Launched just a year ago, the Orient Stretto is getting additional dials for 2026, five each for the Stretto Date and the Stretto Day & Night models.
The name “Stretto” means a quickening of tempo in Italian. The new dial colors and patterns perfectly embody the term “Stretto”.
Orient Stretto
The Orient Stretto date now comes in five new vivid shades of green, blue, pink, orange, and a limited version (2,300 pieces) of a special dial combining an embossed stripe pattern with vertical blue gradation. These new color ways are inspired by the theme of pop and metallic.
The Orient Stretto Date is powered by an automatic in-house movement with over 40 hours of power reserve and an accuracy rating of +25 seconds – -15 seconds per day.
Orient Stretto Day & Night
As to the Orient Stretto Day & Night, five new models were launched: two models featuring stainless steel cases with gold or rose gold-colored plating and white or brown dials, two models with stainless steel cases with green or navy dials, and a 2026 Spring-Summer model which features all four colors of the Orient Stretto Date’s Spring-Summer model dials.
The Orient Stretto Day & Night is powered by an in-house automatic movement with a power reserve of over 40 hours and accuracy rating of +25 seconds – -15 seconds per day.
This article was written in partnership with Orient.
Orient is available in the Philippines through select boutiques and stores.
Vacheron Constantin is the oldest continuously running watch manufacturer in the world. Founded in 1755, Vacheron Constantin celebrated its 270th year in the industry. The Maison hosted VIP clients in Manila which started with the viewing of the beautiful Philippine sunset by Manila Bay.
Sunset at Manila BayAtty. Sieg Suarez and Valentin TremaudOverseas Perpetual CalendarAtty. Sieg Suarez, Emerson Yao, Kendrick Siy, Ralph Go
Principals from both Vacheron Constantin and Lucerne then formally opened the evening with a toast to Vacheron Constantin’s 270th year. Food and drinks were served after together with the viewing of the 2025 novelties of Vacheron Constantin.
Vacheron Constantin is available through its boutique in Greenbelt 5, Makati City.
Orient has hit the ground running this 2026 as it expands its popular Bambino line. For the first time, Orient has released five new Bambino 38 models without a date display. This watch creates an even cleaner dial than what the Bambino is already known for. Also, Orient has released six new fresh dial designs for its 40.5mm Bambino with date.
The Orient Bambino has been universally regarded as a watch which punches way above its weight class and is generally respected throughout the watch community.
Orient Bambino 38
The new Orient Bambino 38 model takes the elegance of the Bambino higher up a notch as it focuses on the core of watches which is timekeeping. The three-hand dial without a date display ensures that the wearer of the watch focuses purely on timekeeping. All five dials of the Bambino 38 give off a classic look which provides versatility to the wearer.
Taking cue from the classic Bambino design, the new model features an alternating Roman numeral markers and bar indices. Available dial colors are the white, ivory, green, brown, and a gray version, limited to 3,300 pieces.
The Orient Bambino 38 emphasizes a very minimalist design and is as pure as a watch can get.
Orient Bambino
The Orient Bambino with a 40.5mm case size and date display is now presented with dials in white, ivory, green, light blue, and purple. The hour markers for the new versions of the Orient Bambino with date are the simple bar indices.
The new dials of the Orient Bambino adapt to more contemporary design hues while maintaining the classic design which it is known for.
Common to both models are the exhibition caseback and the easy exchange leather strap which allows for swapping of straps without need of tools.
Both models also feature in-house automatic movements with a 40-hour power reserve and an accuracy ranging from +25 seconds to -15 seconds per day.
All of the Bambino models are in stainless steel, except for one version with date which is gold-plated.
The new Bambino models are a welcome addition to Orient’s current lineup.
This article was written in partnership with Orient.
Orient is available in the Philippines through select boutiques and stores.
IWC has announced the release of a limited run of 1,500 pieces of the Portugieser Chronograph Ceratanium®. It is the first time that the Portugieser line has seen an all-black execution of its watch.
Ceratanium® (ceramized titanium) is as tough and almost as light as titanium but at the same time similarly hard and scratch-resistant as ceramic. Ceratanium® is based on a special titanium alloy that is made specifically for IWC.
Aside from the all black execution, the watch retains all of the familiar features of the Portugieser Chronograph. This 41mm watch is powered by the automatic IWC Calibre 69335 which has a 46 hour power reserve.
Retail price for the piece is at P900,000.00.
IWC is available in the Philippines at its boutique in Greenbelt 5, Makati City. Additionally, IWC is also available in some shop-in-shop locations of Lucerne such as in Shangri-La and Solaire.
Renowned Japanese watch manufacturer Orient Star has released a 75th anniversary M34 F8 Skeleton Hand Winding model, limited to 430 pieces, as part of its Contemporary Collection M34. Similar to the M34 F8 Date with Meteorite dial, the design of the dial of this piece is inspired by the Perseid meteor shower.
