Blancpain Women Diamond
Equipped with an exclusive movement incorporating two retrograde indications, the Day Night distinguishes itself with substantial technical innovations and by the fine crafts- manship of its disk. Once more Blancpain has reinforced its DNA and its tradition of innovation with this demonstration of savoir-faire in a new caliber created especially for its collection Women.
Based upon the caliber 1150, the movement of the Day Night is larger in diameter. The winding rotor, decoratively engraved and polished, has been enlarged to enhance the view of the complex movement through the sapphire case back. With a diameter of 40 mm, this timepiece offers an harmonious balance between its diameter and thickness as its height is less than 12 mm. The dial is fashioned entirely in mother of pearl and is divided into three parts on four levels. The differences in height create an impression of great depth. Careful work was called for to fashion the mother of pearl surface upon progressively descending levels, as the mother of pearl material on a base of German silver becomes progressively thinner with each level and, therefore, more fragile.
The Day Night disk turns twice per day. Each rotational change takes place over approximately four minutes, as the decoration presents itself, allowing the discovery of all of the details of the day and the night. Many different artistic techniques were used in its creation: (depositing material), (contour forms in relief), and (integration of superimposed motifs in mother of pearl). Gradations in the color blue, achieved by deposit upon the mother of pearl, marks the change from day to night. The moon is composed of 50 diamonds; the sun is fashioned with 50 yellow sapphires. Placed upon the surface are several yellow colored mother of pearl dots as well as 14 diamonds which represent the stars.
One of the unique features of this piece is the way that the two retrograde indications (seconds and hours) are combined with the minute hand. The minute is displayed with a regulator hand which continuously sweeps over its circle of rotation. As it completes its 60 minute march, the seconds hand is retrograding, which is to say that it has progressed along its arc and returns instantly to its point of departure to begin anew its progression. Similarly, the hour hand retrogrades twice per day, again in synch with the minute hand.
Blancpain has perfected the design of retrograde indications. Based upon snail shaped cams, Blancpain’s design ensures smooth movement of the hands along the arc of travel and a positive, swift, yet vibration free return to the starting point.
The gear train of the Day Night disk is secured, meaning that it can be set at any time of day. The setting of the time and the disk are independent. The setting of hours and minutes by the crown, through a lever, disconnects the indication from the running train of the watch.
Blancpain’s signature design elements such as the double stepped case with its rounded shoulders are found in this timepiece. The bezel is set with two spiral shaped rows of 140 diamonds around its exterior. The Day Night is fitted with a white ostrich strap.
A pioneer since 1930 in the creation of ladies’ watches equipped with self-winding movements, Blancpain pursues this path and regularly introduces models developed for women sensitive to watchmaking complications. Loyal to tradition, the new Chronograph Large Date associates a dainty mother-of-pearl face and a self-winding heart with several complications within a model featuring generous gem-set lines.
Right at first glance, the shimmering mother-of-pearl dial surrounded by a minute track reveals a two-part composition delineated by two waves of 17 variously sized diamonds rippling out from the centre with its chronograph seconds hand. At 12 o’clock the off-centred time display featuring Roman hour and minute numerals on a mother-of-pearl subdial creates a dynamic counterpoint to the Arabic numerals on the chronograph counters; while the double-disc large date display appears through twin apertures 6 o’clock.
The new Chronograph Large Date houses Blancpain Calibre 26F8G, a mechanical self- winding movement composed of 495 parts.
The 38.6 mm-diameter case in 18-carat red gold set with 40 diamonds is water-resistant to 3 bar. Its sapphire back provides an opportunity to admire the finishing lavished on all its parts and reflecting that of all Blancpain movements, as well as to admire the graceful femininity of the petal-shaped oscillating weight. The crown is set with a diamond.
This model, also available in white gold and steel versions, is fitted with a white ostrich leather strap and also comes complete with a second strap in a different colour and material.
While Blancpain has been a pioneer in the history of mechanical ladies’watches, the latest launches from the Manufacture in Le Brassus focus more specifically on finesse and elegance. Conceived, devised and developed in a resolutely feminine spirit,the new BLANCPAIN WOMEN collection unveils new timepieces dedicated to beauty,subtlety and grace.
Ever since 1930, Blancpain has been firmly convinced that women are well able to appreciate the know-how and the magic of mechanical horology. The Blancpain tradition of feminine Haute Horlogerie timepieces is thus no recent development, but instead boasts a rich and diverse history. Over the past 75 years, Blancpain’s numerous achievements in this field have included the first ladies’self-winding wristwatch, the smallest round movement and more recently the world’s thinnest perpetual calendar. For the past few years, Blancpain has also regularly made its mark on lovers’calendars by designing exclusive limited edition Valentine’s Day timepieces. From an initial role as a purely functional object, the wristwatch has become a piece of jewellery or an accessory accompanying a particular clothing style. This graceful transformation has proved fundamental to contemporary watchmaking. And it is obviously not by chance that many women’s hearts have for decades been beating to the gentle rhythms of mechanical Blancpain movements.
