Some may remember the designer of the original Rodolphe Watches – Rodolphe Cattin. When those watches first hit the scene years ago, I liked them. They were big, bold and dramatic. Then, of course, the relationship between Cattin and the Franck Muller Group (which purchased the brand) went south, and Rodolphe Cattin left. Now, Rodolphe is back — as MRC – Manufacture Rodolphe Cattin! Now, Rodolphe Cattin teams with business partner Thomas Meyer and unveils a complete new collection of timepieces that has his distinctive signature on them.
“I want to show my ideas and my work in a different way, but it will always have my signature look, my character,” says Cattin, who says he has put the past behind him and is eager to move forward. Cattin and Meyer spent a good year speaking to customers and retailers about what they wanted in a new watch brand before he started sketching and designing. “I had many ideas in my mind, but I want to build a watch brand, not just make some pieces. To build a brand, you have to give the customers what they want and do it in a creative and appealing way.”
Their research showed a void in women’s watches, and an over-saturation of divers’ watches and watches with busy bezels (with screws on them and other sporty motifs). They took this into account, opted to focus strongly on a women’s line, and offer a clean men’s series. The end result is a magnificent blend of real demands and Cattin’s inherent magic. The line includes women’s watches (quartz and mechanicals) and men’s watches (mono- and two-pusher chronographs, and dual times that are automatics or mechanicals with Concepto movements) ranging from about $2,500 to $10,000. There are also superb 10-piece limited-edition tourbillons priced upwards of $170,000.
Ok, so, nitty gritty out of the way, let’s talk design. MRC is Rodolphe 
through and though. The round watches feature ball lugs at all four corners that are either textured or patterned, or diamond- or gemset for superb design and elegant appeal. The tonneau cases feature inlaid moveable ergonomic lugs at all four corners – again objects of art more so than functional lugs. The men’s pieces are impressive architectural works. The women’s pieces are beautiful, clean designs – that consumers will most likely be trying on and wearing out the door.
Watch Stops 2011: GTE –Ritmo Mundo Colors the World
Ritmo Mundo, a young watch brand with a lot of gusto, has unveiled its newest generation of the very creative Persepolis and Puzzle lines. The Persepolis, a round watch that revolves in its case and is two-sided, now comes in a fantastic array of color-gemstone-set bezels that range from approximately $12,000 and up and are sure to delight anyone – as they are available in three sizes, and in varying degrees of gemstone designs from single row to multi rows. The newest Puzzle watch, wherein a toy puzzle design covers the watch dial and provides a gadgetry game for the wearer, is out with gold or various metal choices with and without diamonds on the puzzle.
Additionally, the puzzle design can be customized for the owner (for instance, with a name, a design or other personal preference). The Puzzle watch retails for approximately $3,500 to $10,000 and more depending on the diamond or gemstone configuration. www.Ritmomundo.com.
Watch Stops 2011: GTE — Louis Moinet Shoots for the Stars
Showing at the Geneva Time Exhibition (GTE) Louis Moinet – whose tag line is “Mechanical Art in Limited Edition” — unveiled its newest Astralis, or astronomy-inspired watch: an alliance of three high-tech mechanisms, including an astral tourbillon (with a plate behind the tourbillon at 11:00 made of aventurine), a split-second column-wheel chronograph with star hand that emulates a shooting star, and a 24-hour planetarium disk at 6:00 that features 4 rare meteorites (one from the moon, one from Mars, and two others) meant to emulate the sun, and three planets. The case of this watch is equally as complicated, as it involves the manufacture of 50 different parts that are meticulously assembled. There is a patent pending for the interchangeable crown system, which integrates the split-second function. Just 12 of these extremely complex watches will be built, each retailing for $295,000 approximately.
The brand also displayed the new Geograph GMT limited edition steel watch in 60 pieces with chronograph, which will make its official launch at BaselWorld in March. Other pieces of distinction created by this brand include the approximately $300,000 Jurassic watch dial 
timepiece, whose dial is made from fossilized dinosaur bones estimated to be 65 million years old and come from the Rocky Mountains. Just 12 of these watches have been made. The company also has an agreement with the descendents of the Jules Verne family to use the name worldwide and has developed a collection of timepieces that include several patent-pending specialties. Louis Moinet makes only limited editions in very select numbers of 1, 12 or 60 pieces for all of its creations – so when you wear one, you know you are wearing something truly special.