The ring-shaped openwork dial with Roman numerals and indices features a black and grey gradation with matte finish. The middle case and the bracelet are made from stainless steel and finished with black plating. These black elements express the darkness of outer space. The combination of stainless steel together with the dark elements provide a beautiful contrast for the watch.
Other notable details on this watch are the comet-shaped balance bridge with two characteristic tails, silicon escape wheel reminiscent of the Milky Way galaxy’s spiral, and movement with meteorite-like finish. One has to see this watch in person to appreciate it fully.
Powering this piece is the in-house manual-winding calibre F8B65 which has a power reserve of around 70 hours and guarantees an accuracy of around +15 to -5 seconds per day.
This watch comes with a black cordovan leather strap with a deployment buckle.
Each Orient Star piece is hand-assembled by craftsmen and is subjected to the highest quality standards of Japanese craftsmanship.
As Orient Star celebrates its 75th anniversary this 2026, it emphasizes the Joy of Discovery wherein its pieces are specifically designed for those who find wonder in the details and seek out new experiences and adventures.
This article was written in partnership with Orient Star.
Orient Star is available in the Philippines at G/F Mitsukoshi Mall, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig City.
During the final quarter of 2025, Panerai held a Watchmaking Masterclass in Manila wherein VIP clients and select media members were invited to disassemble and reassemble a Panerai movement. Watch Manila’s Atty. Sieg Suarez was invited to take part in this event. Carlos Da Costa Saraiva, Customer Service Director of Panerai, led the Masterclass.
Panerai Cal. P.3000Watch Manila’s Atty. Sieg Suarez disassembling the movement
The guests each had a Caliber P.3000 to dismantle and reassemble. At the end of the session, the guests understood better the amount of effort it takes in assembling a Panerai movement. More importantly, the guests enjoyed the experience of becoming “watchmakers for a day”.
Lesley Co, Managing Director for Panerai for Southeast Asia and Oceania, presented the Maison’s novelties for 2025. Panerai presented the low-key but highly complicated Luminor Perpetual Calendar GMT Platinumtech (PAM 01575). This watch features a GMT, a perpetual calendar (which can be set only via the crown without need for other pushers), and a power reserve indicator among others. The casebook has indicators for the month, year, and which sequence it is for the leap year. The Submersible Quaranta Quattro Marina Militare (PAM 1697 and 1698) featuring a steel case and a Carbotech case, respectively, were also standouts.
Jo Dy Juanco (Lucerne), Jene Tan (Panerai), Atty. Sieg Suarez (Watch Manila), Emerson Yao (MD Lucerne)Atty. Sieg Suarez (Watch Manila) and Lesley Co (MD Panerai SEA and Oceania)
Panerai is available in the Philippines through its boutiques located at Greenbelt 5, Makati City and The Watch House, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig.
Square watches have always been somewhat cool, but they never really sold that well. However, in the past few years, there has been a visible renaissance of square and rectangular watches, wherein these have landed on more wrists than at any other point in recent history. The release of the Patek Philippe Cubitus late last year officially brought square watches into the limelight.
The idea of square watches is not new. In fact, one of the earliest pilot’s wristwatches happens to be square, the Cartier Santos. In 1904, Alberto Santos-Dumont, an aviator, was presented with a wristwatch by Louis Cartier so that Alberto would not need to pull out his pocket watch whenever he needed to check the time while flying. Little did they know, the Cartier Santos would become one of the most important watches in history.
Cartier Santos de Cartier Dual Time. Courtesy of Cartier.
Aside from the Cartier Santos, Tag Heuer had also created its own iconic square watch in 1969 through the Monaco, an ode to the famous Grand Prix. The Monaco was popularised by Steve McQueen when he chose to wear the watch in the 1971 film, Le Mans. From then on, the Monaco has been one of the most recognisable racing-inspired watches.
Other leading Swiss manufacturers decided to take a crack at designing square watches to little or no avail. Jaeger-LeCoultre, one of the most respected watch manufacturers, even took its already iconic Reverso model and produced square versions of it, the Reverso Squadra. The watch only enjoyed a short and relative success before it was eventually discontinued after around a decade of production.
From the millennium up to the early 2020s, the world witnessed the incredible rise of steel sports watches. These watches were mostly round or angular at best. The Patek Philippe Nautilus Ref. 5711/1A, one of the most highly-coveted watches of that time period and up to this day, has a case shape in between what you would call round and square. By 2021, the watch was discontinued, leaving the world with mostly rounded watches once again. It was somewhere at this point when square watches started to pick up due to a confluence of circumstances.
Vintage-inspired
One of the open secrets of the world of fashion and style is that it is cyclical. Old trends will fade but can come back in some way, shape or form in the future. The watch industry is not exempt from this phenomenon. As such, watches that became symbols in their days like the Cartier Santos, the Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso and the Tag Heuer Monaco started to creep their way back into favour with the watch community towards the end of the 2010s.
In 2019, Cartier released the Santos-Dumont line that reintroduced the design of its first pilot’s watch dating back to 1904. Not long after, Hublot introduced the Square Bang Unico in 2022, a square version of their popular Big Bang model line. Finally in 2024, Patek Philippe, after much anticipation, released the polarising Cubitus line. Upon examination of these new releases, clearly, these are modern watches that honour design cues from the past.
