CARTIER----NOW YOU SEE ME, NOW YOU DON'T! ABSOLUTELY THE ULTIMATE WATCHES LOVE AND MONEY CAN BUY!

KEE@FSWMAG.COM

CARTIER'S CONSUMMATE COMMAND OF CHARISMATIC CRAFTSMANSHIP!


These 2 watches are the same! To tell time, just pull the lower jaws!


Yes, I know I am playing with words that start with 'C' for the cun, I mean fun of it but I am serious when it comes to paying homage to the world's greatest jeweller! I have visited Cartier's atelier in Paris to see with my own peepers how their craftsmen practise a kind of magic unattainable by Harry Potter!

In an unmarked, nondescript and very ordinary building with, heaven forbid, no signages to prevent prying, covetous eyes from plotting a subterfuge, I saw how Cartier's artisans create works of art from stones and metal. Here are where the high end, multi-million ringgit bling are handmade.

The watches however, are made in Switzerland where Cartier has a massive factory so quality is controlled every step of the way. However, there must be some form of synergy as these watches have gone beyond telling time and have entered the realm of mystique, fantasy and magic.

Each is a masterpiece in its own right, the difference being the size of precious solitaires or the number of gems. They are more jewels than watches as the movements are less complex than the bling factor that take centrestage and direct the eye towards the diamonds, emeralds, sapphires and rubies.

True, the most complicated minute repeaters with chimes or double tourbillons seldom connect with precious stones and fancy decorative elements but this does not imply the watch movements in these high jewellery watches play second fiddle to the ornamentation. 

If they are not quartz then they are mechanical Manufacture movements made inhouse by Cartier and water resistant to 30 metres so you can continue singing and dancing in the rain. Such movements are not purchased by suppliers but produced by Cartier. 

While most collectors are content with external decoration, some demand equally complex mechanisms that make the watches tick!

HERE ARE WHAT I CALL 'NOW YOU SEE ME, NOW YOU DON'T' WATCHES!


Now you see me...

Now you don't!
Lovebird watch, 18k white gold with diamonds. Watch opens on grid at 4 o'clock.

Now you see me...

Now you don't!
Secret cuff watch with 24 carat cabochon sapphire, 61 carats diamonds, 18k white gold. This masterpiece took an astonishing 1,500 hours to complete so definitely it is one of a kind in the world!

Now you see me...

Now you don't!
Secret Orchid watch, 18k white gold, 35 carats diamonds, quartz movement. Unique piece. 1,500 hours of work.

Now you see me...

Now you don't!
Secret Snake watch. 18k white gold, opening push button at 4 o'clock grid. Mechanical Manufacture movement. Limited to 40.

Now you see me...

Now you don't!
Secret Panther watch. 18k white gold, mechanical Manufacture movement. Opens at 4 o'clock, Limited to 100.

Now you see me...

Now you don't!
Secret Snake watch, 18k white gold, 27 carat opal cabochon whose colours and shape mimic the snake's egg, 34 carats diamonds, quartz movement. This spectacular unique piece took the longest to make---an incredible 2,500 hours!

Now you see me...

Now you don't!
Turtle and Panther Secret watch. 18 k white gold,2.22 carat cabochon emerald, 3.4 carats sapphires, 25 carats diamonds, quartz movement.

Now you see me...

Now you don't!
Secret Phoenix watch, 18k white gold, 84 carats diamonds, quartz movement. Unique piece and like the phoenix, one of its kind. A staggering 2,500 hours to complete.

Now you see me...

Now you don't!
Two Panther Secret watch, 18k white gold, 60 carats diamonds, 1.75 carats emeralds, quartz movement. Unique piece

Now you see me...

Now you don't!
Panther with Prism watch, 18k white gold, 44 carat rock crystal, 27 carats diamonds, 2 carats onyx, quartz movement, unique piece.

Now you see me...

Now you don't!
Two Turtles watch, 18k white gold, quartz movement, 6.5 carats emeralds,19 carats diamonds.

The End