Louis Cartel's French-Designed Homage Watches And Can You Mod Them
With the Olympics in full steam in Paris, we feel that now is a great time to look at French watches. French watch brands are starting to get the same kind of recognition as the Swiss - think of Cartier, Bell & Ross, and Hermès and you’ll think of watches that are outside of most people’s price ranges, but familiar nonetheless for their posh designs and reliable quality. One such brand that has been gaining some interest lately is Louis Cartel. It may not be an old name in the watch scene, but its growing customer base has many good things to say about their offerings.
In this article, we’ll take a look at their brand and their lineup of homage watches, and see if they would be interesting to Seiko modders. So keep reading!
A Quick Look at Louis Cartel
This Parisian brand is still quite new, and according to their manifesto, was created due to the frustration of limited accessibility and high prices of designer brands that make them just “grail watches” to many of us. They claim to prioritize the looks and quality of their watches while offering them at realistic prices. And in case you’re not happy with your purchase, you are protected by a 2-year warranty.
Their Watch Collections
Louis Cartel’s dedication to exquisite craftsmanship at agreeable prices are showcased in three currently available collections that will “add a touch of luxury to your wrist.”
Tinera de Louis Cartel
Source: @louiscartelparis on IG
The first watch is the Tinera de Louis Cartel Emarald, which is a stainless steel sports watch with a brush-finished, bright green dial. It's easy to see that the design is inspired by the Patek Philippe Nautilus, with a 43mm case that features widened sides akin to a ship's porthole. The bezel is quite different though, with exquisite curves that play well with the light. The sapphire crystal gives a clear view of the relatively clean dial, which has slender hour markers pointed at by Dauphine hands. The movement is an unspecified Seiko Quartz with a 3-year battery life, which no doubt helps bring down the price.
Suvari Black Mamba and Crystal Ocean
It’s unclear if the Suvari collection was named after the American actress Mena Suvari, but it is clear which watch inspired this design - the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak. The octagonal bezel, though devoid of the screws, is a clear giveaway. We’re not complaining though! This 2-hander comes in the all-black Black Mamba and the stainless steel and blue Crystal Ocean configurations, both using a 41mm case with an impressive 6.9mm thickness. This model is powered by a mystery Miyota Quartz movement, again with a 3-year battery life.
Charlemagne
The Charlemagne collection is perhaps the most iconic of Louis Cartel’s offerings, named after the legendary Emperor who unified much of Europe. These watches are the epitome of luxury and sophistication, and evokes the look of a Richard Mille with its skeleton dial that exposes its hand-wound mechanical movement (again unspecified). The case is a 40mm rounded square available in Platinum Silver, Titanium Black, and Rose Gold, finished by a display caseback that matches its shape.
At present, all of these collections are priced below EUR300 which is already reasonable, but they sometimes go on sale for up to 40% if you want even more value out of these watches.
Will Seiko Fans Like These Watches?
These watches are not yet widely discussed on forums or review sites, but the few testimonials do attest to their high quality. Couple that with low prices and you have a formula for sold out watches!
That said, Louis Cartel’s offerings are currently designed as homages to other classic watches. Seiko modders might be more inclined to personally build their own which they can achieve for around the same price range, and maybe quality as well, with the added benefit of customization.
The Charlemagne will be a bit harder to re-interpret, thanks to its unorthodox case and dial shape. But the Tinera De Louis Cartel can be built from scratch with our NMK926 or NMK935 case, along with your personal choice for the dial and hands. What’s more, you can build it with a fully mechanical Seiko NH movement instead of a quartz movement. The Suvari is likewise easy to build with mods, with many sports cases with integrated bracelets available in the aftermarket scene today.
Wrap Up
Building your own watch may not be as straightforward as ordering a ready-made one, but going through the process of designing and building it yourself will instantly add value, both financial and sentimental, that will make it a watch you’d enjoy wearing. That, we can guarantee!
If you’re ready to start Seiko modding, be sure to check out our catalog of hundreds of watch mod parts that are of a quality trusted by professionals in the watch modding scene. We have various designs for dive watches, field watches, dress watches, and more, and all of them are quality-tested so you can rest assured that your watch will look good and last long.
If you want to make your first Seiko mod easier, you can also opt for our watchmaking kits that contain all the parts, tools and instructions you need to finish your very first build in one sitting.
Happy modding!