Anti-sports watch hype
At the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic, all of the hype was with stainless-steel sports watches. During that period, everyone seemed to be wearing or yearning for a stainless-steel sports watch. Eventually, people got tired of hearing about and participating in this hype and started to explore the beauty of other watches. With this shift, the square watch design was one of those that benefitted the most when people started to go beyond the stainless-steel sports watch hype.
Readily available
In relation to the previous point, one of the reasons why the square watches emerged in recent years is because of their relative availability. Except for the Patek Philippe Cubitus, square watches are usually not subjected to long waitlists and purchase history for you to buy or try one on at the boutique or authorised dealer. This availability is very much a stark contrast to stainless-steel sports watches, wherein up to today, there is still a considerable waitlist for you to be allocated one.
Conversation starter
In addition to what was previously mentioned, square watches have always possessed this cool design code that makes them stand out. If you want to blend in with the crowd, a square watch is definitely out of the question. Whenever you wear a square watch, you can easily catch the eyes of other watch enthusiasts at the opposite end of the room, which can then lead to interactions and meaningful conversations. Ultimately, these square watches or those that have unconventional designs may indirectly lead to networking with different people.
This is a repost of an article written by Watch Manila Founder Atty. Sieg Suarez for L’Officiel. You may access the L’Officiel post here.
Orient Star recently released two new M34 F7 Semi Skeleton watches, one in navy blue dial and one in white dial. The navy blue dial is inspired by the views of the beautiful night sky during the Perseid meteor shower. On the other hand, the white dial provides versatility to the wearer as the watch is suitable for a variety of activities from sports to a formal event.
The semi skeleton watch allows the wearer to catch a glimpse of the automatic in-house movement by simply looking at the dial. Complementing the semi skeleton view are the power reserve indicator near the 12 o’clock hour marker and the small seconds indicator near the 6 o’clock hour marker. Upon turning the watch around, the beautifully finished and designed movement becomes fully visible due to the transparent caseback. The watch features a 50 hour power reserve.
The watch is made from stainless steel and has a 40mm case size.
Orient Star was created in 1951 and is the most distinguished and exquisite timepiece collection from Seiko Epson. The brand will celebrate its 75th anniversary in 2026.
This article was written in partnership with Orient Star.
Orient Star is available in the Philippines at G/F Mitsukoshi Mall, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig City.
Orient Star has introduced new M45 F7 Mechanical Moon Phase watches. The popular white dial and navy blue dial remain in the regular collection while a limited edition of 190 pieces in light blue dial has been added.
The most prominent update to these new models is the expression of the moon phase. The moon’s backdrop has been changed to a vibrant, deep-blue colored night sky, and the stars appear clearer. This subtle change improves the whole dynamics of the dial while retaining the classic look which everyone is already familiar with. The dial still features Roman numeral hour markers, the power reserve indicator, date indicator, and the moon phase indicator. On the dial, an OS logo is also visible on certain angles of the watch.
The watch has a case size of 41mm in stainless steel and is powered by the automatic in-house calibre F7M42 which has a power reserve of 50 hours. The movement is visible via a see-through caseback.
As an added bonus, the watches come with an additional leather strap.
Orient Star was created in 1951 and is the most distinguished and exquisite timepiece collection from Seiko Epson. The brand will celebrate its 75th anniversary in 2026.
This article was written in partnership with Orient Star.
Orient Star is available in the Philippines at G/F Mitsukoshi Mall, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig City.
Orient Star has introduced a new M45 F8 Mechanical Moon Phase Hand Winding model from their Classic Collection with two dial configurations.
The first one features a clean white dial and will be a mainstay in the regular catalogue.
The second watch features a dial with a stamped-pattern which expresses the countless stars of the M45 Pleiades star cluster and a monotone gradation which transitions from grey in the center to black on the outer edge. An applied thick and clear coating portrays the depths of the universe stretching to eternity. The second dial configuration will be limited to only 140 pieces and will feature serial number engraving.
Both watches are housed in a 39.5mm stainless steel case and are powered by the manual winding FA8A62 calibre which has a 70-hour power reserve.
The dials of both watches neatly integrates the power reserve indicator at the top portion and the moon phase on the bottom part. The white dial version features blue hour and minute hands as well as for the power reserve indicator. For the limited edition grey dial, the hands are all silvery-grey. The moon phase disc on the dials of both watches has a white mother-of-pearl moon.
Visible on the open caseback is the Côtes de Genève pattern which evokes star trails. Also noticeable from the caseback is the bridge with a cut-out showing a part of the blue escape wheel.
Orient Star was created in 1951 and is the most distinguished and exquisite timepiece collection from Seiko Epson. The brand will celebrate its 75th anniversary in 2026.
This article was written in partnership with Orient Star.
Orient Star is available in the Philippines at G/F Mitsukoshi Mall, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig City.
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