Leap Year GTG - What Showed Up?

So the Leap Year happens once every 4 years and it comes as no surprise that we organised a GTG to celebrate the occasion. Time to bring out those Perpetual Calendars aka Quantième Perpétuel (QP). Here's a photo essay of what turned up for the dinner at XiYan Maxwell. A full report will follow but enjoy the watches on display at our GTG.

Does it surprise you that there are three Patek Philippe Perpetual Calendars on display? Let's start with the reference 5970J...

What about the Nautilus 5740?

And the Retrograde 5159

Then there are 2 Chopard LUC Lunar One - first the rose gold version...

And the platinum version

Then there is the most "intelligent" QP on the market with their "Flash Calendar"... The H Moser Perpetual One. Let's start with the fume dial version...

And the first generation rose gold black lacquer dial version...

Next comes a pair of Ulysse Nardin Perpetual Ludwig

And the other one...

And the very sought after Audemars Piguet Royal Oak White Ceramic - such a mouthful

Now for the more unusual... Seen this one before? This Alain Silberstein "Pikto Smileday - Le Perpetuel - Automatique" was made for the Japanese market in a limited edition of 100 pieces.

And what about this Union Glashutte Tradition Perpetual?

Take a look at this DeWitt Academia Quantieme Perpetual Bi-Retrograde - have you come across this before? Chances are you have not. My first time handling the timepiece.

Or this lovely Habring Chrono Felix Perpetual?

Ah... the Roger Dubuis Sympathie Bi-Retrograde Perpetual Calendar Chronograph

And the IWC Da Vinci Perpetual Calendar Chronograph in yellow gold - the one that got me noticing the brand and jumping into the rabbit hole

Thne there is the CITIZEN Eco-Drive Iconic Nature Collection which features one of the most accurate perpetual calendar there is on the market with a deviation of 5 seconds per year!

Then there is a bunch of Annual Calendars - one of the most famous being the MIH watch.

Most of these belong to early adopter collectors. There are actually more in the group but some did not bring theirs.

Thanks to XiYan Maxwell for providing a special menu and a private room for the gathering.

In any case, wait for the second part of this blog for more comments from collectors about their timepieces etc. Hope you enjoyed the photo essay.

De Rijke x Miffy - And now the Revolution Piece Too

So it started with my first encounter with the De Rijke Miffy at one of our gatherings. A fellow collector brought his as a microbrand offering which was sold out for awhile already. Intrigued, I looked up the brand and as luck would have it, they were relaunching the next batch and I snagged an orange piece.

De Rijke is a Dutch brand and what's the national colour of the Netherlands? Orange, of course! Having my first piece and enjoying it, I wanted a second piece for my significant other. In came Revolution with their collaboration with De Rijke with a very unique Miffy moonphase - the Black & Pink.

First, a little about De Rijke and their timepieces. Based in the city of Dordrecht, Netherlands the brand is named after their founder Laurens De Rijke. Crafted for drivers, you will notice the crown positioned at 2 o'clock. But therein lies a surprise. More about that later.

The difference between the "regular" version and this Black & Pink version is the clear centre featuring a translucent sapphire glass showing off the moonphase disc.

The Black & Pink versus the "original"...

The surprise is how the case is constructed to reveal some interesting details. The innovative construction allows the case to slide from 2 o'clock by up to 90 degrees, revealing some information. At 2 o'clock, you can see the words Revolution engraved on the case.

Turn it to clockwise reveal the limitation number... ultra cool...

The pink is not "shocking pink" but what my wife calls soothing pink

Now for more pictures of the original "Orange"...

Miffy sitting on the moon!

Markers are very well done - pops up and is luminous.

Limited to 25 pieces, they have been long sold out...

Now for another shot of the duo...

Paired with a grey strap, I wish they had come with shorter straps since it is "made for ladies"... The original strap was too long and I had to purchase a second strap from De Rijke to fit my wife's wrist.

You may visit the De Rijke collection for an idea of all their creations.

The Revolution version is also supporting a worthwhile cause, with €250 from each sold watch going towards supporting the Singapore Breast Cancer Foundation. Do your part for a worthwhile cause... get a Miffy Black & Pink.

Watches I Have Come Across - Moritz Grossmann Tremblage

Throughout my watch collecting journey, I have been blessed to have come across many timepieces and I intend to document them in this photo essay. These are timepieces I don't own but have been fortunate to be able to see, feel, touch and photograph them. This time, I feature the Moritz Grossmann Tremblage

The Tremblage is a special timepiece with hand hammered dial work.

This edition comes with special purple hands

Nice details on the dial side

Then comes the movement - the manual winding Calibre 100.1

And the finishing is sublime...

Lovely iteration that comes in rose gold or steel case. For more information, please visit The Tremblage webpage of Moritz Grossmann.