Baume & Mercier - Promesse, beyond words
The brand's very first feminine watch was created in 1869 by Louis-Victor Baume for his daughter Melina, whom he gifted an adorable gold pocket watch. Since then, the private collection of ladies' watches belonging to the Baume & Mercier Museum has grown considerably. All shapes, sizes, every decade of the 20th Century and all metals, either polished or richly set with gems, are represented. This means that the heritage available to the design department is a virtually inexhaustible source of inspiration.
The Art Deco style in particular has had a lasting impact on the brand's designers. Tinged with a Seventies mood yet inherently timeless, the new Promesse collection immediately catches the eye by the symbiotic combination of shapes : the oval bezel topping the round case appears to be winking at the woman wearing it. This geometrical originality merges seamlessly into the center of a bracelet featuring harmoniously designed links adding a sensual touch to the wearing of this watch. This wave rippling across the water, scintillating in certain versions with 30 to 61 diamonds, is the common thread running through the 14 variations of this 2014 new launch.
Gem-set bezel or case, all-steel or accompanied by pink gold, with or without diamond hour-markers sprinkled across the silver-toned dial with a "drape" guilloche decor or enhanced by a shimmering mother-ofpearl dial, as well as choose of steel or two-tone bracelets or a leather strap.
According to personal choice, the beating heart of Promesse is a quartz caliber or a mechanical self-winding movement revealing its mesmerizing to-and-fro motion through the sapphire crystal back of the case that is itself available in two sizes. There are plenty of big or small occasions on which to gift someone or treat oneself to such a delightful little horological gem. Especially during the festive season.