Van Cleef & Arpels Cadrans Extraordinaires Animal Watches For 2011

I am usually excited to see what pretty new dial creations Van Cleef & Arpels has in store for me when I visit with them. They have an ongoing collection they call the "Cadrans Extraordinaires" which refer to the dials being... extraordinary. Last year a major theme of the dials was Butterflies (seen here). This year, for the lady's models, animals are still in. The focus is on the Arctic and the Africa. The dials are really incredible works of art. Each represents hand-engraved 18k white gold figurines and scenery skillfully done using precious materials and complex processes. The watches are 38mm wide in 18k white gold cases with diamond decoration throughout.

This will be a visual journey through the collection. Don't forget that the dials take a lot of time to complete. Some of the animal characters look better than others, but the backgrounds are universally stunning. There is an amazing amount of color and depth to them, especially because they rely on a lot of enameling and mother-of-pearl. It is hard not to be impressed when seeing them.