Victoria

What's not to love? By the way, most people don't know this cheapo version isn't supposed to be A21j, that it should have ceramic, and not ceramic paint, and that finally, that YG makes it a super fantasy, but not even my Panerai watches have garnered as many double-takes as this one watch. If you live in a place where Hublot is huge, and sadly, you do Ryan, then by all means save. But though I cannot recommend to you the collector I got this from, I do know Narikaa just got me the HBB Aspen, and I am eagerly awaiting its arrival. Go with Narikaa...if you can spare the money, it will whet your appetite until you can save the $800 for the other ones. @Plaifender below: Yes, that is true. I'm sure Asturias, parts of Castilla La Mancha, and Galicia are not the most elegant-crazed places, or even some areas of Madrid, but if you've ever been to Ibiza recently, it's wall-to-wall HBBs, as per my mother. YG = yellow gold.

Ahh, thanks a lot Docblackrock! There is such a thing as being Politically Incorrect as I adore to be, enfant terrible that I am, and being absolutely ghastly, manners-wise. Thanks for taking it on the chin, but immediately making your opinion known it wasn't appreciated, without losing your finesse. As for that other stuff...Liverpool...world city of culture...Scousers can fool UNESCO inspectors all they want, but you can't fool me. *g* The only city you mentioned which is truly tasteful is Edinburgh. And that's because of their long association with all things French, I shouldn't wonder. But of course, I meant the north of England.

Thanks for your reply, Archibald. It's inevitable that the status consciousness of DC be tied to power -- in most of the cities I have lived in, the seat of government was also the same as the seat of money, and pedigree, such as London, Paris, New York, so the stratification was less noticeable merely due to power. However, it's sad to hear that you have what is very common in my old homeland: a 'put them in their place' attitude about hierarchy. I'm torn between thinking that being presumptuous is indeed not a very good attribute (the British in me), but thinking that such things are so much Old World piffle, which can be constrictive and unhealthy to that degree (the newly-minted American in me). One gets the sense, however, that Rolexes are here to stay in the world, as the premier status symbol amongst those who wish to impress, versus those who are impressive in and of themselves. By the way, last time I was in DC, I saw Senator Kerry lunching not 10 feet away from me, wearing a gorgeous gold watch. Not sure, but I think it was a Corum...

Okay, so the possibility exists, as in the case of the young boy I read in one of these rep watch forums, who went on a school trip to Italy, and had his rep watch confiscated, and he was fined. Sounds like an urban legend to me, but equally, he could well have been made an example of, seeing how as a foreigner and a minor, you have a less advantageous position. Of course. But I was thinking of the famous "fingerpointers"/informants who tell the Carabinieri or others of such things. I think I've been reading too much John Le Carr

Stunning, stunning...love the strap, love the dial. Perfect, Rolli! How long did it take you to finalise all these upgrades??

Fresh Member of Bel Air! I BELIEVE, Stephane, that s/he wants some kind of Anti-Reflective coating "mix", should that make sense? Did you once post anything along those lines? Either way, s/he is interested in knowing if you can mod his Rolexes with this mixture.

...scurries away to request DJ Admin to play Tina Turner's "Simply the Best".

Gracias, tio! Y pelirojo como todos los escoces, por cierto! Es que mi lengua anterior fue portugues, y por ahi anda la cosa!

I'm back! Quando quieras, si quieres todavia, Esteban!

NOOOOOOOO. APOLOGIES, HUMBLE, MANIFOLD AND ABSOLUTELY ABJECT. Drat. Never talk about girlfriends and wives, Vic, never never. I already did so with Two Tone, and I instantly regretted my cheekiness. I'm so sorry lads! But give me a break with the North, Docblackrock. I'd like to see you point out one place in all of the North which has more taste than even boring, safe as houses Wantage. Newcastle? With women in tank top sequins and overripe makeup gone 5 PM? Liverpool with its Nike-stripe shell suited denizens?? BORO??? CARLISLE???? HULL?!?! DARWEN??!?!? LOL! Oh, right. Absolutely. York. Well, excuuuuuuuse me. Even a blind hen can pick out a grain of corn once in a while.

THANK YOU, LAZ! When I'm not busy translating blasphemous thoughts about the Pope into Italian, I am to be found scouring the internet for photos for the GPSC series. Look above. Just in case you missed it, I updated the Piazza della Repubblica link so you can see, this strap is truly captured by its cobbled stones. Here it is, in technicolour. I ain't lie!

*cringe* Babelfish *cringe* I've seen small international conflicts escalate into Civil War due to its translation vagaries. Quick, Lazarini! Tell me what I wrote in English and translated into your native Italian via Babelfish: "Vorrei fregare la parte posteriore del papa e presentargli un buon esposto con." @Stephane: Well, not sure if you're still around, but my darling, I'm off. ...maybe later, or perhaps one of our legitimate Spaniards and South Americans can help you out, not the Mouth of the South (Kensington).

