Audemars Piguet’s timeless style

What began in 1875 as a small workshop in Le Brassus, a village nestled in the Swiss Jura mountains, by Jules Louis Audemars and Edward Auguste Piguet, is today considered one of the world’s most iconic fine watchmakers: Audemars Piguet. Born on innovation and boundary-pushing design, it comes as little surprise that the haute horlogerie manufacturer is beloved by game-changing women who value style and functionality. As the perfect finishing touch to any outfit, an Audemars Piguet timepiece lends an air of professionalism and polish, even to off-duty style.

Take chef Olivia Burt, for whom timing is everything. “Being able to have a watch that goes with my changing outfits and fast days is essential to keep me on track,” explains the Claridge’s sous chef, who made the finals of the prestigious Roux Scholarship (a cooking competition for emerging chefs in the UK) last year – making her the only female chef to do so in four years. Last year was a big one for Burt, as she also competed in the BBC’s Masterchef: The Professionals 2019. “To come from the competition on such a high note has really set the tone for the year ahead; I am very excited to be back in the kitchen with my team, working on a lot of new projects.”

Burt offset her monochrome tailoring with Audemars Piguet’s Royal Oak Frosted Gold Quartz 33mm in 18-karat white gold and with the Millenary 39.5mm in 18-karat white gold, adorned with diamonds and mother of pearl. “My outfit is about defining myself as a pioneer in my industry; standing strong as a woman in a male-dominated environment,” she said of her ultra-polished look.

When Audemars Piguet unveiled the Royal Oak in 1972, luxury timepieces were usually small and made of gold, but the brand defied conventions with its sporty steel model. Forever innovating, in celebration of The Royal Oak’s 40th anniversary, the house teamed up with esteemed Florentine jewellery designer Carolina Bucci, who created a shimmering edition of the watch using an ancient jewellery technique. Preserving the proportions and shape of the Royal Oak, Bucci added a frosted gold finish and a mirrored dial that interacts with and reflects its wearer’s environment. The frosted finish is created by hammering the gold with a diamond-tipped tool to create tiny indentations on the surface, which produce a light-reflecting, diamond-dust effect.

Genre-bending singer Tara Lily also wore the Royal Oak in a frosted pink gold on set for NET-A-PORTER and praised it as feeling like wearing “something that fell from the stars.” Styled with loose leather pants and a luxe cashmere knit, she demonstrates how to wear luxury timepieces with a pared-back ensemble. Lily also models the Millenary 39.5mm in frosted 18-karat white gold, which also has a cosmic feel, thanks to its deep blue aventurine dial. This mesmerizing blue glass, which originated in 17th-century Venice, shimmers like a constellation of mineral particles, calling to mind a star-lit sky.

Multihyphenate journalist and filmmaker Fenn O’Meally donned the Millenary 39.5mm in frosted 18-karat pink gold and opal. “I’m a Virgo, so I love to be in control, and I love to be on time!” she explains, and she also described feeling “powerful and strong” in the ’70s-style suiting she wore with the luxe timepiece. With no two days ever the same as she juggles her radio show, filmmaking and writing, following a precision-timed professional schedule is essential to fitting in some all-important exercise – “The one thing I like to keep consistent is exercise; getting my headspace,” she says. Which is exactly why chic timepieces such as Audemars Piguet’s are considered modern essentials for successful, game-changing women.