Bespoke Ludovic Ballouard

A Half Time watch that’s a first for the brand

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The conversation

”A dress watch with a more unusual complication would be of interest, what would you propose?”

The story

———— This client’s watch collection already featured a few pieces by FP Journe, so the desire for something truly unique by a watchmaker from François-Paul’s stable instantly appealed. Ludovic Ballouard was top of our list of suggestions, and his brilliantly eccentric Half Time was our watch of choice. It dispenses with the hour hand completely – instead the numerals are divided in half on two disks that rotate in opposite directions, making them unreadable, except for the current time, shown at the 12 o’clock position. Half Time was the second watch Ballouard produced under his own name and became an instant icon in independent watch circles when it was revealed in 2012. 

With his penchant for subtle elegance, our client felt the gold bridges over the dial were a little distracting. Our solution lay in refining the dial’s hierarchy. For the first time on a rare Half Time masterpiece, we painted the whole dial in a soft ivory and printed the details in deep blue. To soften the contrast between dial and case we proposed a rich yellow gold, another first for Ludovic.

Although beautifully executed, we felt the font size of the watch number/initial plate was slightly overpowering so we reduced it by around 20%. The result is a Half Time with the same technical allure but with (we think) enhanced dial harmony. Luckily, Ludovic approves of it too: “I love this watch,” he says. “It’s

a truly unique piece.”  

About Ludovic Ballouard watches

———— Ballouard’s unique watches are the embodiment of his technical excellence and mischievous sense of humour. His first timepiece – 2009’s Upside Down – has no hour hand. Instead, the upside down numerals flip the correct way up when the relevant hour is reached. Ballouard explains that past and future are represented upside down to remind lucky owners that they should have no regrets about the past and no qualms for the future. His humour is backed up by serious craft and training – a childhood spent tinkering with the infinitesimally small components of model aircraft led to watchmaking school in Brittany and eventually to heading up Franck Muller’s workshop.

Then, a seven- year stint at revered independent watchmaker FP Journe completed Ballouard’s journey, teaching him how to build a complete watch, from simple models to the ultimate Grand Sonnerie. Founder François-Paul was also the inspiration behind Ballouard setting out on his own: “He’s living proof that a watchmaker with novel ideas can survive independently of the large brands.” Ballouard is low-key and extremely cool – while many makers strive for a coveted chance to design a Harry Winston “Opus” watch, he was invited to create Opus XIII. We’re looking forward to Ballouard’s next creation – it’s bound to be brilliantly eccentric, like the man himself.