Weekend Sojourn: Van Cleef & Arpels Treasures at NYC Museum
Zip design can be worn as a necklace or zipped up tighter and worn as a bracelet. New York City’s Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum, will host a Van Cleef & Arpels exhibition of more than 300 works of jewelry, timepieces and accessories from the famed Atelier that was founded in 1896. The exhibition, “Set in Style: The Jewelry of Van Cleef & Arpels,” will open at the museum, a subsidiary of the Smithsonian that focuses on contemporary and historic design, on Feb. 18 and will run through June 5.
The exhibition will l focus on the establishment of Van Cleef & Arpels in New York, where the brand opened its first boutique in 1942, and will showcase some of the brand’s most important technical innovations, including its renowned “Mystery Setting.” The exhibit will be sequenced into an “Innovation” section, a “Transformation” section, that will showcase objects that transform themselves into other objects, and a “Nature” and “Exoticism” segment respectively, with highlights of the brand’s stylized designs inspired by nature, Egypt, India, China and Japan.
In the remaining exhibition areas, “Fashion” will include jeweled evening bags, cuff links and other accessories, while “Personalities” will concentrate on Van Cleef designs worn by a variety of trendsetting women. Objects on view will include Grace Kelly’s engagement set, plus a tiara worn by the actress and princess of Monaco; an amethyst, coral and diamond jewelry suite owned by Elizabeth Taylor; a bracelet and necklace owned by Eva Peron, and much more. For more information, visit www.CooperHewitt.org.
Video: Multi-Time Zones, with Eric Klein
The more we travel the globe, the more we appreciate today’s most alluring multi-time zone watches. Interestingly, since 1937, wristwatches have been able to display time in all of the world’s key 24 cities – known as Universal time. The making of a multi-time zone watch is complex, and takes into account calendar functions, as well as hour differentiations. What’s more, it is not just about how the movement fits in the watch, but with this complication, it is about how it looks – as there are many different ways to present time zones. Here, Eric Klein with the Richemont Group, gives us an insider’s view, thanks to http://www.awjonlinetv.com/, and http://www.hautehorlogerie.org/.
Time Capsules: News – IWC Becomes Official Timekeeper of the Volvo Ocean Race 2011-2012
As if IWC doesn’t have enough sailing experience behind it, this legendary watch brand has announced its partnership with the Volvo Ocean Race – sponsor and Official Timekeeper for the series that starts October 2011. The world-class sporting competition, the Volvo series is a cutting-edge adventure story – blending endurance and precision. It kicks off in the Spanish port of Alicante in October and concludes in July 2012 in Galway, Ireland. Throughout the nine months of sailing, 39,270nautical miles of the earths’ most treacherous seas will be sailed by some of the finest captains and crews in the world. Stopovers will include Cape Town, Abu Dhabi, Sanya, Auckland, Miami, Lisbon and Lorient.
“IWC Schaffhausen and the Volvo Ocean Race share the same spirit: unique brands, known for inventiveness, technical excellence, outstanding craftsmanship, masculinity and adventure,” says Georges Kern, CEO IWC Schaffhausen.
Watch Stops 2011: Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie (SIHH)
For much of January you have heard us refer to the SIHH as the first trade show of the year, as the world’s premiere luxury watch show and as THE place where many of the world’s foremost brands showcase their newest inventions. Additionally, we have been bringing you pre-SIHH news and products, as well as at-show information. Now, we will be bringing you in-depth post-show news, products and even interviews in our Moment in Time section with watch brand executives and with celebrities we met with during the fair.