I'm fluent in Spanish, Stephane. Send me the PM if you want, but aren't you supposed to be on holiday at your sister's villa??

Last week saw the debut of my new Panerai strap series, The Great Panerai Strap Caper Part 1, and I cannot thank you enough for the kind words, and warm reception it garnered. And not only here, but since I am posting the series exclusively on Repgeeks as well, it was my deep joy to have it nominated and to co-win for the Repgeeks Post of the Week (Aug. 19-26, 2007)!! (The inestimable By-Tor won the other palme, and here I must again say, he is the gold standard by which all rep watch reviews must be judged. To be even mentioned in his company is an incredible honour. Congratulations again, By-Tor!) I promised two reviews for this week. One, Bob's Blue Shark. The other, the Toscana Vacchetta Nero. Just as a lady is allowed to be late, she is also entitled to change her mind on occasion. So today I will save the Bob blue sharky for another day, and review the Officine Firenze Mario Paci Medici strap instead. Clearly the dog days of summer are almost over, and we perhaps should be thinking of autumnal, transitional colours to see you through until next year. The unusual colour of the Medici fits slightly better with our mood, and might be of more interest to you than the more playful light blue. But don't worry. There isn't a shark that can be ignored for long, yet. He'll be back! So without further ado, I give you the Great Panerai Strap Caper, Part 2. STRAP NUMBER 1 - "Officine Firenze by Mario Paci "Medici"...Vecchia Sella in Mocha with sewn in OFMP logo buckle" LEATHER MAKERS: Cuoierie Meccaniche Brelli di Ciampi MERCHANTS: Timeconnection.biz COST: U$179.00 BANG FOR BUCK VALUE: Very Good RESALE VALUE: $70-$110 at 85-95% condition SALE AVAILABILITY: Occasionally offered in "Daily Specials" at around the U$77.77-U$109.00 range. Infrequently found on accessory sections in forums. DESCRIPTION: If you've ever been to Florence, the capital city of the Tuscan region, you may never have forgotten the colour of the Arno River, as you gazed at it from the Ponte Vecchio. In Autumn, it takes on this amazing palette of greys, mixed with browns, which seem to follow your gaze all over Florence, turning dark villas and statues into light, and back again. Look! There it is again! Underfoot in the Piazza della Repubblica. Well, this is PRECISELY the colour captured in the "old saddle" (vecchia sella) colour of this strap. How the Cuoierie did this, is beyond me, but it's got all the charm and slight pomposity of the Tuscans themselves. SIZE RANGE: 115/75 and 130/85 in 24/24 to 125/80 in 26/24 BUCKLE: Included. Sewn-in polished buckle with "OFMP" logo on watch side DRESS COLOURS: The perfect jeans strap. It seems to melt into beiges, and bring out the deeper colours, like reds, blacks, and blues very nicely. One of the very few straps that doesn't overwhelm your watch, and may not overwhelm you when you first see it, but compliments it and your wardrobe, from office to sport stadium PERFECTLY. BEST PANERAI WATCH MATCH: PAM 217, PAM 089, PAM 024 PHOTO COMPARISON #1 (CAMEL/TAN OVERCOAT) PHOTO COMPARISON #2 (BLACK SUIT) PHOTO COMPARISON #3 (GREY SUIT) STRAP NUMBER 2 - "Toscana Vacchetta in Black with sewn in Pre-V Buckle for Panerai Watches" LEATHER MAKERS: Cuoierie Meccaniche Brelli di Ciampi MERCHANTS: Timeconnection.biz COST: U$109.00 BANG FOR BUCK VALUE: Excellent RESALE VALUE: $30-70 at 85-95% condition SALE AVAILABILITY: Are you sitting down? At the time of posting, as part of the Monday Special, it is currently on sale for U$44.44. Might not last...note, this strap is sometimes part of specials in other forums, like RWI/Repgeeks. DESCRIPTION: Every man has to have a black strap, but some men have TOO many black straps. Once you have the black strap with white stitch, the black strap stitchless, and the black strap with perhaps a copper stitch if you feel especially dashing, then what? Well, the Toscana Vacchetta Nero is what. At night, it shimmers an appropriately dark black, but take it out in the sun, and you'll see it turn into a charcoal grey before your very eyes. Buy this, if you have a lot of black straps already, not as your first, though. SIZE RANGE: 115/75 to 130/85 in 24/24 to 125/80 in 26/26 BUCKLE: Included. Sewn-in brushed Pre-V with "Toscana" printed on the watch side DRESS COLOURS: This is the strap which makes medium (tanned/yellow) skin tones and hairy male arms look better, and incredibly does the same for the fair-haired amongst you. With this in mind, use it with khakis, greys, greens and blues, and you won't believe how well this goes with tweeds. Not recommended for browns, yellows but yes for tans. BEST PANERAI WATCH MATCH: PAM 092, PAM 222, PAM 000/005 PHOTO COMPARISON #1 (CAMEL/TAN OVERCOAT) PHOTO COMPARISON #2 (BLACK SUIT) PHOTO COMPARISON #3 (GREY SUIT) ...now I know what you're thinking. "Vic, this is never a black strap!". I thought the same, but trust me, it's dark enough to be called Nero at night. But just to assuage your fears, the Vacchetta coincidentally does come in Grigio (grey). Here it is, next to the black strap: Ahh, the eye doth play tricks on us. NEXT WEEK, PART THREE: - Strap Culture's Legend Historic Brown #2 - Mario Paci Special Edition "Allora a Ora" in Senape

