Chanel is serious about its watchmaking and this quartet of pendant watches is the proof. They are fitted with quartz calibres but that is not the point. These four watches, each worn on a long chain, are not intended to show off the house's movement-manufacturing chops but to demonstrate its ability to imagine wonderful, creative designs.
We owe this exemplary achievement to Arnaud Chastaingt, Director of the Chanel Watch Creation Studio. He has succeeded in elevating four quartz watches, part of the Couture O’Clock capsule collection, to the rank of haute horlogerie.
Chanel burst onto the watchmaking scene in 1987 with the Première. This inaugural timepiece retains its octagonal form, inspired by the stopper of the N°5 perfume bottle, and suspends it from a chain, woven with leather, borrowed from the brand's iconic quilted bag. This original accessory can be styled as a belt, worn around the waist, or as a necklace, for an element of surprise.
Chastaingt has also rummaged through Gabrielle's sewing box for inspiration, beginning with the pincushion a seamstress wears on her wrist. It becomes the dial of a second watch, dotted with pearl and diamond pins, ready to make the final adjustments to an outfit on the eve of an haute couture show.
Nor is this the only accoutrement to have caught Arnaud Chastaingt's eye. A thimble and a safety pin - essential dressmaking tools from the Rue Cambon ateliers in Paris – are lavished with diamonds to become two showstopping timepieces.
Four couture interpretations that transform the ordinary into the extraordinary.
