This year, Blancpain’s most classic collection pairs the purity of its lines with the infinity of blue. Intimately bound up with Blancpain’s identity, this color is now available on two emblematic red gold timepieces from the Villeret line: the Quantième Complet and the Ultraplate. Both available with a crocodile strap or a red gold Milanese styled bracelet.
Press Release (with some edits and comments in italics)
The Villeret collection is named after the village where Blancpain was founded in 1735. Villeret models are characterized by the purity of their lines, their timeless elegance and the technical sophistication of their manufacture-made movements. The collection is expanded by the new duo, in stunning midnight blue dials. Case size of both are 40mm diameter.
The Villeret Quantième Complet (click on link to see our review on the original) model combines a complete calendar and moon phases, an existing model, now extended with the blue dial in a red gold case. Its dial features discreet apertures indicating the day of the week and month at 12 o’clock, a calendar with a serpentine hand and a moon-phase display with a mischievous face positioned at 6 o’clock.
This timepiece is powered by the 6654 self-winding movement equipped with a safety system protecting it against any improper use of the functions. The watch owner is thus able to set the complete calendar at any time without any risk to the movement, unlike conventional calendar watches.
Visible through a sapphire crystal case-back, the movement feature carefully executed decorations, such as the Côtes de Genève motif adorning the bridges and the honeycomb pattern that can be admired on the red gold oscillating weights. These pure and elegant timepieces are teamed with a midnight-blue alligator strap in a shade as intense as that of their dial.
The Villeret Quantième Complet model is also equipped with patented under-lug correctors, enabling all the information to be adjusted at the press of a finger and thereby eliminating the need for a pusher tool. This is a standard feature in Blancpain’s complete calendar watches, and is a nice innovation with practical advantages.
The elegant Villeret Ultraplate (click on link to see our review on the original) is also an extension of the existing line with the blue dial and red gold case. The hour and minute display is complemented by a large central seconds hand and a date window at 3 o’clock, sized to ensure optimal visual balance and readability.
This timepiece is driven by the self-winding movement 1151, which ensures a four-day power reserve thanks to the use of two series-coupled barrels and high-performance springs. From the case back, the movement looks like the one in the Villeret Quantième Complet, and finished in the same manner.
These new models pair differ from the existing collection with only the midnight-blue dial, and the 40 mm red gold case. A symbol of nobility and refinement, blue exalts its depth and shimmer thanks to a sunburst dial finish.
The blue face of this Villeret duo is embellished by applied hour-markers with Roman numerals crafted in red gold and slender matching hands. The hour and minute hands are shaped like cut-out sage leaves, while the seconds hands bear the initials of the House’s founder, Jehan-Jacques Blancpain.