Of course! What do you think the musty old scary wardrobe of my granddad's represents?? The comforting, but slightly constricting womb of one's mother, ever ready to suck you back in. Uh. Yeah. That's it. 2 more years, and that would've been true. Ah well. Since I am the RWG 'dame de pipi', you bet.

You are too modest, TeeJay. The shot of it peeping under your cuff was hot. I mean this in all seriousness, but aren't all deployants a tad fiddly to remove?? Anyone who has ever worn a Cartier watch knows exactly what I mean...but yeah, I agree. Immensely. THANK YOU SO MUCH. This seems the perfect wedding/white dinner jacket watch, which sometimes applies to that most unsociable of men! Wear it in good darling!! And wristies whenever you can. P.S.: Unusually for me, I have worn the PAM 112 even after my last clothes change today. I really really like it, and it sits very "soft" on the wrist, in case anyone out there is halfway interested in getting one, but hesitating because Panerais look big. Big as maybe, but the base ones are comparatively light!

Ahh, my perpetual Head Girl and hall monitor persona strikes back. One day, I'll tell you how I saved the parents' day show by playing the recorder when the girl assigned the role, fell grossly ill, but I too digress. Bonjour! (Variant to Hello, which I've overused today). You're telling the girl with the Mickey Mouse watch memory this?? I agree it seemed out of relation to you, but just mentioning it in general. I'm sure it does apply, unconsciously, to some. Sorry, Miss! Shall I take 100 lines? :notworthy: :clap: Thank you!! Keep on trucking, Ryyannon de Beauvoir!

First, allow me also to say what a great read your reply was. And what a varied experience in domiciles! I see you favour the Latin countries. Never lived (other than in the US), in a predominantly "Germanic" culture? That's exactly the word. Impolite. This reticence is a part of being a sophisticate, which demands indifference as a matter of politeness, but also to show the world you are unconcerned with being impressed. Only yokels go around staring at the world with their mouths half-open. Of course, the worst thing to be in France is someone from the "provinces", or a gosse de banlieu. I can only think of Bernard Tapie as one success story from the latter, and they held it against him every day of his life. (He had tacky taste in watches. Remember that blinged out MOP watch which looked plasticky and yet brusque, whatever marque it was? Surely not Vacheron...EDIT: On closer inspection, it seems like a T3 due to the CG...) Again, lack of eye contact is a sign of innate deference and therefore politeness, which in "Nordic" societies is often considered deviousness, as I'm sure I don't need to tell you. But just for the record. Good call on the pretentiousness. Yet, often I think people take the normal behaviour of a person of means as being pretentious, whereas they are simply being themselves. Granted, they could be pretentious, but often this is a reflection on the viewer's inferiority complexes. Ahh, good eye. I notice those things too. But I'm much more amused, and less put off by that, than perhaps you seem to be. I like finding out what people are like, when they think they are not being watched, but want to be. Right! Agreed 100%. Cutting la bella figura SOMETIMES includes a good watch, but more often it's about an overall projection of presence. Perugia is an interesting town, I've been told. They certainly had a crazy football manager, perhaps in keeping with its roguish spirit. Fascinating. Personally, I'll never forget the gold lam

Fascinating, SSsurfer! One thing, I never "remarked" a Citizen on an Italian! Could it be? The land of Panerai, choosing Citizens? One thing I'd like to ask a real Italian -- is it really really true one get be arrested or have one's rep watch smashed by Carabinieri on the stop, if caught wearing a rep watch? If they did that in the USA, half the population would shout, "Fascist!", and the other half would run to hide their reps. By the way, my Italian(-descended) boyfriend remarked, "What about the other 70%?". Jolly joker. P.S.: He bought me a rep Rolex one time, sold by the famous "Marrocchini" (Moroccans, although they are usually Sudanese, etc.) found hocking watches on the beaches of every Italian resort town. I think it lasted a year before dying a merciful death. If laws are so strict in Italian about conterfeits, how do they allow this?

