As the festive season approaches, the Maisons of the Richemont Group invite watchmaking and jewellery enthusiasts in Zurich and Geneva to discover not only great pieces but also the know-how and passion behind the creations.
For the first time in Zurich, boutiques on the Bahnhofstrasse showcase the crafts of the manufactures with a dedicated program from 23 to 25 November. In Geneva, this is already the third edition of the Boutique Experiences, held between 30 November – 2 December.
The Zurich event coincided with the traditional ‘Lucy’ night, when the Christmas lightning gets switched on, illuminating the entire length of the street from Bahnhofplatz to Bürkliplatz. Visitors getting in a festive mood thanks to the myriads of lights and the lovely atmosphere, had the chance to visit the participating Richemont boutiques this year.
We visited a few of them, including the sparkling sanctuary of Piaget on the Bahnhofstrasse. Come along to discover our selection.
Limelight Gala Precious watch
Piaget has been well known for its emblematic women’s watches. Every season brings new creations merging high jewellery and horology. Since the Maison has workshops specialising in gold-smithing and jewellery, timepieces often feature exceptional silky or textured metal bracelets. The emblematic designs were also recognised by the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG): the Limelight Gala Milanese Bracelet in 2016, the Limelight Gala Precious Rainbow watch in 2021 and the Hidden Treasures Cuff Watch won the Ladies’ category in 2023.
The Limelight Gala watches are very feminine, elegant but bold timepieces embracing the asymmetrical design with different gemstones, dial variations and colours. This model with a beautiful malachite dial surrounded by tsavorites from 2022 is definitely among my favourites. In the Zurich boutique I just found another amazing Limelight Gala Precious creation.
The mother-of-pearl dial is decorated with the signature ‘Decor Palace’ engraving technique. As the mother-of-pearl is very fragile, therefore this is even a greater feat than on the 18k rose gold bracelet.
42 brilliant-cut diamonds are set on the rose gold case using the intricate technique of ‘serti descendu’. It is a sort of prong setting handmade by setter into gold with a burin. By allowing the light to enter the stone also from the sides the technique magnifies the brilliance of each diamond.
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Piaget Limelight Gala Precious watch
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Possession jewellery with ‘Decor Palace’
The Possession jewellery line of the brand came out in 1990. The idea was to create a gold ring made up of two interwoven bands that are bonded but are still free to move around each other. It soon became a success and the company has made many interpretations and variations since. In 2015, Piaget launched an updated collection with necklaces, earrings, bracelets, rings in white and rose gold, and also with colourful ornamental stones such as onyx, malachite, turquoise, carnelian and lapis lazuli.
In 2022, Piaget combined two of its signatures, the historical ‘Decor Palace’ engraving technique and the playful Possession concept in a collection. The line now includes rose gold and white gold bangles, rings and pendant and variations with one or two rows of pavé diamonds beside the engraved or shiny bands.
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Piaget Possession necklace with ‘Decor Palace'
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Piaget Possession white gold ring with ‘Decor Palace'
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One of the rose gold rings is set with 81 brilliant-cut diamonds (approx. 1.06 ct) and one Possession-set brilliant-cut diamond (approx. 0.03 ct), while the large white gold version with rhodium finish has 174 brilliant-cut diamonds (approx. 2.75 ct) and a Possession-set brilliant-cut diamond (approx. 0.08 ct).
The Piaget Possession motto couldn’t be more valid – ‘With one turn, everything fills with light’.
Piaget Polo Perpetual Calendar Ultra-Thin
At this year’s Watches and Wonders we tried on the Polo Perpetual Calendar Ultra-Thin in steel and a special, sapphire-set, obsidian dial version.
Last week we saw the 42mm Perpetual Calendar in 18k pink gold. This metal gives a warmer touch to the dark emerald-green gadroon patterned dial. The watch has three sub-dials for the weekday, date, month (along with leap-year indication) at 9, 12 and 3 o’clock, along with the moon phase indication at 6 o’clock.
These models are top hits of the brand. The new 1255P 4mm thin movement enables a 8.65 mm thin case design, making the timepiece really comfortable. The caliber is based on the ultra-thin 1200P and includes an additional mechanism for a Perpetual Calendar with moon-phases indication.
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Piaget Polo Perpetual Calendar Ultra-Thin
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Piaget Polo Field
The Polo line already featured a time-and-date green watch but the model presented this July plays even more with the shape-in-shape concept.
Both the shape of the steel watch case and the green colour pays homage to the original polo fields and deep green lawns of West Palm Beach in Florida, where the Maison re-branded the Polo World Cup as the Piaget World Cup in the 1980s. The horizontal gadroons of the dial are broader around the center in the shape of the case, while the outer circle has thinner lines to blend perfectly with the textured rubber interchangeable bracelet.
Powered by the Manufacture 1110P automatic movement, the hours, minutes, seconds are displayed over wedge-shaped luminous indexes, and the date in an aperture at 6 o’clock.
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Piaget Polo Field
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Piaget Polo Field
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Piaget Altiplano Ultimate Concept
The Boutique Experiences of Richemont are also great occasions to see very special or limited timepieces. This time the Piaget Altiplano Ultimate Concept was on view in the boutique.
We covered this unique piece already on our site but couldn’t resist to try it on again.
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Piaget Altiplano Ultimate Concept
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Photo credits: Loupiosity.com
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