Of all the cities in the world, Cape Town is most certainly one of the more unique. Located on South Africa's southwest coast, the city is built on a peninsula, providing much of its charm. In Cape Town, you always feel the presence of the imposing Table Mountain, which forms a beautiful backdrop and serves as a further testimony of South Africa's rich nature. It gives the vibrant city a one-of-a-kind appeal, similar to that of the Bulgari Octo Finissimo which was on the wrist to explore it.

In 2018 Bulgari smashed all thinness records with the Octo Finissimo Tourbillon Automatic. In one sweep it became not only the world's thinnest tourbillon but also the world's thinnest automatic tourbillon. That's not all, because perhaps its greatest accomplishment is that it also became the world's thinnest automatic watch. Up until now, this last record was usually held by watches that featured no additional complications, such as a tourbillon, because they tend to add to the height of a movement.

Baselworld, the fair, is truly trying to dress for success, as its new layout and decorations have a more luxurious air. This was needed if only to match the atmosphere in which the brands that exhibit exist. While the classic dress watch might not be such a dominating segment of the market, new watches have taken over this position. They might not be gold, three-handers, but they are refined creations, often on the understated side, that feels most comfortable on the wrist of people who know that success is not an end station, but an everyday quest.

Tomorrow Baselworld will open its doors once again. This year it will be a completely different animal altogether. The departure of the Swatch Group, as well as an exodus of other brands, has made the show much smaller than it was in previous years. The question that remains is if that is a bad thing?

Sometimes it seems almost mandatory; diamonds on a ladies watch. As if the use of these precious stones marks the difference for which sex a timepiece is created. While they can certainly add something, a watch without diamonds can be just as feminine, as these four watches prove!

Gérald Genta is a man to who many brands owe a great debt. As a designer, he gave Audemars Piguet the Royal Oak, Patek Philippe their Nautilus, and he worked on the Pasha for Cartier, as well as many iconic designs for other brands. What not everybody knows is that he was next to a designer also a watch manufacturer and, in fact, a pioneering one. It was already in 1969 that he founded his manufacture and as could be expected it turned out innovative watches. With the 'Gefica' did Genta introduced a bronze case before it was cool, but that was not all.

Watches & Wonders Miami will return to the illustrious Design District for its second annual event in partnership with the Fondation Haute Horlogerie.

Few watches have made such a mark on the industry in recent years as the Bvlgari Octo Finissimo. That it is a design statement is not so surprising, it is after all a Bvlgari, but it is also the watch that cemented the brand's reputation as bonafide manufacture among the general watch-buying public. The fact that Bvlgari did this with a range of ultra-slim movements is very surprising, yet at the same time not so surprising at all. When most brands want to truly establish themselves as a manufacture, they start making complicated watches, not ultra-slim movements that only tell time. However, one of the benefits that ultra-slim movements provide is far more freedom regarding the design of the watch. That is of course when you are able to design and make a reliable, ultra-slim movement in the first place.

McLaren supports the Elton John AIDS Foundation on its silver anniversary with donation of 570S Spider painted Blade Silver.

Ultra-thin watches: not too long ago this was the exclusive territory of dress watches. Brands like Vacheron Constantin, Patek Philippe and Piaget, ruled in this domain. Yet as many things in the watch industry change, so also this. In more recent times having the world's thinnest mechanical watch (with or without a complication) seems to have turned into a showdown between Piaget and Bulgari, who put a distinctly different spin on things!

The tourbillon is still the undeniable king of the complications. It is often the one that envokes the most feverish reactions from watch collectors and connoisseurs alike. Part of its magic is its undeniable ability to captivate through its mesmerizing motion and the technical complexity to achieve this. These are some of the most recent watches with a tourbillon that were able to capture, and hold our attention!

Mother's Day is almost there again, which means that florists are getting busy, restaurants are trying to keep up with reservations, yet many children are still contemplating what to give their mother. At Haute Time we are of course very biased and think that a watch would make the perfect gift, like one of these five for example!

Rarely has a name for a watch been as appropriate as for the Bvlgari Diva’s Dream Minute Repeater, as this timepiece can only be categorized for what it name already tells us: a dream. This dream is pretty much a fairy tale as it describes the marriage of a beautiful case, and a stunning dial, with one of the Haute Horlogerie's finest, and thinnest, minute repeater movements in the world: the manufacture caliber BVL 362 which we can also find in the Bvlgari Octo Finissimo Minute Repeater.

While the SIHH takes place in the Palexpo halls of Geneva, this is not the only place in the city where you can find the latest and greatest watches. In the downtown area, brands that are not officially part of the SIHH setup shop on boats and in the exclusives hotels near the lake. For them, Baselworld is often the main fair to introduce their new models, but that didn’t stop them to bring a few novelties to Geneva as well!

Sun, sea and bright colors, these things count up the most memorable diving trips, whether you go in with oxygen tanks or simply snorkel. The Bulgari Diagono Scuba adds to this with its orange or yellow colors, which are not only fun, but also functional!

At this year’s Baselworld, ‘The Big Dance’ of all watch fairs, a select few novelties stood out as favorites. But rather than one trend dominating, the belles of the ball represented a wide variety of styles. So whether you prefer large sports watches, diminutive ladies timepieces, or cutting- edge tourbillons, you will soon find one of these exciting new watches at a Westime boutique in Southern California.