Bulgari affirms its dominance in the sector of women’s jewellery watches with audacious new models that build on past successes. While on the men’s side, the futuristic Octo has become an iconic design, for women the focus is on the luxurious Serpenti, Divas’ Dream and Allegra ranges.
This streamlined strategy sets the Roman jeweller apart from other houses and in just under a decade, Bulgari has become the go-to house for extravagant women’s watches with a sense of opulence a la Italiana.
Find out more about the history of Bulgari's design style here
Divas’ Dream (above), is the house's most precious range of watches that evokes the splendour of Rome’s Golden Age while linking back to creations from the 1980s and 1990s. Known as the 'Master of Colours’, gemstones play a central role in Bulgari's designs. Eight large, round-cut gemstones, chosen for their vibrant and saturated colours surround the dial of the new Divas' Dream watches. The distinctive colour matches refer back to the house’s designs from the 1980’s, characterised by large, luscious cabochon gemstones set into fluid, highly articulated jewels such as the 1989 necklace set with amethysts, rubies and diamonds (main image). The sculptural fan-shaped motifs in gold that sit in between the gems are inspired by the Naturalia Marina fish earrings (above) from the early 1990s that in turn were born of the ginko leaf as depicted in the mosaics that adorn the floors of the Caracalla Baths in Rome.
Keeping alive the spirit of Bulgari’s design and technical prowess, three new Divas’ Dream watches for 2023 (above) feature either sky-blue topazes combined with majestic tanzanites or hot pink tourmalines and mauve amethysts or the perfection of eight deep red rubies. The gemstones are arranged like petals around a flower and sparkle with the addition of 76 diamonds. Colourful alligator straps add to the candy-bright appeal of these jewellery watches.
Two new Divas’ Dream Mosaica watches (above) echo the style of ‘carré’ or square brooches from the 1980’s. The original brooches were set with gemstones exquisitely carved and arranged to ripple with movement. Such was the mastery of the craftsmen that the complex geometric designs look as if they were painted on rather than made up of a miniature mosaic of texture and colours.
The Divas’ Dream Mosaica watches continue the Bulgari tradition of daring combinations of bold shapes and dramatic colours. The dials are set with a mosaic of sapphires - blue or pink - and diamonds in a fan-shape pattern that again, harks back to the famous floors of the Caracalla Baths in Rome. Each ‘fan’ is an intricate arrangement of gemstones that fade from darker to lighter tones and from large to smaller stones. The white diamonds and blue sapphire version (above) comes with a spectacular white gold bracelet made up of fan-shaped links. Each link is entirely set with diamonds, a dazzling spectacle of technical know-how. As befits these jewellery masterpieces, they are powered by top quality Swiss mechanical movements.
The first Allegra cocktail watches burst onto the scene in 2022 and today, their joyful energy and zesty colours are back with a splash. Two new versions featuring pink and yellow sapphires (above) offer a sunny and joyful array of gemstones and diamonds that orbit around the watch dial. Glossy cabochons sit alongside square and cushion-cut tourmalines, citrines, rhodolites and peridots, interspersed with bands of pink or yellow sapphire pavés for a mood-lifting look full of the promise of a perfect Roman summer day.
Bulgari has laid claim to the serpent with its many interpretations of the reptile in both jewellery and watches. The first Serpenti Tubogas watch by Bulgari was unveiled in 1948 in which several meters of gold ribbon were coiled around a core to create a flexible bracelet. The Tubogas was named for the unassuming metal-clad gas pipes.
Read more about the history of the Bulgari Serpenti watch here
Elevating the mundane to the sublime, this year’s Serpenti Infinity Tubogas (above) showcases a new technique that makes gold coil around the wrist with ease, making the famous gold serpent slinkier than ever. Individually cast links are threaded onto a titanium core or blade, each one assembled by hand to create a seamless whole. This novel technique allows for a line of diamonds to be set along the length of the serpent’s body. The face of the watch is also adorned with diamonds to create a watch that is as much a jewel as it is a timekeeper.
Click here to watch our Instagram reel of the Serpenti Tubogas Infinity.
The Serpenti Seddutore (below) brings the allure of the snake to an everyday-wear range of watches. The stylised serpent’s head dial joins a bracelet of smooth links in the form of the reptile’s scales. Elegant and distinctive, yet easy to wear, the two new models have black lacquer dials combined with either an all-steel case or a rose gold and steel version. The sinuous links flow across the folding clasp and the crown is tipped with a deep pink rubellite, the Bulgari signature. With this impressive line-up of irresistibly indulgent watches, Bulgari can proudly claim that ‘Time is a Jewel’.
