I am not a mono-brand collector, although sometimes it does seem that way. I have watches from all sorts of brands, but the majority are indeed from one brand - Omega.Although I’ve touched upon the topic of Omega and its connection with my family before, I thought I would freshen up a story that I wrote a few years ago.Why do I love Omega?I am often asked why I only buy and wear Omega watche

Three is the magic number - or so they say. Many a watch enthusiast has boldly claimed that all you will ever need is the minimalist and perhaps mythical three-watch collection. While I do see the logic behind this, I struggle to accept that an arbitrary number should define my collection without at least trying to understand its justification. To answer this, I needed a real deep dive into what i

At Swedish watch brand Bravur, they're really into cycling, and that craziness has materialized in plenty of watches with a cycling theme. The new Bravur La Grande Boucle IV is a steel chronograph in the long-running Grand Tour Chronograph collection. This chronograph subtly tries to capture the spirit of the Tour de France, nicknamed La Grande Boucle, French for “The Big Loop.” The re

The Citizen Tsuyosa Automatic has quickly become a welcoming canvas for the creativity of the IFL Watches team. For its newest the creation, the brand was inspired by the “three wise monkeys” and the timeless proverb they depict. In great IFLW tradition, the colorful dial is modified to portray the proverb in a fun way. It makes this Citizen Tsuyosa Wise Guys Concept another colorful l

With the summer holidays approaching, it’s time to talk about summer watches. Thomas started this series with his three favorite summer watches at three different price points. We are looking for one pick under $1,000, another under $10,000, and an unlimited-budget option. It seems like a fairly straightforward task, but as it turns out, it’s not that easy. Still, I managed to create a

The Seiko SKX is one of the most popular entry-level mechanical watches ever. There is a good chance that you, as a Fratello reader, have owned one at some point or still do. In any case, this is true for me. However, the original bracelet of that watch has always been controversial. It is infamously rattly, which people either love or hate. I happen to love it, but what if you don't? Well, Forstn

Omega Speedmaster LegendIt’s Speedy Tuesday! As you probably know, when the Speedmaster was being introduced in 1957 there were no signs of a role in the space program yet. The Speedmaster was essentially meant for sports people and race car drivers. Once in a while, Omega still grabs back to the heritage of car racing and introduces a Speedmaster that has a link with racing.Michael Schumach

I'm going to apologize in advance because I'm going to give you some fairly useless advice. You should have bought the subject of today's #TBT about 6-8 months ago before prices started to rocket. Yes, the cat is out of the bag, as some might say, on this piece. Before, this piece was known primarily to serious collectors, but it received a boost due to the never-ending power of the internet and s

Nothing beats a nice watch GetToGether and this coming Friday there will be another one that you don’t want to miss. This time in London. If you have not been to a get-together, you are in luck. Chrono24 will host their second GetToGether (read our report of the first one here) in London this Friday.Free entry and no sales talk, promised. It is about watches and the collecting community. Rog

Rembrandt, Vermeer, Van Gogh, to name just a few of the painters of which you can admire their work in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. One of the main attractions of Amsterdam for sure, especially if you are into art. Swatch decided to collaborate with the Rijksmuseum and comes with three watches that are available as of now. These three new watches are inspired by art from the museum and are part o

A GMT with a blue and black bezel is one of the most sought-after watches in the world right now. We’re pretty sure that although it is not the reason why Seiko chose for this combination, it is pretty convenient.Take that with a grain of salt (or two), of course. It is just something that immediately came to mind when picking this watch up for a closer inspection. The comparison with the G

This year we celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Moon landing, and with that, also the 50th anniversary of the Speedmaster Professional as the Moonwatch. Time to recap once more how the Speedmaster became the Moonwatch.Exactly 50 years ago, on July 16, the Saturn V rocket was on its way to the Moon (and back) as part of the Apollo XI mission. On board were fearless astronauts Neil Armstrong, Buz

Imagine you had this watch in your cellar for 15 years and you had no clue. Simply because the day you bought the flat, you moved all the old stuff belonging to the previous owner there and you haven't found the time to go through it. That was until last month and the day you discovered this stunning Heuer ref. 349 in an old box…A true story. Katarina, a young archeologist from Nitra in Slov

Transitioning to beach season calls for the perfect watch - one that will not only make you like a “vacay goddess” but will also be your true partner in crime. Can you picture yourself in Zakynthos lying on the white sands of Navagio beach, with its breathtaking cliffs? Perhaps you're jumping into the blue waters of Capri or surfing in Portugal? For fun in the sun, all you need is a ti

A good, reliable watchmaker with reasonable rates who is willing to accept any vintage watches you bring to their workbench is a rare specimen. I dare say I value my watchmaker more than any of my highly regarded watch dealers. If there is a question I get as often as, “Where did you get that watch?”, it would be, “Where did you get that watch serviced? Servicing vintage watches

I fear that if Certina keeps on doing what it’s doing right now, soon I’ll run out of superlatives to describe the brand’s watches. About a year ago, Certina’s new DS Super PH500M VDST was introduced to the market. In 2021 we have yet another DS Super PH500M to drool over, and this might even be better than its sister model.?I mean that in the sense that it’s much mor

In 1949, an unknown Czech car called the Aero Minor Sport shocked the world's best racers. It came second at the 24 Hours Le Mans race, right behind the winning twelve-cylinder Ferrari. Meet the Bohematic Minor, a titanium-cased chronograph with an unusual mesh dial that pays tribute to this successful race car.It's a fascinating story. Only two prototypes of the racing car Aero Minor were ever ma

As soon as you enter the world of mechanical watches, it seems like you enter an alternate reality at times. Especially when you have the privilege to write about luxury timepieces, watches that cost thousands and often tens of thousands of Euros are not uncommon to end up in your hands. While experiencing expensive timepieces from up close is absolutely amazing, there is always the reality that m

What's great about the independent watch market is that we have options. I like options. We can choose between original designs and homages, and between inexpensive quartz watches and high-end mechanical timepieces. Just pick whatever floats your boat, and you will find it. If you are like me, you like a good sports watch under $1,000. Alas, there aren't that many options in this specific segment

When we embarked on the quest to find the best watches under $2,000, we didn't quite realize just how difficult it would be to find our favorites. The sub-$2K price point is over-saturated with the presence of microbrands but is also a space in which certain brands shine. As tempting as it might be to pick something like the Seiko SPB143J1 and be done with it, there's a desire to get as close to t