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The ups and downs of my love affair with Cartier
Last week was a bit hectic even by my standards. Monday I arrived in London from Kuala Lumpur. Tuesday I flew off to Geneva for the SIHH courtesy of Cartier who show me the new Tonneau watch. It looked so much better than in the photos, especially in rose gold. I think it was the patina on the dial, The Breguet hands and the way the rose gold matched my skin that blew me away. Wednesday it was back in London and I dropped by at the newly refurbished Cartier boutique to try on the new Crash watch. Only one will be produced every month and will be sold only through the London boutique. I was not sure how it would look on my wrist but amazingly, it fitted remarkably well. Thursday it was the Eurostar to Paris to collect the platinum Tank Cintree which I had ordered a year ago at the SIHH. Most astonishingly on seeing this watch, I had second thoughts and they were not better than my initial thoughts! The platinum Tank Cintree was one of the hits and one of the most sought after watches at last year's SIHH and I had fallen in love with it at first sight. A year later, it failed to make the same impact and Cartier had reserved number 2 for me (even though I had requested for number 16!) I was wondering why my hesitation. Was it due to the lovely watches I had seen at the SIHH like the Tonneau or was it the undeniable charm of the London Crash watch or was it because I found the bezel of the Tank Cintree too shiny and overwhelming?! There had been a queue of people trying to obtain this watch and yet I seemed unimpressed. I decided to take Nathalie, the charming sales assistant for lunch so that I could think about it further but two hours later, I still did not feel a connection with the Tank Cintree.
Lovely in rose gold, the Tonneau
The iconic London Crash watch in yellow gold
The platinum Tank Cintree with its unmistakable curve
As I had only 4 hours in Paris and did not even have time to meet up with my buddy, Mike H., I decided to return to London while trying to decide which of the three Cartier watches below I would really want in my collection. Amazingly I left London on Friday morning for Kuala Lumpur without a watch but at least a decision was made! 
Hopefully it will be one I will stick to
Hopefully it will be one I will stick to Lovely in rose gold, the Tonneau
The iconic London Crash watch in yellow gold
The platinum Tank Cintree with its unmistakable curve
Cintree vs Tonneau is a tough one. While Cintree is special, Tonneau is classic Cartier dial with Roman indices and breguet hands. Crash is very feminine IMO. Dont see the Cintree bezel...
Tank Normale
Original Cintree
here to make a qualified opinion on the over-pronounced glare.
Actually the decision for me was a lot easier at the end of the day
possibly thanks to my feminine nature! That Tank Normale looks magnificent!!
That Tank Normale looks magnificent!!
You prob grew up with a few sisters ;) I am always told I have complete lack of that perspective. [nt]
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Thats indeed a roller coaster of time and decisions my friend . But glad we could spent some time together at SIHH 🙏🏻🤗
You did the right thing imho . Allways follow your instinkt and feelings . Otherwise you will end up with a watch that dosnt give you a great satisfaction after a while . I know we all had that problem at some point with a watch in our collection . I know i did 😉
You are so right my friend!!
And thank goodness I made that exact mistake with the Moser!! Hopefully not with the Lang & Heyne!!! And yes meeting up with you was one of my SIHH highlights.
And yes meeting up with you was one of my SIHH highlights.
😁
Thanks my friend , glad you did made that mistake with the Moser 😉 (its my fav from the brand)and you know where to find me for the L&H 😁. That watch was a Huge surprise for me , never had the time to have a close look at it before . ITS STUNNING my friend .and i hope you will enjoy it for a long time 🙏🏻 .HAGWE
It has been five months
and still the Lang & Heyne triumphs over all my other watches when it comes to daily wear. I think you might need to place an order for one of these my friend because waiting for me to sell mine might never happen!
😁 good for you my friend . Happy to hear that .
Maybe after my other incomings soon 🙏🏻 . And will def have a look at Basel at ther Booth . Have a great weekend my friend
Have a great time at Basel!
At present I have no plans ie no budget for any more watches!!
It's all clear here except for one thing...how did the lunch with Nathalie go? [nt]
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Nathalie is a gem!!!
She had actually taken a 3 hour train to Geneva to meet me at the SIHH and we have become good friends since meeting a year and a half ago when I travelled to Paris to meet Mike H. And thanks to her help, I have managed to get the Cartier I ultimately want!!
Wonderful my friend -- sincere congrats (to both! ;-) and I'm quite curious now to see your Cartier choice! :-) [nt]
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Me too!!
I am quite odd in my preference for watches - quite one dimensional and I tend to sway towards dress watches, the smaller the better!
You did well my friend not to rush a decision
As I always say when there is a doubt there is no doubt=don’t do it or at least not in a hurry. Take the time to think it over and the right decision will come on its own... one day... or maybe not 😉 but take the time it is not a race. The wonderful ones you already have are awesome and must be fully appreciated. Thus each potential new one must make some sense in your collection or make you crazy and full of desire. Here I am not sure any of the three does match these criteria if I may say it...
Don’t worry the decision will knock at the door on its own without you asking 😉
My two cents my friend,
Mike
Thanks Mike for your wise advice!
Actually, one of those three has been decided upon and will arrive in December apparently And this time I will make sure I have enough time in Paris so that NIco, you and I can meet up!!
And this time I will make sure I have enough time in Paris so that NIco, you and I can meet up!!
Hehehe I understand you have been crashed by the one in London 😉
Congrats my friend now you seem convinced thus convincing also 👍👏👏👏
With a bit of of luck
you will be the very first purist to see this watch after I collect it from Cartier. Will give you ample notice to ensure both Nico and you are available.
Not easy situation I must admit but at least pain is going down with the drugs this year so I manage...
...no choice anyhow 😉