BUYING TIME

Chanel combines technical expertise and creative with the Mademoiselle Privé, writes rubin khoo

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For an insight into the world of Gabrielle Chanel, the Mademoiselle Privé is the perfect creation. The timepiece presents the things that matter most to the iconic figure, all recreated through the hands of the finest master artisans – enamellers, engravers, carvers and stonesteers. This year the French house takes things up a notch, combining creativity with technical expertise as the Mademoiselle Privé presented at Baselworld 2018 is fitted for the first time with a fine watchmaking movement, the Calibre 2.1 Camélia Skeleton.

The camélia is synonymous with the House of Chanel, going back to the days when Mademoiselle Chanel is said to have fallen in love with the flower after reading, La Dame aux Camélias by Alexandre Dumas in which the heroine always wore a white camélia, as a symbol of her purity.

The camélia flower serve as inspiration for the movement within the Mademoiselle Privé. The movement was drawn and designed in-house by the Chanel Watchmaking Creative Studio and developed and assembled by the Chanel manufacture in Switzerland.

Now it has emerged as a testament of Fine Watchmaking for Chanel as the Mademoiselle Privé collection pens a new chapter in its creative history. Its aesthetic qualities and technical skills are elevated to Métiers d’Art in their own right.

The Calibre 2.1 Camélia Skeleton is a manual-winding mechanical movement, displaying hours and minutes. The Skeleton movement has a power reserve of 48 hours. It comes with 125 components, adorned with 21 rubies. The diamond bevelled bridge is in amorphous diamondlike carbon (ADLC) and grey gold bottom plate, set with 185 brilliant-cut diamonds. The upper auxiliary plate in grey gold is set with 242 brilliant-cut diamonds or in onyx. The lower auxiliary bridge in lacquered brass bears the movement’s markings in a powdered silver finish.

It vibrates at a frequency of 28,800 vibrations per hour. It has a variable intertia balance and one fixed-clamp barrel. The diameter of the movement is 31.2mm and the thickness of the movements is 5.4mm. The system is anti-shock to protect balance with variable intertia balance.

It comes in two versions. Both are glittering with a bezel set with 60 brilliant-cut diamond. This complements well with the 18K white gold case, case back and buckle. The crown is also 18K white gold with onyx cabochon 18K white gold with galvanic treatment. The 18K white gold camellia skeleton displays 185 brilliantcut diamonds while the black satin strap is enhanced with a 18K white gold double folding buckle set with 80 brilliant-cut diamonds. The other is substantially more ornate with an auxiliary upper plate set with 242 brilliant cut diamonds.

This collection adds yet another chapter to Chanel’s creative saga and uncovers new grounds for expressing unsurpassed skill and know-how of the Métiers d’Art craftsmanship used in Fine Watchmaking and High Jewelry.