At this year’s Watches & Wonders fair, Cartier once again showed how a house can skilfully harness its codes to create conversation-starting collections. From new bejewelled panthers and updates on classics to a fresh twist to its Tressage timepiece, the renowned French Maison knows what it takes to make collectors’ hearts skip a beat
With its Tressage timepieces, Cartier redefines the role of the watch. Yes, telling time is a fundamental function of this beautiful creation, but the sculptural design of the watch case makes a subtle nod to the idea of feeling the passage of time.
This is conveyed in the timepieces’ coiling design, which echoes the twisting volumes of its namesake collection from 2023. This series shows how it’s possible to project the idea of fluidity even in solid form. The watches’ elongated edges twist like braided cords of gold or diamond, often surrounding a snow-set diamond dial that feels more like a couture embellishment than a watch face.
Each version of the Tressage timepieces offers a different tactile story. On the most understated, yellow-gold gadroons play off a sleek jet-black dial and strap, evoking a dramatic tension. The white gold iteration, set with over 900 diamonds, is like a sculpture of light blazing across the wrist. Most striking is the version with gradient sapphires, with navy stones melting into the deep leather strap in a seamless chromatic mélange.
Powered by quartz but sculpted like haute joaillerie, the Tressage collection stretches dimensions with its size (56.2 x 25.7 mm) and conventions with its design. Neither a bangle nor a strap watch, it asserts itself in that uniquely Cartier space between form and emotion, a place where jewellery and timekeeping hold equal weight.
The panther is Cartier’s eternal muse. And in this year’s high jewellery Panthère watches, the animal looks as if it could quite literally leap off the wrist.
These timepieces always blur the line between horology and sculpture, each one featuring a three-dimensional feline that prowls across a toi-et-moi bangle, stalking a delicate diamond-framed dial.
The version in yellow gold has the panther looking polished and powerful, its black lacquer spots glinting in the light, while its tsavorite eyes and onyx nose give a jewelled accent to the design as it leaps toward the dial.
The white gold version has an even louder visual roar. It’s 1,103 diamonds can’t help but catch every ray of light, while the brand’s signature fur-setting technique creates a texture that mimics a panther’s fur using finely sculpted onyx and precious metal.
Both watches run on quartz movements and are offered in tailored wrist sizes from 150 to 170 mm. But, putting the technical details aside, these are, without a doubt, statement pieces. They tell time, but they also tell a story – one of legacy, creativity, and the primal magnetism of the wild.
They radiate an energy that Cartier’s famed craftsmen look to have tamed just enough to be contained on the wrist.
Long hailed as one of the brand’s most elegant shapes, the Tank Louis Cartier got an update this year. But it’s so nuanced that perhaps only die-hard connoisseurs can appreciate this sophisticated upgrade. The watch’s proportions have been subtly elongated, but it still maintains its instantly recognisable design DNA. The new silhouette retains the soft angles and clear geometry that have defined the model since 1922, but now offers a more pronounced vertical stretch that expertly flatters the wrist.
Offered in rose or yellow gold, this latest iteration comes equipped with Cartier’s new automatic 1899 MC movement. The mechanical upgrade is housed in a graceful case that still honours the slim profile and minimalist dial detailing that made this watch an icon for over a century. The interplay between form and function here is no accident – every line feels sharpened, every surface thoughtfully curved.
The decision to keep this watch classically understated, forgoing a flamboyant dial treatment or festooning it with gems, speaks volumes about Cartier. It’s the kind of timepiece that doesn’t just complement a look – it defines it. For the purist, the connoisseur, or the collector seeking that elusive blend of innovation and restraint, the new Tank Louis Cartier is, without question, the right choice.
In 1928, Cartier revolutionised the wristwatch with a digital display that wowed connoisseurs. No dial, no hands, just two apertures – one for hours, one for minutes. This year, the Tank à Guichets returned as part of the Cartier Privé collection, with all the quiet (and quirky) confidence of a seasoned icon.
Four versions of this watch are available – platinum, yellow gold, rose gold, and a limited edition platinum version of just 200 pieces that offers new angles to the apertures. This intriguing latter edition shifts the hour and minute windows to 10 and 4 o’clock, respectively, giving the face of the dial the appearance of a charming wink.
All models are powered by the 9755 MC manual-wind movement, framed in a slim 37.6 x 24.8 mm case. The dial – or, more accurately, the gold plate – is devoid of ornament, save for precision-engineered apertures. Another standout detail is Cartier’s decision to assign each timepiece its own distinct chromatic signature – a rich red strap and numerals for the platinum edition, smoky grey for the rose gold, and a deep forest green for the yellow gold. By doing this, Cartier is subtly able to give each variation its own distinct personality.
The Tank à Guichets isn’t just a throwback – it’s proof that Cartier’s design language doesn’t age, it evolves.
While big watches might still be big news in the world of horlogerie, Cartier has decided to downsize one of its most iconic designs. However, the new small model of the Santos de Cartier watch just takes the brand back to its roots, resurrecting the proportions of the 1904 original, while reinterpreting its aesthetic for the modern eye.
At 27 mm by 34.5 mm, the new Santos feels sleek, not shy. It has the same square case, visible screws, and clean lines – only here, they’ve been fine-tuned to feel more refined than rugged. The sunray dial adds just a touch of shimmer beneath sword-shaped hands, while the choice to go with a quartz movement ensures long-lasting precision without sacrificing style.
The watch is available in full steel, two-tone steel and gold, or full yellow gold, each version offering Cartier’s signature quick-switch system for toggling between a bracelet and strap.
The all-gold model, with its alligator strap and ardillon buckle, is perhaps the most nostalgic of the bunch. A nod to the aviation inspiration of the original, this watch has been reinterpreted for a more jewellery-minded clientele.
Cartier’s Panthère watches have always been synonymous with Parisian glamour. But this year, they’ve gone a bit wild, which is wonderful. The standout model in rose gold interprets animal print through abstraction – think zebra-meets-tiger, realised through hand-applied black and golden-brown lacquer, spessartites, and a dial paved with 145 snow-set diamonds.
The result is vivid, visceral, and decidedly luxurious. The integrated bracelet, set with 314 diamonds and 86 spessartites, shines with tonal gradation. The lacquered motif, fired in Cartier’s own atelier, requires expert artisanal precision and takes over 110 hours to complete.
Cartier complements this showpiece with four semi-pavéd versions in rose and yellow gold, offered in sizes from 25 mm to 36.5 mm. These pieces feature silver dials, blued-steel sword hands, and just enough diamond shimmer to make the wearer feel special. With their quartz movements and ultra-thin profiles, these watches dovetail Cartier’s iconic savoir-faire with wearable versatility.
