A Lesson in Luxury Watch Linguistics

Posted on March 21, 2013 by eRelyx

Foreign languages are not my thing. I majored in English for a reason. I, like many Americans, am not good at mimicking the elegant fluidity the romance languages possess. But like any good actress (or, as in my case, general poseur) will tell you, its all about practice, practice, practice.

Luckily, for all of you out there who also count yourselves among the phonetically challenged, we have found a solution! Check out this neat little break-down of the most troublesome high-end jewelry/watch designer names, written up by the folks over at TheVivant.com. Commit these to memory and you’ll be speaking “fancy luxury brand expert” in no time!

Audemars Piguet: OH-duh-MAHR PEA-GAY
We’re in awe of the beautiful detailing and intricacy of the watches from this Swiss brand that boasts celebrity fans like Justin Timberlake and Usher.

Bulgari: BULL-ga-ree
There is nothing vulgar about the accessories from this Italian jewelry brand that was founded in 1884.

Hublot: OO-blow
This Swiss watch brand is behind the most expensive watch in the world, worth $5 million.

Jaeger LeCoultre: Yay-GER leh-KOOLT
Jagermeister is German, but this watch manufacturer is Swiss. Nonetheless, we’re practically a “Koolt” as we worship this luxury brand’s classic and elegant designs.

Patek Philippe: pah-TEK fil-EEP
Pronounce the second word the same way you would say the well known Chinese restaurant chain by the same name. Luckily there is nothing greasy about this designer’s watches.

Piaget: pee-ah-ZHAY
If you say Piaget too quickly it sounds like PJs. Seems proper considering the jewelry and watches from this designer are so fabulous they would dress up just about anything.

Tag Heuer: TAHG HOI-ur
We wonder how long it took the face of this brand’s campaign, Leonardo DiCaprio, to pronounce this name properly?

Ulysse Nardin: you-LEESE nahr-DAN
Here’s a shout out to all Greek mythology gurus or Brad Pitt fans—Ulysse was the Greek king that took over Troy. They were known for their many ships, which seems fitting as this watch brand stamps an anchor on all their watches.

Van Cleef & Arpels: Van Cleef and ahr-PELL
Cleef rhymes with leaf and this jewelry designer takes a lot of its inspiration from nature.

Vacheron Constantin: VASH-er-ahn kon-stan-TAN
Just as Constantine was a great Roman emperor, this brand is a longtime (since 1755) king of exceptional Swiss watches.

-c/o TheVivant.com

Why “Time is Money” Rings True for Luxury Watches

Posted on January 24, 2013 by eRelyx

Today we gleaned some interesting new insights into the watchmaking business thanks to this Forbes.com article we happened to stumble upon. The guru of watches / author of (one of our top watch blogs) A Blog to Watch, Ariel Adams, interviews one of the most prestigious luxury horology brands in the world, A. Lange & Sohne, about the watchmaking process, and the time it takes a team of skilled craftsmen to meticulously build a single timepiece.

How long would YOU guess it takes to build one single watch for A. Lange & Sohne?

How long it takes to build a watch for A Lange & Sohne

The Answer: Between 3 to 18 months depending on the complication of the movement and design.

The movement for an A Lange & Sohne Watch

That’s a LONG time to spend PER watch. Which got us to thinking about the similarities between watchmaking and the world of fine art. The extensive amount of time, painstaking effort, as well as skill and attention to detail required to craft (by hand!) a single luxury watch, or piece of art, is certainly reflected in the price. Then take into consideration what it would cost you for, say, a Pablo Picasso drawing- and suddenly it is not all that surprising to see an A. Lange & Sohne watch that’s priced at $75,000 or more.

At the end of the day, this article is definitely worth the read (it obviously got us thinking!) so to learn more- hop on over to Forbes.com and check out the full thing here!

What is your bidding strategy on eBay?

Posted on January 8, 2013 by eRelyx

We know that many of you would never consider buying a luxury watch on eBay. We get it. There are countless horror stories. Having said that, the vast majority of eBay sellers are legit and offer great products and services. For those of you who do (or would) buy luxury watches on eBay, we’d love to hear your bidding strategy. Please answer our survey question below.

Many of the luxury watches for sale through eBay are Buy-it-Now/Best Offer listings. What is your initial bidding strategy for those listings? (Choose the one option that best describes your strategy)

Real. Resolutions.

