It's going to be a year long process. Chopard Manufacture's anniversary, which coincides with L.U.C's, will deliver a string of surprises, some of which will be heavyweights. It's already begun here, at Watches And Wonders Geneva: Chopard is going all in.
For the very first time, the brand shows what they can do with a jumping hour. The L.U.C Quattro Spirit 25 is a 40-mm-wide, 100-piece limited edition made of rose gold of the ethical kind (like every gold Chopard will use for these novelties). It rests on a Quattro movement, which is hand-wound and 8-day going, topped by a display module. Minutes in the center, no seconds, its hours jump inside a framed aperture at 6 o'clock. This complicaiton is generally located at 12 o'clock, but L.U.C have their own way. This type of anniversary, special editions require a higher-end execution, much like the 2013 L.U.C 1963 did in its time. So this piece is Geneva Hallmark-certified and its dial is made of solid gold, which is then covered by grand feu, pure white enamel.
On the subject of certification, here is a new, short, exclusive series which has undergone the Fondation Qualité Fleurier process. For the first time, it's a steel timepiece. The L.U.C QF Jubilee has a brand new type of dial, very Art Deco with hands of a new kind. Its retro chic look has even reached the strap, made of gold calf with blue stitching.
Marrying an all-the-way-up-there timepiece with a non-precious strap is a trick also applied to the L.U.C Perpetual Chrono. Its case is even more of a surprise. Titanium in L.U.C timepieces is an oddity, except for the very sporty Engine One. So imagine the surprise as this pepetual calendar and flyback chronograph are dressed in it. Which is not the least of its contrasting features : the dial is made of guilloché, black-rhodium-plated solid gold. Opposites attract… even when they're not really opposed.
Talking about materials, both L.U.C's travel watches have undergone a treatment the collection had never experienced. The L.U.C GMT One Black and L.U.C Time Traveler One Black are not just completely dark. They're also made of titanium of a special kind : a stay in plasma cloud has transformed the metallic surface into actual ceramics. Black, light, scratch-proof, comfortable, these are ideal attributes for the travelling type.
This celebration also extends to women, and very much so. Ladies novelties are blooming in Chopard's greenhouse, some litterally. Peonies are Caroline Scheufele's favourite flower. So the brand's ladies DA has decided to cover a whole dial with them. The L.U.C XP Esprit de Fleurier Peony features a grand feu dial hand painted with a whole bed of them. The flower motif is even hand-engraved on the automatic movement and visisble through the caseback.
Nature is also a theme for two other jewelry timepieces. One is an Imperiale 36 mm with a jade-green mother-of-pearl dial and the other is just insane. This high jewelry piece almost entirely drowns under emeralds, most of them pear-shaped and enhanced by a lot of diamonds.
Stones as a source of light is also at the center of a new, nocturnal Imperiale Moonphase. Made of white gold (ethical of course), its dial is made of deep-blue aventurine glass.Yet it shines from within as its bezel, crown, lugs and dial are set with dozens of diamonds. Contrast is everywhere on this poetic, feminine and mechanical timpeice.
