Crafting Timeless Jewelry: Tips and Tricks
The perpetual calendar presents a mechanical solution for an astronomical problem. Gears, springs and rockers mimic the rotation of the Earth around the Sun. The mechanism automatically knows whether the month has 28, 30 or 31 days, as well as calculating leap years. The perpetual calendar only needs correcting at the turn of each century, unless the century is divisible by four hundred.
1. Perpetual calendar
The perpetual calendar presents a mechanical solution for an astronomical problem. Gears, springs and rockers mimic the rotation of the Earth around the Sun. The mechanism automatically knows whether the month has 28, 30 or 31 days, as well as calculating leap years. The perpetual calendar only needs correcting at the turn of each century, unless the century is divisible by four hundred.
2. Complete calendar
Complete calendar watches track and display the day of the week, month, and date. Certain models, such as the Fiftysix Complete Calendar, also display moon phases. These timepieces must be manually adjusted five times a year – in February, April, June, September, and November.
Annual calendar watches feature full or partial calendars that automatically account for months with 31 and 30 days. You must adjust these watches only once a year to account for the 28 days in February, except for leap year.
3. How to preserve your leather strap
Excessive perspiration
Fine and delicate, leather is a natural material whose beauty and longevity must be preserved. We therefore recommend that you avoid frequent contact with water, oils or cosmetics. These elements may cause premature wear of your strap. Likewise, excessive perspiration or extended sun exposure may alter leather’s aesthetic qualities and colour
Fine and delicate
Fine and delicate, leather is a natural material whose beauty and longevity must be preserved. We therefore recommend that you avoid frequent contact with water, oils or cosmetics. These elements may cause premature wear of your strap. Likewise, excessive perspiration or extended sun exposure may alter leather’s aesthetic qualities and colour
Fine and delicate, leather is a natural material whose beauty and longevity must be preserved. We therefore recommend that you avoid frequent contact with water, oils or cosmetics. These elements may cause premature wear of your strap. Likewise, excessive perspiration or extended sun exposure may alter leather’s aesthetic qualities and colour
4. Moon-phase
Moon-phase watches illustrate the full lunar cycle: new moon, first quarter, waxing gibbous, full moon, waning gibbous, third quarter. Their movements are distinguished by an additional wheel fitted next to the pinion that marks off a cycle of 29 days, 12 hours and 45 minutes, generating a discrepancy of just 57 seconds per lunar cycle – less than 2 seconds a day. Manual adjustment of Vacheron Constantin moon-phase watches is thus needed just once in 122 years for high-precision moon-phase displays, and once every 3 years for simple moon-phase versions.
5. Simple steps for maintaining metal wristbands
A metal strap requires no particular maintenance, just occasional light cleaning using a soft brush. This is best carried out more often in summer, when salt and sand may become lodged between the links. Likewise, we strongly recommend rinsing your bracelet in freshwater after swimming in a pool or the sea.
