All about trends, fashion and luxury in South East Asia!
Mr Sarpaneva dropped by Kuala Lumpur to host a dinner for the lucky enthusiasts who ordered watches from him and also to share with us the story behind the Sarpaneva watches. The dinner was held at one of our favourite Japanese restaurants in KL, Hajime.
Stepan Sarpaneva.
Haute5 had the pleasure of viewing and photographing some of Omega’s latest creations from the 2008 collection (some prototypes and some production models) last week at the Omega Kuala Lumpur boutique. Our sincere thanks to the Omega team for letting us view them.
The Speedmaster 5 counter chronograph 7 day totalizer (from the Timeless collection)
Haute5 stumbled upon the IWC Pilot Watch UTC Edition Antoine de Saint Exupery in Rose Gold (500 pieces LE) at the Kuala Lumpur Pavilion IWC boutique. It’s a stunning example of IWC’s fit and finish!
A few weeks back, we had the pleasure of attending a watch showcase by Hermès at their Kuala Lumpur Pavilion Boutique. We found the watches to be very interesting (especially considering how Hermès is so well known with their leather products) so we managed to take some shots and do some research on them to share with you.
One of the stars of the evening was the Cape Cod Grand Hours limited edition. The Cape Cod Grand Hours comes in two limited editions of 171 in rose gold and 171 in white gold; the number corresponds to the number of years since the founding of Hermès in 1837.
The Grand Hours module is based on a system that serve to speed up or slow down the movement of the hour hand, while the minutes and seconds move at the regular pace. Inside is a Vaucher Manufacture Fleurier movement calibre H1928.
Haute5 had the pleasure of visiting the Omega Olympics Exhibition that was on during the past weekend at Kuala Lumpur City Center. It was held in conjunction with the upcoming Beijing Olympics 2008 and featured the new Olympics specialties from Omega.
Stepan Sarpaneva is a Finnish watchmaker that created waves during the watch fair at Basel in 2008. Many customers and retailers were enamoured of his cool, biker inspired designs reflective of Finnish culture and weather. You can read more about the watchmaker at his website.
An excerpt from his website explains a lot about his roots and heritage in Finnish design - “Stepan Sarpaneva was born in 1970 and belongs to a Finnish family with a long heritage of craftmanship. Son of jewellery designer Pentti Sarpaneva, Stepan was brought up to be a talented designer and craftsman. Sarpaneva first graduated from the Watchmaking School of Finland and then moved to Switzerland to further his studies at WOSTEP. In 1994, he began work for several prestigious watchmakers including Piaget, Parmigiani, Vianney Halter and Christophe Claret. During those ten years in Switzerland, Sarpaneva specialised in the crafting of complicated timepieces. Perfectionism, enthusiasm and an infinite passion for watchmaking inspired Sarpaneva to create watches of his own. In 2003 he founded his own company in Helsinki, Finland where he individually handcrafts each watch at the workshop. High quality combined with unique design ensures that every Sarpaneva watch will last a lifetime.”
Haute5 was privy to a private viewing of one of his works’ first appearances in Malaysia - the Korona K2. The version we saw was a prototype but already reflective of the stunning workmanship and detail found on the K2. We also suggest that our readers visit his website and view the K1 and, our personal favourite, the K3. In any case, we managed to obtain permission from photographer, Lanatir, to allow us to premier his photos of the Korona K2 prototype on our website. Lanatir states that the K2 is a rare watch that can be further appreciated under magnification and that he has rarely taken so many photos of one particular watch in one session. We are excited in looking forward to the production run where it should be even better finished (from this already stunning prototype).
The latest pieces from the sensational BR01 and BR03 Instrument series of Bell & Ross (announced in Feb 2008) are now available in limited quantities at the local retailers (Sincere Watches in Malaysia). Currently the Instrument series are seriously HOT in demand across the world and are produced only in small quantities. Due to this popularity of the BR01 and BR03 watches, it’s best that you place your bookings NOW! Anyway, here are some details of the watches that are just released.
Welcome to our new website where we will strive to bring you regional news on the latest happenings, trends and launches in the fashion and luxury industry. Feel free to visit our Haute5 Forum to share discussions and views and also give us feedback on how we can improve our site.