However, before we do that, we would like to bring you a glimpse of what it looks like at the SIHH. This is no ordinary show, with simple countertops and display counters – with watches inside the displays. No, at this show, each brand exhibits in a grand manner – with a complete building that reflects its core message and brand identity. This year, 
since IWC is celebrating the Portofino watch, the company brought the romantic seaside village to Geneva – complete with a gelato cart, an outdoor café, a movie theater and more. Similarly, Baume & Mercier, which this year unveils its new Life’s Special Moments campaign all built around the Hamptons beach living theme, built an entire Hamptons beach mansion – complete with a backdrop of ocean and beach, outdoor bar and patio, and indoor upscale ambiance. Roger Dubuis brought in a casino gaming table and opulent chandeliers to bring its casino line to life; Cartier, in traditional elegance, used its signature Red for its décor and in a separate room brought in an entire historical collection to recreate a museum. Ralph Lauren used rich woods and full-wall murals, leather chairs and all stylistic accents indicative of the brand. Vacheron Constantin brought in a watchmaker to demonstrate his trade, and Panerai created an entire dark room with touch technology to light up and magnify watch parts. Indeed, the minute one enters any single brand’s “booth,” one immediately captures the tone and spirit of the brand’s message.
Watch Stops 2011: SIHH — Audemars Piguet and a Legacy of a Different Sort
This year marks the 10th and final year that Audemars Piguet will work with Arnold Schwarzenegger in a collaboration that has not only lasted 10 years, but also has sold collector Royal Oak watches with Schwarzenegger’s “co-touch” on it, and has raised more than $10 million for his charity, the After-School All Stars Foundation for underprivileged inner-city children. The newest watch, the Royal Oak Offshore Arnold Schwarzenegger The Legacy Chronograph, is the last to be co-designed by him and AP—marking the end of an era.
The Legacy is the7th Royal Oak Offshore in the series co-designed by Arnold, and Is expected to be a sure-fire winner, as it is the quintessential sports watch and pays homage to Schwarzenegger the man, the politician and the actor – as well as the philanthropist. 
The Royal Oak Offshore Arnold Schwarzenegger the Legacy Chronograph is issued in a limited edition of 1,500 pieces, each engraved on the back with the inscription Royal Oak Offshore Arnold Schwarzenegger The Legacy. Inspired by the case of the Royal Oak Offshore Arnold All-Stars Chronograph it is the first Audemars Piguet watch to feature an all-ceramic 48-millimeter case middle and bezel. The movement has 370 parts, with 50 jewels, and the watch retails for $40,200. It is a big, bold beauty – destined to be one of the more important AP/Schwarzenegger collectibles — try to snap yours up right away.
Watch Stops 2011: SIHH Greubel Forsey IP2
Watchmakers Stephen Forsey and Robert Greubel continue their quest for perfection and pursuit of excellence. Their newest piece is the Invention Piece 2, Tribute to the Quadruple Tourbillon. The tourbillion cages have been moved and one double tourbillion cage is now at 1:00, while the second double tourbillion cage is at 8:00. The watch has three co-axial barrels and offers 56 hours of power reserve. Only 22 will be made: 11 in rose gold and 11 in platinum. This approximately 750,000 Swiss francs (for the platinum version) watch and its inventors deserve more discussion, and we will give that to you in detail upon our return from Geneva. Just wanted you to have a sneak peek!
Watch Stops: SIHH 2011 Cartier Bears All
It has always been in Cartier’s nature to create some of the most stunning animal watches in the world. From its early days, this brand gave us the legendary panther watches that we have come to love and identify with the brand. Now, at this year’s SIHH, Cartier pulls out all the stops and brings its art and high watchmaking collections ever more closely together by uniting them in timepieces that are breathlessly alluring. Two stand outs are depictions of bears. In one, a gorgeous polar bear on frozen tundra takes over the dial of a 42mm Rotonde de Cartier white gold watch. The bear is crafted in translucent stained-glass form, set in gold frames and with a star-lit sky of sterling silver. The hours of meticulous craftsmanship that go into the making of this watch will be further explained in an upcoming feature after the SIHH.
Similarly, the other more gruff and growling brown grizzly bear in this year’s collection is depicted in amazing marquetry wood dial that is hand-picked, finished and sanded for one of the most beautiful dials to date. This dial is housed in a Rotonde de Cartier 42mm Jump Hour timepiece – that we will go into more detail about in an upcoming piece. But we just had to let you feast your eyes on these beauties while we are here in Geneva enjoying them up close and personal.