The Floralgraff also comes with either emeralds or blue sapphires and the possibility of a fully set diamond and gemstone bracelet.Īnother brilliantly conceived jewellery timepiece is the Secret Carved Emerald Watch. The Floralgraff, the brand’s latest floral evolution, is a stunning watch with a mosaic inspired pattern with pavé set diamonds and eight cabochon rubies that is not only a striking representation of a flower in bloom, but also a nod, albeit distant, to the Art Deco period.ĭeliciously feminine, this quartz watch has 120 diamonds (2.34 carats), a mother-of-pearl dial with a radial motif inlaid with a further eight rubies and is completed by a black or blue satin strap with a diamond-set buckle. In addition to the complicated timepieces mentioned elsewhere in the magazine, there were other quite remarkable jewellery watches. Graff’s participation at Baselworld wasn’t only about the Hallucination though. As a watch, let’s be honest, it leaves something to be desired - the movement is quartz and reading the time on a miniature dial in a maze of colour is a little bit of a challenge unless you’ve been at the kryptonite – but if you have that price tag of 55 million dollars won’t be a deterrent!
The delicate colouring of these rare diamonds bears no relation to the obscene ‘in-your-face’ multi-carat single gemstones that Sotheby’s and Christies are more than happy to auction, these gemstones subtly fuse into a white gold bracelet with, at its centre, a miniature Swiss watch with a quartz movement showing, rather discreetly, hours and minutes.Īs a piece of art it is exquisite. The Hallucination has made my diamond dream a reality.”īut this dream, this quite exquisite combination of 110 carats of multi-coloured diamonds that somehow blend together, that shimmer and shine from every angle, that took thousands of hours to create, is like nothing you have ever seen in a watch before – or, probably, will never see again. For many years I have thought about creating a truly remarkable watch that illustrates our all-consuming passion for diamonds. “The Graff Hallucination is a sculptural masterpiece ” Laurence Graff, the Chairman and founder of Graff Diamonds said of the timepiece, “a celebration of the miracle of coloured diamonds. When I actually set eyes on the kaleidoscope of rare coloured diamonds that make up this unique piece, I realized that it came from a different world, a place of dreams, of fantasies, perhaps even an hallucination. I had already heard rumblings and rumours concerning their Hallucination timepiece, imagining that it would somehow resemble Cartier’s 1929 Art Deco tutti frutti platinum bracelet watch that was set with diamonds, emeralds, sapphires and rubies.īut nothing could have been further from the truth. I was looking forward to feasting my eyes on the Graff watch that seemed to be on everybody’s lips during Baselworld.
I’m not talking about the shocking pinks, reds and mauves that the trendy young females of the species use to dye their hair or paint their toenails, no, I’m talking about the delicate and subtle colours found in nature, painting, mosaics and enamelling along with those vibrant colours that emanate from rubies, emeralds, sapphires and diamonds, the natural lustrous colours of the precious stones that we inevitably associate with the finest jewellery, but are now seeing more and more of in the watch industry.