That's a lot of words trying to justify buying a ladies quartz piece bro! 😂
Jokes aside, I love quartz in it's own way and several pieces I have form a signature part of my collection. I also see it as an important horological evolution that shouldn't just be relegated to cheap watches. Although, I think the lower price does offer a great entry-point into many brands which should not be underestimated as valuable to brands and watchmaking as a whole; we all started our journeys with quartz!
High end quartz can be used to achieve thinness and accuracy or features nearly impossible through mechanical means. As you touched on already, convenience and lack of servicing needs is another significant benefit. They can be made and finished to a high standard too with premium materials if brands commit.
Especially for grand complications such as perpetual calendar chronos or rattrapantes, where thinness is often extremely hard to achieve, there are some unique opportunities.
Mechaquartz is something I hope watchmakers will embrace again as well at a higher level, such as the JLC and F.Piguet mechaquartz pieces developed in the late 80s/90s. Some of which even featured fine hand finishing and were used by JLC, IWC, Breitling, Omega, Chopard and others including even Daniel Roth. These brands embraced the innovation and benefits to create more elegant fine watches and entry-points to the brand. The Elegante is arguably a kind of hybrid/mechaquartz as well, marrying mechanical components with electronic ones.
Some notes on the Elegante you left out: the Tortue shape comes from the Vagabondage series, which in turn was developed for Cartier but they never proceeded with the concept so Journe embraced the case for his own pieces.
While the application of a dual-motor design helps keep it maintenance free, it seems mostly driven by the desire to have a subdial (as he starts with dial design); most quartz with subdials such as chronographs or calendars feature multiple motors to achieve this.
I think more serious collectors are starting to appreciate quartz for it's unique benefits and even history as seen by interest and value of Beta 21 and early Oysterquartz watches, and now the Elegante will surely remain a classic collectible as well!
Visited AP last year...the new facility is massive. Wish I could post a picture here, but it looks out of place in that little village. Thanks again, enjoyed it and look forward to getting to the links later.
Late to the party but….. excellent rundown and overview of the Élégante but OMG! I am absolutely mortified that I have been mispronouncing it for probably 10 years or whenever it first came out which was when Mrs Bleu (my wife, soulmate and watch collecting partner and enabler) bought her first one. I did study French for 3 years back in high school and speak some, but since have become much more fluent in Éspañol living now where 90% of the population is Hispanic and bilingual and about 30+ % of my daily speech is Spanish where it would be pronounced the “wrong” way…. Should have known better 😬🫤🙄…..as usual many great links to explore and of course we both share an affinity for Ted Goia’s wit and wisdom. Kudos “de nuevo” 🫡☝🏼
That's a lot of words trying to justify buying a ladies quartz piece bro! 😂
Jokes aside, I love quartz in it's own way and several pieces I have form a signature part of my collection. I also see it as an important horological evolution that shouldn't just be relegated to cheap watches. Although, I think the lower price does offer a great entry-point into many brands which should not be underestimated as valuable to brands and watchmaking as a whole; we all started our journeys with quartz!
High end quartz can be used to achieve thinness and accuracy or features nearly impossible through mechanical means. As you touched on already, convenience and lack of servicing needs is another significant benefit. They can be made and finished to a high standard too with premium materials if brands commit.
Especially for grand complications such as perpetual calendar chronos or rattrapantes, where thinness is often extremely hard to achieve, there are some unique opportunities.
Mechaquartz is something I hope watchmakers will embrace again as well at a higher level, such as the JLC and F.Piguet mechaquartz pieces developed in the late 80s/90s. Some of which even featured fine hand finishing and were used by JLC, IWC, Breitling, Omega, Chopard and others including even Daniel Roth. These brands embraced the innovation and benefits to create more elegant fine watches and entry-points to the brand. The Elegante is arguably a kind of hybrid/mechaquartz as well, marrying mechanical components with electronic ones.
Some notes on the Elegante you left out: the Tortue shape comes from the Vagabondage series, which in turn was developed for Cartier but they never proceeded with the concept so Journe embraced the case for his own pieces.
While the application of a dual-motor design helps keep it maintenance free, it seems mostly driven by the desire to have a subdial (as he starts with dial design); most quartz with subdials such as chronographs or calendars feature multiple motors to achieve this.
I think more serious collectors are starting to appreciate quartz for it's unique benefits and even history as seen by interest and value of Beta 21 and early Oysterquartz watches, and now the Elegante will surely remain a classic collectible as well!
Visited AP last year...the new facility is massive. Wish I could post a picture here, but it looks out of place in that little village. Thanks again, enjoyed it and look forward to getting to the links later.
Great deep dive on the elegante and PF 💯
Top read as always. Cheers choma 🙏
Great post, now I want an Elegante!
Late to the party but….. excellent rundown and overview of the Élégante but OMG! I am absolutely mortified that I have been mispronouncing it for probably 10 years or whenever it first came out which was when Mrs Bleu (my wife, soulmate and watch collecting partner and enabler) bought her first one. I did study French for 3 years back in high school and speak some, but since have become much more fluent in Éspañol living now where 90% of the population is Hispanic and bilingual and about 30+ % of my daily speech is Spanish where it would be pronounced the “wrong” way…. Should have known better 😬🫤🙄…..as usual many great links to explore and of course we both share an affinity for Ted Goia’s wit and wisdom. Kudos “de nuevo” 🫡☝🏼