Piaget - Pre-SIHH in Spain
IW Magazine - 31 October 2011
Seville, Spain, was the site of the recent "pre-SIHH" introduction of Piaget's latest watches and jewelry, and the locations where they were first unveiled were perfectly fitting for each magnificent product. The Limelight Garden Party jewelry collection was displayed during the evening of October 18 at the Casa de Pilatos, whose sultry gardens perfumed the air as we perused the amazing array of earrings, necklaces, rings and ladies' watches.
At the heart of the jewelry collection is the Piaget rose, which was evident in every shape and form and stone configuration, in diamonds, white chalcedony, sapphire and gold. A gorgeous secret watch, again featuring a rose (in 18-karat white gold with 8.7 carats of brilliant-cut diamonds) was the piece de resistance for any female watch lover. The entire haute joaillerie collection may be described as "typically Piaget" in the very best sense: sophisticated and perfectly crafted.
The next evening, we were treated to a sneak peak of the Piaget Altiplano Skeleton Ultra-Thin model, which is just 5.34 mm thick. This time the Abadas Triana restaurant, perched on the edge of the Triana River, was the location of our festivities, which included a short presentation by Piaget CEO Philippe Leopold-Metzger. The watch features the new Piaget Caliber 1200S (2.40 mm thick), housed within a 38 mm 18-karat white gold case specifically designed and developed to accommodate it. Apparently it took more than three years of research and development to perfect the movement, which is derived from the Piaget 1200P. The Caliber 1200S has a number of innovations, and in addition to the micro-rotor in 950 platinum, the hour-wheel bridge has been slimmed down to a minimum wall thickness of just 0.11 mm. The movement is truly beautiful, with its many planes either matte finished or polished, rhodium plated or black. Piaget's attention to detail, in both its products and its role as host of this event, was truly inspiring: as we dined on lobster tail and Mediterranean hake, the Piaget logo was simultaneously projected in full view on the historic tower across the Triana.