat “Sand Gold,” produced by mixing yellow gold with copper and palladium, takes on the warm but reserved hues of a sand dune, landing somewhere between yellow and pink gold. AP’s first watch to debut in the new metal is a deservedly complicated offering: the Royal Oak Selfwinding Flying Tourbillon Openworked. Cased in a polished and brushed Sand Gold case with a matching bracelet, it’s powered by the automatic Audemars Piguet Calibre 2972 with a flying tourbillon and openworked architecture, which reveals its inner workings via the dial. Once this incredible material flows down to the rest of the Royal Oak collection, expect panic at your local boutique as brand devotees vie for an allocation.
Fleming Series 1 Launch Edition
Dreamed up by collector Thomas Fleming and ultra-talented watch photographer James Kong (aka @waitlisted), Fleming is a new American brand whose wares are produced with Swiss partners. The marque’s debut, the Series 1 Launch Edition, is a gorgeous 38.5mm dress watch available in tantalum, rose gold, and platinum with a total production run of just 41 pieces across all three metals—so good luck getting your grubby paws on one! But the Series 1’s specs are indicative of even greater things to come: Powered by the dual-barrel, hand-finished Caliber FM-01 from Chronode, it boasts a 7-day power reserve—impressive for a hand-wound dress piece. Dials are beautifully hand-guillochéd and hand-hammered and feature sub-seconds displays and applied indices. Priced at roughly $50,000, these are serious watches for serious collectors—but gawking, thankfully, is free.