A great name for a restaurant. It's near Little Italy, yes? Hmm, very unusual, but now that your peepers have been flapped open, let's see what you will find! I will reply to your first wonderful comment above in short order. I am being called away from the comp room.

We're a discrete race, Docblackrock. To stand out is to court trouble, and be thought a poseur -- possibly the worst sin an Englishman can make (other than being intelligent). Under those bespoke suits of unvarying shades of black and grey, there are Blancpains and Calatravas by the wristful. Women, not so much. They seem to buy one good Cartier watch which will see them through to their palatial retirement home in Eastbourne, and thereto, death. But yes, overall I agree. London, the Home Counties, the Cotswolds, Gloucestershire. Anything past Watford, and we're talking plastic. Wow, she sounds like a cow. No offence, I'm sure. LOL! Oh very bad, very bad. I love it! Thanks for your impressions! Shame other Brits have let the side down with theirs.

SEE! This is why I asked you over in that thread. There are alllll kinds of opinions in this world, based utterly on fact, and most of them conflict. Miami, Miami Beach, Palm Beach for me. Yes, but do they know what they are wearing? When I was buying the Merc, I checked in on the Collection in Coral Gables. Sleek salesmen there, unlike the majority of car salesmen in Miami, with their Brilliantine hair, rolled up TJ Maxx shirt-sleeves and weird Sylvester and Tweety 'power ties', looking like miniature Drew Rosenhauses. First chap -- Sub. Second chap and his buddy -- Yacht-master, and Pepsi. The manager -- solid gold Presidential. No variation. Yes, they have nice watches, but do they have the imagination? Only have seen one Franck Muller here in Miami, other than my mother's..., and that was on the wrist of ex-Mayor Alex Penelas. Pannies I wasn't "conscious" of before, but Rolexes, ohmywordyes. As I have mentioned ad nauseum, the Haitian fugee janitor in my condo has one. Bling-bling. On $14,000 a year. We all have dreams. Not at Mayor's I HOPE! Anyway, you're right, of course. My feeling is perhaps different based on knowledge of watches, but I'll give you this -- Miami/Miami Beach is a HIGHLY image self-aware area. But it's also a new area, with new money, and though not tacky-gaudy as in Nashville, subtlety is not big here, as in any beach town. People love wearing expensive jewelry here, as I alluded to in my intro. David Yurman sells out their Bal Harbour boutique at least twice a year. And watches are big yes, but in terms of "the latest" fad like every woman I know here loves Michele and Technomarine. Jacob & Co. watch-wearing men in Lincoln Road mall is nothing to turn around one's head for -- they exist by the dozens. But equally, it's Rolex, Rolex, Rolex. No wonder I lost my appetite for Rolex when I came here. Thanks for the reply, Jfreeman! See you around Brickell.

Corgi, before I launch into my reply to yours, let me just say how MUCH I appreciated your reply. It was beautifully written. Although when I read this bit out loud to my (Toronto-resident) boyfriend, he semi-scoffed and said about Ottawa, "Come on, it's an one-horse logging town". But I love hyperbole, so thanks for the chuckle about the mecca bit! Shiver. Sounds like Tampa. By the way, I am one of the few people left on earth who appreciates po' white trash. Yeah, I would never have a pickup truck with Confederate stickers on them and a gun-rack, with a big blond dog riding on the flatbed, invariably called "Boo". Nor would I necessarily hang out in McDonald's, though wrist-check photos say otherwise. But let's be honest -- the sophisticates who wear Pateks are not usually big on dying for their country, standing up for her, and loving her with the uncritical love of a mother. So for that, I love me some "go hockey team go!" folk and their Timexes. :lol: Funniest line ever on RWG? Minus anything by Jetmid. *drum roll, opening of curtains, trumpets blaring* Dude, they're French. And worse than that, they are plus Fran

(Thanks for reminding me about this thread by the PS, Plaifender) That's exactly how I would've replied if someone had posted what I did. Eerie, Ryyannon, eerie. LOL! Of course, all of us are replying given our physical and social details. As a woman, when a man sees me checking out his wrist (which is often, I love watch-gawking), I often receive grins from across the room since the wrist is located in the general area of the groin. And I have yet to get an angry reply from anyone when I said, "Nice watch". A few have stayed silent, which I have interpreted anywhere from "Don't go there, it's a rep", to, "Hey brat, are you saying my Fossil isn't as good as your Cartier?". But the overwhelming response to my checking people's watches out is positive. Sucks to be you, Ryyannon.