Romancing the Stone

Beauregard melds haute joaillerie, haute horology, and the art of lapidary in its immaculately designed watches for women

- Somya Rauthan

The Canadian-Swiss watch brand Beauregard may have had a relatively young journey during which it has developed a limited collection of watches, but that hasn't stopped it from putting three of its timepieces on the Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG) awards shortlist over the course of that time. A quick glance at its models explains why they made the cut. All feature meticulously handcrafted floral dials made from rare and precious stones, and diamonds. "I believe the dials are what get people's attention immediately, and once they have them in their hand, they start noticing all the other details. This is always a great thing to witness," says the brand's founder Alexandre Beauregard.

Established in 2014 in Geneva, Beauregard SA perfectly combines haute joaillerie and haute horology. It is also one of the few independent brands that focuses on watches for women; it's only this year that Beauregard added Ulysse, the brand's first men's watch, to its collection. Its current collection includes Lili Candy, Lili Bouton, Lili, and Dahlia, which feature stones like black onyx, mother-of-pearl, aquamarine, Australian chrysoprase, and sky blue topaz that are designed and handshaped into floral dials by Alexandre himself. "My encounter with Yves St-Pierre, Canadian lapidary artist and master stone carver, introduced me to stone cutting, and he agreed to train me. I trained like a medieval apprentice to learn stone handcrafting one-on-one with him for six years. And 14 years later, I am still learning with Yves," says Alexandre.

It is this lapidary art that makes Beauregard stand out today. Each timepiece is crafted paying utmost attention to both aesthetic and technical details. The novelties evoke elegance and femininity, and sit on the wrist like a work of art.