Van Cleef & Arpels Charme Extraordinaire Fee Sakura

An Ode to Unspoilt Nature

17 November 2017 | Van Cleef & Arpels , Women's watches SIHH 2017

Being struck by the beauty of pure and unspoilt nature is still something that can touch our souls; the atmosphere that permeates some landscapes will never stop softening our hearts and bringing us back to a fairy tale. The Van Cleef & Arpels Charme Extraordinaire Fee Sakura timepiece is part of the Charms Extraordinaires™ Collection by Van Cleef & Arpels and it is a tribute to unspoilt nature that cannot leave us indifferent.

Van Cleef & Arpels’s magical garden appears in all its grandeur on the dial and it encircles the luxuriant nature that a graceful fairy is looking after. As if it were a painting encompassing even the smallest of details, this wonderful landscape reveals the Maisons’ passion for the “métiers d’art” by emphasizing the skills and ability of its craftsmen throughout the passing of time. This fascinating show is dominated by the hours and minutes hands gracefully moving without affecting the balance of this scenery; the lucky charm in the shape of a flower – perfectly matching the dial – lightly rotates around the case by following the wrist’s movement.

This new timepiece was unveiled during the opening of the Van Cleef & Arpels’s Boutique in Ginza and it was subsequently presented in more detail during the International Salon de la Haute-Horlogerie in Geneva at the beginning of the year. The dial features a bright pink base colour and it hosts gracious engraved mother-of-pearl flowers that have been painted by the skilful hands of experienced artisans. The corollas in the foreground sport a cabochonné enamel coating that gives them an embossed effect. The Van Cleef & Arpels Charme Extraordinaire Fee Sakura is a hymn to femininity and to nature, where a sweet fairy is overjoyed by the beauty of the cherry tree flowers in blossom.

This is not a simply fairy, since, if you look at her carefully, you will notice that her white gold wings are embellished by brilliant-cut diamonds that turn her into a magical and twinkling creature; her face features a rose-cut diamond that enhances her charm and her dazed expression when facing the Nature Enchantée.

When nature has finally roused, three bas-relief flowers pop up on the lacquered dial; they represent the different blooming stages ranging from the timid flower blossom to the flower in bloom and they highlight the exuberant vitality of nature herself. The rose gold case measures 32mm in diameter; the perfect size for a female wrist and to host this paradisiac vision. The case is equipped with a bezel with two lines of pink sapphires with different tones to make the case even more striking.

Van Cleef & Arpels are famous for the craftsmanship of their items and for their skilful embedding of precious stones; these characteristics are stressed on this timepiece by placing sapphires one next to the other, thus creating a colour spectrum that accentuates the luminosity of this watch. Details make a difference and I would like to point out that also the crown features an embedded diamond to highlight, yet again, the preciousness of this piece.

The Van Cleef & Arpels Charme Extraordinaire Fee Sakura is equipped with a quartz movement and a pink alligator leather strap that matches the colour of the case and of the dial; the pin buckle is also made of rose gold and it features embedded diamonds. As if it were a thumbnail painting, I am embracing the beauty of this original model by Van Cleef & Arpels and, while dreaming with my eyes open, I hope that, one day, I will also be able to get my own Fée Sakura. My dream, however, will have to materialize very soon, as the Van Cleef & Arpels Charme Extraordinaire Fee Sakura is crafted in a 100-piece-limited-edition only, so I don’t want to run the risk of missing out on it!