Baring It For All To See With the intricate design and painstaking craftsmanship that goes into the making of a high-end watch, it only stands to reason that the owner of one would want to be able to see the complex mechanical workings of his prized possession. This might explain the proliferation of skeleton timepieces – which allows the user to do just that. It is one of the hottest trends to come out of this year’s horological shows in Switzerland, and if you like your bones thin and classy, then no one does it quite like Piaget. The brand has unveiled a skeletal version of its iconic Altiplano range that boasts an ultra-thin movement crafted to match the inner-bezel, ensuring a harmony in design. The movement features a sunburst guilloche effect, which stems from the small seconds counter. The 60 lines in the design are meant to recall the 60 seconds in a minute. The inner-bezel creates a sense of continuity by discreetly prolonging the guilloche lines. To ensure maximum visibility of the dial, dauphine hands have been chosen instead of the baton hands typically used in the Altiplano product line. With this skeleton timepiece, the magic behind Piaget’s masterpieces no longer needs to be a secret.

Writing A New Chapter Whether its design is modelled by the classic racing cars or inspired by heavenly beings, the world of fine writing instruments have gone beyond the staid fountain pen. Recent offerings from specialist pen makers like Caran d’Ache and luxury house Cartier are writing a new, exciting chapter in pen design. Caran d’Ache’s latest offering in its Divinities series pays homage to the Hindu god Shiva. The third in the series after Buddha and Ganesh, this limited-edition design of 108 fountain pens and 55 roller pens was created in collaboration with jeweller and artist Edouard Jud. Shiva, the personification of the Absolute, appears on the body and the cap of the writing instruments in several representations of his destructive and regenerative power. The cap is crowned with an agate, a semi-precious stone chosen for its intense blue that evokes the vibrant hues of India. Meanwhile, Cartier’s Roadster pen, crafted from 18K rhodium-plated gold, is a masculine take on writing, featuring a broad silhouette, a decorative screw and a cap crowned with a deep blue gemstone. But for those who hanker after something a little more traditional, you can’t do better than the Montblanc Meisterstuck 149, which was born 85 years ago and went on to become a classic and collectors’ favourite. With so much variety on offer, there’s no more excuse to let your penmanship go to waste.

Attracting The Right Crowd Reinhold Carl, the head of Audi here tells us why Singaporeans are such great connoisseurs of luxury cars. I find that Singaporeans in particular have a keen eye in assessing the quality of the luxury items they purchase and are obsessed with having the latest technology in their gadgets like watches, mobile phones and cars. I believe that car buying is an emotional decision, especially in the premium segment. The brand’s heritage, motor sports success, brand positioning and how you see the car fitting into your lifestyle and what it says about you as a driver are important factors that can seal your decision. The Audi brand fits within trend-setting Singapore society and because the brand is closely aligned with our customers’ lifestyle and values, it has enjoyed phenomenal growth over the past two years. It took a while for me to get over the fact that Audi was languishing behind our key competitors in the volume stakes when I first arrived. We managed to differentiate ourselves through our talk-of-the-town events and marketing activities.