A T+T Melbourne Studio event with Labeg & Watchfest 4 in Sydney are both just around the corner
Jamie WeissDon’t get me wrong, I love Australia and the Australian watch scene, but I’m often envious of our New York-based Editor Zach and all the events he gets to go to in his hometown. It seems like every other week, there’s some exciting watch show or collector’s meetup in the Big Apple, many of which Mr Blass makes an appearance at. To be fair, NYC is the capital of the world and a hotbed of horology, but sometimes we feel a little bit left out Down Under.
However, it might be Zach’s turn to feel the FOMO, with the fourth edition of Watchfest just around the corner. The brainchild of Sydney mega-collector (and top bloke) Paxton Wong, Watchfest bills itself Australia’s largest watch and horology convention, run by the watch community, for the watch community. Watchfest has proven to be a popular and resilient event, surviving the COVID era and getting bigger and better every year.
2023 promises to be particularly exciting. Running from the 9th to the 18th of November in Sydney, a record number of brands are involved, with opening night events being run by the likes of Omega, Roger Dubuis and jeweller Hardy Brothers, who stock hard-to-get brands locally like Rebellion, Angelus, Speake-Marin and Jacob & Co.
Watchfest’s famous ‘watch crawl’ returns on the 16th, too – it’s like a pub crawl, just for watches, with enthusiasts going from boutique to boutique. Planned stops include Jaeger-LeCoultre, Panerai, Chopard, IWC, TAG Heuer, Longines, Seiko and Grand Seiko. Refreshments, rare novelties and plenty of wrist-roll opportunities will be available.
The 18th promises a conference and fair format, held at the beautiful State Library of NSW, with interviews with brand managers, vintage watch dealers and our very own CFO Luke Martin, who’ll share an update on all things Time+Tide as well as the brands we stock, such as Baltic, Doxa, Hamilton and Norqain. Watchmakers of Australia will also be there to pitch watchmaking as a profession through TAFE – hopefully, they’ll inspire some young watch fans to consider becoming watchmakers themselves. A dinner catch-up at The Castlereagh by Fassnidge is also on the cards.
Registration is open now for Watchfest 4 but spots are limited, so get in quick. Find out more here.
Come say g’day to Labeg!
For our Melbourne crowd, we have the pleasure of hosting paper watch artist extraordinaire and collector Gabriel Lau, better known by his Instagram handle @labeg. Gabe will be visiting the Time+Tide Discovery Studio on Collins Street on Saturday 4th of November for a Q&A and get-together session from 15:00 – 17:00, as we close for regular trade on Saturday and Monday. If you’d like to be part of it, make sure to secure your spot by shooting an email to [email protected] – spots are limited!
Hope you all have a wonderful weekend, back over to you Zach!
Jamie
Watch meme of the week: no time for caution
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Hopefully, you get the ‘no time for caution’ joke, if not it is the name of the Hans Zimmer song playing during the Interstellar docking scene. But, back to the meme, if you see marring on the sides and backs of the lugs of a watch, you know either you or the previous owner was at war with a spring bar once upon a time. Thus, the beauty and appeal of interchangeable straps.
Wrist shot of the week: flexing your watch like a pro
Not to rub salt in Jamie’s aforementioned wounds, but, while attending the Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Stories Exhibition launch party in NYC yesterday, I was able to hang with JLC brand ambassadors (and The Menu co-stars) Anya Taylor-Joy and Nicholas Hoult, and watch them put on a masterclass on how to be photographed with your watch. After a quick huddle together to determine the best poses to assume, the pair proceeded to assume a smouldering and penetrating gaze into the camera lens each armed with their Reverso watches. Their expertise is hardly surprising. After all, they are both pros at the top of their game.
Time+Tide Shop pick of the week: Furlan Marri Mechanical Salmon Sector
There’s just something about a salmon-dialled watch, and this smart-dressy Salmon Sector from Furlan Marri is a particularly great example. A three-hander with delightfully retro cow horn lugs, it’s powered by a Swiss-made automatic movement from La Joux-Perret with an elaborated finish, tungsten rotor with palladium coating and hacking seconds. Furlan Marri has done their homework and has exhibited great attention to detail with this piece, with details like perlage inside the caseback, curved hands and applied Breguet numerals adding a real sense of class to this retro-looking piece.
Order now in the Time+Tide Shop. Price: A$2,350
Our favourite Time+Tide coverage of the week
VIDEO: The Omega Aqua Terra Shades refines the rainbow GADA proposition
In the wake of Rolex’s mega-success with an array of colourful lacquer dial Oyster Perpetual watches, Omega answered back with a colourful GADA proposition of their own: the Omega Aqua Terra Shades collection. Check out our hands-on video review above, and then read Borna’s thoughts on these colourful 38mm watches here.
5 of the best wave dials
Dive watches are great, but some watches take their tribute to the oceans a step further with richly textured wave dials. Fergus has assembled five of the best watches with wave dials here.
IN THE SHOP: The Studio Underd0g Field is now available for pre-order
Following the highly anticipated launch of the brand’s new design, the Studio Underd0g Field collection is finally available for pre-orders. Learn more about the collection and how to pre-order here.