Longines Watches
Longines are one of the oldest Swiss watchmakers, having been making watches since 1832. The company has had long associations as time-keeper with many sporting events, including being appointed as official time-keeper of many summer and winter Olympic Games. Longines also timed Lindbergh’s first solo flight across the Atlantic Ocean and, subsequently developed the Hour Angle watch according to a design drawn by Lindbergh himself. Today, Longines wristwatches are amongst the most rated and sort after of Swiss watches. Longines has used the logo "Elegance is an attitude" and this attitude has produced some of the most beautiful of Swiss watches. Below are reviews of some of Longines current collections of watches.
The Longines Dolce Vita collection is reminiscent of the style of the 1930s and the glamour of the 1950s. The Dolce Vita wristwatch is one of the most elegant of ladies watches. All Longines DolceVita watches are of a rectangular stainless steel case with scratch-resistant sapphire crystal glass and house a L963 quartz movement. There are different colored dials to choose from, as well as leather bracelets. Some models comes with inlaid diamonds. The one pictured comes featuring a heart shape at 12 o’clock diamond-set and 11 diamond-set indexes. The dial is of pink mother of pearl. All Longines Dolce Vita watches are water resistant up to 30 meters. In my opinion, the Longines Dolce Vita ranks as one of the most stylish of ladies Swiss watches.
The Longines BelleArti collection is for women who love the look and style of the Art Deco movement of the 1920s. The dial comes in black, silver or mother-of-pearl. All dials feature 11 Arabic figures, a second subdial at 6 o’clock and “Cathedral” hands. Bracelets come in either black leather, stainless steel or blue-jeans (yes, that's right - and it combines beautifully with the case and dial). Some models are available with inlaid diamonds. All Longines Belle Arti watches are water resistant up to 30 meters. The slight rounding of the rectangular casing lends a unmistakable feminine style to these watches.
La Grande Classique de Longines styling calls much upon the earlier design traditions of Longines. The case is stainless steel or gold and, like all Longines watches, the glass comprises scratch-resistant sapphire crystal. The dials are mother-of-pearl and come with either roman numerals or simple hour markers. Bracelets come in stainless steel, gold or black leather. Some model also come with inlaid diamonds. While other styles of watches come and go, this style of watch never goes out of fashion. When making a large financial purchase on a jewelry item it's nice to know that you can wear it for the rest of your life, knowing your Longines watch will never go out of fashion.
The Longines LungoMare collection is a bold, contemporary styled watch yet with modest subtlety. These Longines Lungo Mare watches are for the young - or the young at heart. They all come with quartz movements, some with chronograph. The case is of stainless steel and the dials come in either black or silver. There is a ladies version of the watch. All Longines Lungo Mare watches are water resistant up to 100 meters. This watch rivals such makes as Breitling, Tag Heuer and Rolex but priced at a more realistic price for consumers.
Other Longines collections include The Lingbergh, Longines Spirit, The Longines Master Collection and Heritage. Longines make owning a quality Swiss affordable for the average consumer. But buying a Longines isn't settling for second best, it's buying classic style, elegance and manufacturing know how of one of the world's great watchmakers. I am fortunate enough to have been able to buy my wife a Longines watch for a birthday present. It was from the Longines BelleArti collection - without the blue jeans strap or diamonds.