Independent watchmaking thrives on those daring enough to pursue personal visions, unburdened by industrial compromise. For GUEBLY, a young Swiss Maison born in 2023 out of a collector’s passion, the debut piece (Prologue) set the tone for quiet refinement. Now, just one year later, the CH1 Rétrograde sets the stage for a far more assertive chapter. With a faceted titanium case designed by Éric Giroud, a guilloché dial animated by a retrograde seconds, and a reengineered calibre with titanium bridges and a gold micro-rotor, the CH1 Rétrograde reads as both assured and ambitious.
The dial starts with a base of sterling silver, hand-guilloché by Bernard Van Ormelingen in a spiralling dune pattern that plays constantly with the light. The rhythm is both technical and poetic, recalling the natural forms it was inspired by. Applied indexes with a touch of deep blue Super-LumiNova assure clarity without compromising elegance.
At six o’clock resides the stage for the star complication: a retrograde seconds display spanning a 120° arc, springing back every 30 seconds. The animation is precise yet theatrical, a small reminder of the artistry hidden within mechanical timekeeping. Beneath the seconds hand sits a white gold appliqué finished with champlevé Grand Feu enamel by Maëlle Constant—tiny, precious craftsmanship adding depth and colour.
Titanium hands, satin-brushed and beveled by hand, echo the Maison’s ethos of restraint. Lightness here is sculpted into elegance, complementing rather than competing with the animation of the retrograde.
Turn the piece over and the innovation continues. The self-winding calibre 21.31 is the fruit of collaboration between Sylvain Pinaud (Horocraft) and Christophe Beuchat, conceived as a complete rework of conventional architecture. Its most striking feature is its choice of grade 5 titanium for both bridges and mainplate, something vanishingly rare in haute horlogerie. Titanium resists traditional finishing, but the specialists GUEBLY entrusted have mastered it: microbead frosting, straight graining, finely executed perlage and, most impressively, hand-polished bevels including no fewer than eight inward angles.
Nothing escapes attention. The ratchet wheel is spiral-grained and decorated with twin mirror-polished droplets. Screws, pins, and springs are black-polished; wheel plates are circular-grained; axles hardened and burnished. It is serious horological decoration of the highest order.
Technical credentials are strong: 217 components, 35 jewels, a 4 Hz variable inertia balance, and a 70-hour power reserve. A 5N gold micro-rotor ensures efficient winding while leaving the architecture of the calibre exposed to appreciation. At only 59 grams, the movement is as featherlight as it is visually dense.
Eric Giroud’s design reframes conventional case geometry into something altogether more architectural. Twenty-three facets cut across the grade 5 titanium construction, alternating polished chamfers with brushed planes. Despite its sculptural quality, the piece wears with discretion, thanks to dimensions of 42 mm in diameter, 10.56 mm in thickness, and 44.3 mm from lug to lug. Both sapphire crystals are domed and coated for maximum clarity.
The strap further enhances ergonomics. Crafted by Atelier Jean Rousseau in blue grained calfskin with a rubber lining, it integrates a modern Velcro closure to a titanium pin buckle. The quick-release system adds real-world versatility. Daily usability is confirmed with water resistance to 100 metres.
The CH1 Rétrograde confirms that GUEBLY will not be content with safe consolidation. Instead, the brand has leapt forward with a watch that is both visually assertive and mechanically intricate. The guilloché and enamel dial, titanium-bridged calibre with gold micro-rotor, and Giroud’s angular yet graceful case design work together to create a coherent timepiece for collectors with an eye for both technique and restraint.
Limited to just 80 pieces, this is not a creation designed for the masses. Rather, it is a watch that reaches directly to connoisseurs who sense the enduring joy in artisanal horology that is both contemporary and quietly enduring.
