Round-UpShine Bright Like A Diamond: The Greatest Dazzlers From Jacob & Co’s Brilliant Collection
With tourbillons and skeletonised dials hiding behind the bling of it all, the Jacob & Co Brilliant line is a good example of how diamonds can be a beautiful expression when treated tastefully
May We Recommend
Jacob & Co’s Brilliant collection means different things to different people. For some, the line of watches sheathed in diamonds could embody the ‘bling’ they bring to the moment, while others view the collection as an expression of themselves, hiding stunning complications behind the dazzle of diamonds. Either way, Jacob & Co’s line of jewel-studded diamond watches shines in a way few others can.
Founder Jacob Arabo’s love for creating beautiful jewellery really shines through in this Brilliant line of watches, with gorgeous gems paired with precious materials such as rose gold and white gold. After his training in making jewellery, Arabo, whose parents emigrated to the US from former USSR, worked at local factories putting together others’ designs at first and later manufacturing his own pieces of jewellery. In 1986, he launched Jacob & Co primarily as a jewellery brand, until many years later, in 2002, he started creating watches as well. Today, Jacob & Co are known for their dazzling timepieces that combine high jewellery, haute horlogerie, and art. With cases measuring 38mm, 44mm and 47mm, the Brilliant collection has something for just about everyone.
Brilliant Mystery Pavé Diamonds
A mysterious secret watch, the Brilliant Mystery Pavé Diamonds shows the time through two black triangular hands that appear suspended between a diamond-paved centre and a similarly decorated white gold or rose gold case. The 38mm case and bezel are paved with 356 round, white diamonds that measure about 7.05 carat, while the centre of the dial is set with 89 round, white diamonds. Powered by a quartz movement, the caseback features a time corrector, as a crown would take the ‘mystery’ out of the watch. Stunning on the wrist with a total of 476 round, white diamonds (measuring 8.43 carat), including the 33 on the buckle of the elegant satin strap, this timepiece is as brilliant as it is mysterious and seductive.
Brilliant Flying Tourbillon
The 47mm rose gold case of the Brilliant Flying Tourbillon is paved completely with baguette-cuts of various precious stones. Although, the case is concealed because of the invisible setting of the stones. At six o’clock is the highlight of the watch—a beautifully-decorated one-minute tourbillon. The delicate, open-worked cage that houses the balance wheel, hairspring, escape wheel, and other components of the complication, offers an unobstructed view of its operation. Leaf-shaped timekeeping hands stand out in contrast against the colour of the gems on the dial. With a crown set with 14 baguette-cut stones and a cabochon-cut diamond matching with the colour of the dial, the Brilliant Flying Tourbillon ensures that absolutely no one can look away without turning back for a second glance. Inside the watch is the manual-winding Jacob & Co calibre JCBM01a, which is also visible through the sapphire crystal caseback on the watch.
The Brilliant Full Baguette series features a 44mm case similarly hidden by baguette-cut stones, only minus the tourbillon at six o’clock. This line of watches is powered by a Swiss-made quartz movement.
Brilliant Skeleton Baguette
Made from rose gold or white gold, the 47mm case of the Brilliant Skeleton Baguette, paved with invisibly-set baguettes, frames the gorgeous mechanical artwork on the skeletonised dial. The upper bezel on the inside is paved with baguette-cut white diamonds. With sapphire crystal protecting the dial and the caseback, the rose gold finishing on the JCAM04 manual-winding movement shines through brilliantly. The Brilliant Skeleton Baguette timepieces with rubies and blue sapphires feature a one-minute flying tourbillon.
The 44mm case of the Brilliant Skeleton Baguette Tsavorites is set with the beautiful green baguette-cut tsavorite stone that’s lighter than an emerald. Its inner bezel features tsavorite baguettes, framing the sandblasted finishing and rose gold gears of the JCAM01 movement.
With around 172 diamonds on the movement visible through the open-worked dial, framed with baguette-cut stones on the 47mm case, the Brilliant Art Deco watch plays up the JCAM05 calibre as a more-decorated mechanical artwork. Brilliant, indeed.
Brilliant Pavé
Set with 408 round diamonds, the 44mm rose-gold case of the Brilliant Pavé Rose Gold has a matching crown set with 33 diamonds. The dial displays 400 more diamonds, with contrasting leaf-shaped timekeeping hands and the Jacob & Co logo at 12 o’clock. With this simple and stunning aesthetic, time-telling may take a backseat as the diamonds take over the watch. The buckle on the satin strap is also set with 76 white diamonds, taking the total diamond count on the watch to a whopping 917 stones (10.05 carat). This diamond-covered timepiece is also available in a 38mm version, with blue leaf timekeeping hands. The watches are powered by a Swiss-made quartz movement.
For those who think that 900-plus diamonds on a watch is just too much bling, there are half-paved versions, with 408 diamonds on the round case of the watch, and a mother-of-pearl dial set with 11 precious gems for the hour markers. In the centre of the dial are three more rows of diamonds, and the crown and clasp are also studded with the beautiful, icy stones.
Brilliant One Row
Arguably, the most wearable version of the exquisite Brilliant collection is the One Row series, featuring a single row of 52 diamonds on the 38mm rose gold, white gold, or steel cases. At the centre of their mother-of-pearl dials, three concentric rings paved with diamonds add a definite touch of dressy elegance. Eleven precious gems (measuring 0.44 carat) serve as hour markers, with the Jacob & Co logo at 12 o’clock. One can choose between rubies, amethysts, pink, ice- or deep-blue sapphires for the hour markers. Leaf-shaped hands double the elegance on these watches, which are paired with satin straps.
The Brilliant One Row Tsavorites timepiece in a 38mm rose-gold or steel case features the single row of 52 diamonds on the bezel and three concentric rings of diamonds in the centre of the mother-of-pearl dial. Only, the tsavorite stones for hour markers lend the timepiece a beautiful, muted-green aesthetic.
Eleven multi-coloured sapphires serve as hour markers on the 38mm Brilliant One Row ‘Rainbow’ timepiece, with a solitary row of diamonds on the case and three rows in the centre of the dial.
With rainbow-coloured, baguette-cut stones on the bezel, 11 multi-coloured sapphires for hour markers and 50 round white diamonds in the centre of the mother-of-pearl dial, the Brilliant Rainbow Rose Gold watch sparkles in a gorgeous way.
There’s no hiding the brilliance of Jacob & Co’s Brilliant collection, and for good reason. As Rihanna, who just happens to be a friend of the brand, suggested in her 2012 song, one must shine bright like a diamond, because ‘you’re beautiful, like diamonds in the sky’.