While the Blancpain ladies’models created in the past can lay claim to many world firsts, the Manufacture had never yet dedicated an entire collection to women. For the very first time and coinciding with the arrival of spring, Blancpain is revealing how it has imagined and developed its approach to feminine mechanical timepieces. Far from being mere reductions or adaptations of existing men’s watches, the three first models making up this collection were specifically developed to meet the expectations and desires of contemporary women. The hours of the BLANCPAIN WOMEN collection are exclusively feminine. Remaining steadfastly faithful to its roots in the Vallée de Joux, Blancpain has endowed each of its women’s watches with a meticulously hand-finished and decorated mechanical self-winding movement. Nonetheless, the Manufacture is now exploring an entirely new path by creating a collection that is completely innovative in terms of its aesthetics.
Meeting a broad range of aspirations
Entirely certain of women’s deep-felt attachment to these marvels of mechanical miniaturisation, Blancpain has expended a good deal of energy in developing this new collection. While undeniably unique, BLANCPAIN WOMEN seeks to capture the diversity of modern women’s daily lives through the variety of its expressions. In defining this array of different spirits and characters, Blancpain almost instinctively looked to nature for inspiration. The wondrous perfection and diversity of the floral universe fired its imagination and determined the themes for the collection dedicated to femininity. Several flowers thus became the expression of a symbolic design within the collection. Convinced that women will appreciate the hand-crafted finishing and fine decoration that Blancpain lavishes upon its movements, Blancpain has outfitted all models in the BLANCPAIN WOMEN collection with a sapphire crystal case-back. As on all Blancpain movements, decorative operations such as “Côtes de Genève” circular graining, bevelling, polishing and engraving are all performed entirely by hand, in keeping with the noblest traditions of horological excellence.
BLANCPAIN WOMEN “Camélia”:The vivid charms of the camellia
For a woman who desires a timepiece to express a more informal and dynamic lifestyle, Blancpain offers three bold and exuberant flyback chronographs. The fact that the chronograph is one of the most attractive mechanical complications owes less to the use one actually makes of it than to the sheer pleasure it procures. Measuring time, pretending to stop it and playing with the passing seconds bring an immediate sense of satisfaction! Since time is such a rare commodity these days, one might as well enjoy taming it in style and mastering it in entertaining ways. Heralding spring and the bursting of new life, the camellia breathes a heady fragrance through this chronograph. Broad and robust, its sheer magnificence expresses the vigorous side of this collection. While these timepieces incorporate traditional Blancpain styling cues and accents, the chronographs in the collection deliberately steer away from their masculine counterparts by adopting new stylised Arabic numerals and elegant hollowed hands. Displaying round, generous forms enhanced by its classic characteristic double stepped motif, the steel case measuring 34 mm in diameter is water-resistant to 100 metres. This same motif, replicated around the counters at 3, 6 and 9 o’clock, highlights the overall effect. A fine circular pattern decorates both the counters and the rim of the dial. Subtly highlighting the femininity of these flyback chronographs, the hand-sewn crocodile leather strap is cut at right angles so that the principle line of the scales flows along the length, rather than across the band. Like the camellia, a symbol of excellence and longevity that is reputed for its perfect shapes, the new “Camélia” Flyback Chronograph houses a precious heart. Women who love the great outdoors will also appreciate the fine hand finishing of the calibre F185 movement which offers them the smooth chronograph pusher feel which only a column wheel system, bearing the exclusive stamp of Haute Horlogerie chronographs, can procure. In addition to displaying the chronograph functions and indications, this complex mechanism also shows the hours, minutes, small seconds and a date window at 6 o’clock.
Perfect finishing touches
The entire BLANCPAIN WOMEN collection is equipped with the brand-new folding clasp system for the straps. Built with double folding arms engraved with the decorative Blancpain logo, each side is guided into place by a cleverly integrated spring, making the clasp look exactly like a classic pin buckle. To further integrate these fine timepieces into the lifestyle of today’s women, Blancpain has re-invented the presentation box that accompanies each watch. Fashioned out of marbled maple wood, this elegant showcase also provides storage space for other fine jewellery creations.
With the launch of its new BLANCPAIN WOMEN collection, the Manufacture in Le Brassus is clearly expressing its perception of the multiple facets of modern women, while leading Haute Horlogerie to the place where traditional mechanical watchmaking values and the aesthetic demands of contemporary femininity meet and mingle in perfect harmony.