Posted on December 28, 2012 by eRelyx

We’re celebrating the New Year by offering YOU an extra $200 OFF four of our FAVORITE watches! Start 2013 off right with a little something special- for yourself or someone special:

{1} Tag Heuer Grand Carrera Chronograph

{2} Cartier Tank Francaise

{3} Breitling Bentley Motors Chronograph

{4} Tag Heuer Formula 1 Diamonds

Use code: NY2013 at checkout |

Offer expires January 3rd at 11:59pm ET

Another reason to be careful when buying a luxury watch on eBay

Posted on December 3, 2012 by eRelyx

We’ve all heard the eBay horror stories when it comes to buying luxury watches. Buyers end up with a fake watch. Buyers end up with nothing. Those are extreme cases – hopefully those horror stories are few and far between. A much more prevalent problem on eBay is the exaggeration of a watch’s condition.

Take, for example, this recent listing. This Cartier Roadster is described as “Perfect Condition…Flawless!” Is it just us, or is the back of that watch scratched up and pitted? Maybe the watch is in excellent condition. But perfect?!?!

Fortunately there are pictures. The savvy buyer will see the pictures and take everything the seller claims with a grain of salt!

Swatches & Watches – Alton Lane & eRelyx

Posted on November 14, 2012 by eRelyx

Alton Lane and eRelyx hosted an exclusive Swatches & Watches event on Tuesday, November 13th at Alton Lane’s Boston showroom. Guests were treated to whiskey, wine, and hors d’hoeurves while browsing amazing custom clothing samples and a selection of pre-owned luxury watches from Rolex, Omega, Breitling, Tag Heuer, and others.

Alton Lane is one the fastest growing men’s bespoke clothiers in the US. Here’s the cool part – the company uses 3D imaging technology to take accurate measurements. And it doesn’t hurt that they offer amazing customer service and free drinks in a cool, laid back environment.
Click here for more information about Alton Lane.

eRelyx is the online marketplace for authentic pre-owned luxury watches. Why buy new when you can saves thousands on like new pre-owned luxury watches?
Click here to see pre-owned luxury watches at eRelyx.
Click here to shop eRelyx accessories.

Click here to see pre-owned luxury watches at eRelyx.
Click here to shop eRelyx accessories.

Celebrity Watches at the “Stand Up To Cancer” Fundraiser

Posted on September 10, 2012 by eRelyx

The annual Stand Up to Cancer Hollywood fundraiser / telethon took place over the weekend. Per usual, the event showed an outpouring of charitable support from celebrity A-listers like Taylor Swift, the cast of ABC’s Modern Family, Justin Timberlake, Gwyneth Paltrow, Olympians Missy Franklin and Gabby Douglas. This year’s event raised over $81 million to “bring groundbreaking treatments to patients as quickly as possible, including children battling cancer.”

Aside from just benefitting a wonderful cause, the SU2C benefit turned out to also be a great watch-spotting event for us. It seems that a hot watch was the accessory of choice at the Friday night telethon- from Sofia and Jordana wearing Rolex, to Gwyneth in Baume et Mercier- check out all of our celebrity sightings below:

What Watch is Terry Crews Wearing?

Posted on June 21, 2012 by eRelyx

We spotted actor (and watch-buff) Terry Crews at the premiere of HBO’s new series “The Newsroom” wearing a hot a watch we didn’t recognize. We’ve spotted the action star in an array of luxury timepieces (see photos below), most notably his black Bell & Ross, but this latest stainless & diamond piece seems to be a recent addition to the collection.

Can any of you ID Terry Crews’ watch here?

Inspired By: First Day of Summer

Posted on June 20, 2012 by eRelyx

Today is the first day of summer. Despite the lack of winter we had here in Boston (uhh, 80 degrees in March?), summer is certainly making her presence known with some sticky 97 degree heat. In honor of this seasonal “first”, we’re debuting our own “first” posting in a new series of “inspired” blog posts.

“Inspired By” is an outlet for carefully curated looks & product collections inspired by the world around us- be it a season or color, a book or a blogger, the hottest trend in fashion or the latest watch(shocker) we’re coveting. So, today we’re kicking it off with a sunny fashion look inspired by… (what else?!) Sweet summertime!

Chopard Mille Miglia Gran Turismo XL Power Reserve

Posted on May 25, 2012 by eRelyx

Wow. We just received this watch from a client. It will go up for sale shortly. In the meantime, enjoy the pictures of this beautiful watch.

Chopard Mille Miglia Gran Turismo XL Power Reserve. Retail price: $7,090. Contact us for more details.

Stainless steel case with a rubber strap. Fixed stainless steel bezel. Arabic numeral at the 12 o’clock position. Luminescent hands and markers. Date displays at the 3 o’clock position. Power reserve sub-dial at the 6 o’clock position. Automatic movement. Scratch resistant sapphire crystal. Protected crown. Case diameter: 44 mm. Deployment clasp. Water resistant at 100 meters / 330 feet. Watch is in excellent condition with box and papers.