Bella Costa

Bertolucci Bella Costa Casual Chic Sport Two Time Zone Watch

Bertolucci is a brand that continually provides me with things to write about. Whether it is a cool new watch, or a watch with a dial that reminds me of so many things (read about that here). New this month is the Bertolucci Bella Costa Casual Chic Sport collection, and it comes in a few styles. My favorite is this two time zone model that has a small subsidiary dial for the second time zone. Really neatly integrated, and legible in orange. There is also a PVD black version with a black dial that is also available. Never straight forward in appearance, the watch plays with asymmetry that is symmetrical. The bezel is thicker on one side than the other, and is balanced out by the same treatment for the flange ring, and the Arabic numeral hour indicator ring. Interesting right?

The case is 41mm wide in steel, with brushed and polished surfaces. The bezel and inner links on the bracelet are in PVD black. The all black version of the watch is in... all PVD black. Dial is sapphire and domed with a good amount of AR coating for legibility. The dial is textured and done well. There is something almost Dali-esque to the look in my opinion. Inside the watch is a Swiss Ronda 4210.B quartz movement with two time dials and a big date indicator. If you really want to splurge, you can get the all black version with a diamond studded bezel. Overall this new Bella Costa Sport collection is fun, and useful, and should be available soon.

Ariel Adams publishes the luxury watch reviews site aBlogtoRead.com.

Tags: 1053.55.42.1033, 1053.55.42.8.1033, 1053.55.421.1003, bella costa, bertolucci, casual chic, sport, watch

Bertolucci Bella Costa Chronograph Watch

by Ariel Adams (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Timepieces / Watches

This new watch is a weird dive-style watch, but I still like it. Not sure why. I consider it more artistic that anything else. An playful designer homage to the diver - with interesting luxury watch elements applied. Almost all Bertolucci watches I see describe themselves as being "Mediterranean inspired." They use this term so often I am not necessarily sure what it means anymore. The most interesting part of the 41mm wide steel case is the asymmetric bezel and inner flange. They compliment each other so that the watch dial itself is perfectly centered, but they are purely artistic - likely making the bezel non-rotatable. Also, the case is water resistant to 50 meters only, so this is certainly only a "dive-style" watch. The pieces comes in an orange and textured white dial, as well as a black version with diamonds. Interesting how the black version with diamonds actually looks more feminine than the orange version.

An interesting design feature is the "peninsula" where the date window is located that is in steel with Cotes de Geneve striped polished applied. One area that Bertolucci did very well is with all of the lovely lines on the case. Like it or not, you can't deny that Bertolucci designers know elegance - even if it is weird sometimes. Check out the curves on the lugs, the rounded crown and pushers, and the graceful shape of the watch hands. Inside the watch is a Swiss ETA quartz G10.711 chronograph movement. Strap is silicone and grooved for style. The Bella Costa watches aren't bad if you like the avant garde looks and the upbeat character of the designs. Serious sport or diver watches they are not though. Hopefully the quartz movement, steel case, and silicone strap mean that the Bella Costa watch (at least the non diamond version) won't be too expensive.

Ariel Adams publishes the luxury watch review site aBlogtoRead.com.

Gallery: Bertolucci Bella Costa Chronograph Watch