Introducing the Montblanc Boheme Watches for Women Only — Switzerland is Paying Attention

Three years ago I wrote my fourth watch book – the first one dedicated to women: Jewels of Time. I was ahead of my time – I generally tend to be. People liked the book but women’s watches were not all the rage. This year, I have just finished writing my third book on women’s watches – slated to be published around the holidays. Women’s watches have become a real phenomenon in the world of fine Swiss timepieces.

Today, brands are paying closer attention to what women want under the hood and are pulling out all the stops to bring great new women-only collections to the forefront. Among those doing so – Montblanc, which just unveiled the Boheme Collection. The line, complete with a perpetual calendar for less than $20,000, is elegant, classic and for women only. While the name Boheme has belonged to Montblanc’s writing instrument line up for years, it was never translated to a timepiece until now—under the direction of visionary thinker, Jerome Lambert.

 

After spending just over a year conducting research and development, Montblanc makes a splash with automatic and mechanical timepieces – with and without diamonds – in several sizes that are aimed at the sophisticated woman.

“Boehme is a name that has existed at Montblanc and sort of stand for a philosophy of ‘I go my own way,’” says Jerome Lambert. “This line is for women who want to do things a bit differently. It is artistic and is a creative choice for women who make their own decisions.”

Indeed, the timepieces have a certain harmony of balance to them, with round cases, inner dials with a tiny cutaway on some to make room for the date on some models, and an incredibly complex guilloché dial. In fact, explains Lambert, depending on the size of the watch (and therefore the size of the dial) the guilloché workmanship on the dial can have as many as 90 faceted rays for ultimate shimmer.

Among the standouts of the line: Bohème Date Automatic watch, powered by a high-quality automatic movement visible through a sapphire crystal case back. Versions are offered in steel and in two tone with rose gold. The tiny details are amazing on this watch, including leaf-shaped hands in rose gold with the Montblanc emblem on the seconds hand, black floral Arabic numerals, diamond indexes, minute scale with intricate motif.

Additionally, the Bohème Bleue combines the best of fine watchmaking with a distinctive feminine design. The guilloché dial is created in royal blue with 90 facets and sophisticated date indication at 6:00. It is accented with a color-coordinated strap. In fact, the line is being offered with a host of different bold colored strap choices, as well as bracelets in steel and in two-tone.

The flagship of the line, though, is the Perpetual Calendar. The watch, with silver guilloché 60-facets dial, offers month and leap year cycle at 12:00, date at 3:00, moon phases at 6:00and day of the week at 9:00. The complex self-winding caliber MB 29.15 movement means it will require no manual adjustment until the year 2100. However, should correction be necessary in the event that the timepiece has not been worn for a long time, tiny correctors hidden inside the watch allow for fast and easy adjustment.

The 36mm rose gold case features a bezel set wit h60 diamonds and a winding crown adorned with the unique Montblanc diamond. Each Bohème Perpetual Calendar Jewellery timepiece undergoes 500 hours of rigorous tests at the Montblanc Manufacture in LeLocle before leaving the workshops to mark time on the wrist of a contemporary Bohème woman. While the rest of the Boheme line retails starting at just about $2,500, this perpetual calendar piece is at the top of the pyramid, retailing for $19,900.