The Elegante by F.P. Journe is the ultimate proof that quartz doesn't necessarily mean boring. Initially marketed towards women, the the brand quickly realised its appeal to customers of all sorts and released versions without diamonds as a unisex watch. While the case and dial features classic design with the trademark Journe "je ne sais quoi" that makes the brand's watches so unique, it is in the movement which the Elegante truly impresses.

Taking eight years to develop, the Elegante's movement is no ordinary quartz calibre. While most quartz movements can last around two years before needing a replacement battery, Journe's calibre 1210 can last up to ten years with a single battery. This is because the watch "shuts down" after 30 minutes without movement. Once it senses motion, however, the hands immediately move from the stopped position to the correct time, allowing it to save energy and prolonging battery life.

The calibre 1210 might just also be the most beautiful quartz movement on the market, and is appropriately shown off through a large display back. It features the same high standard of finishing as Journe's other watches, including Geneva striping on the plats and finely polished screws. Almost uniquely, it is also purpose built for and satisfyingly fills out the tortue-shaped case, unlike virtually every other quartz movement which is diminutive in size.

This is the larger 48mm version of the Elegante.

FP JOURNE

There is no single watch brand more emblematic of the modern independent watchmaker than Francois-Paul Journe. Starting out working in his uncle's watch repair workshop, Journe cut his teeth on restoring antique tourbillons and after only five years, created his own. His first works included a series of clocks for Asprey, as well as piece uniques and commissions which featured mind-bendingly complex complications like the remontoire and planetariums.

By the mid-1990s, Journe had tired of trying to get major brands to credit him properly for his work and decided to start his own company. His "souscription" watches, named after how his customers would pay a substantial deposit before receiving the watch, helped fund the venture. His first watches were both highly complex, being the tourbillon and the resonance systems. Even the third, a humble time-and-date with a power reserve, was designed to accept complications without increasing the movement's thickness.

Today, Journe is perhaps best well known for balancing his formidable watchmaking with an easily-overlooked ability to design watches that look both aesthetically unique and pleasing. Although a few years ago FP Journe as only known to the most fanatical of watch lovers as a criminally underrated brand, today that is no longer the case. As independent watchmakers become increasingly well-known, there's no doubt that the brand will continue its meteoric rise into the annals of watchmaking history.