The Chanel Première Sound is a watch necklace with headphones

Chanel just launched the Première Sound, a sautoir necklace watch with headphones attached. The release isn't entirely surprising given that watch-jewelry is trending (see Rihanna and Taylor Swift and an entire wave of social media dedicated to the matter). Time-telling jewels are nothing new – it's just a very millennial trait to think we did everything first. Pendant watches were all the rage back in the 1700s, then again during the Belle Époque of the 19th century and the Art Nouveau period of the early 20th century and then again in the 1970s. Ring watches were also worn throughout various periods of history and also seem to have resurfaced, but I have to put my foot down somewhere.

Arnaud Chastaingt, director of the Chanel watchmaking studio, isn't stuck on nostalgia, in fact he has a clear knack for pushing watch design forward. He's strictly 21st century. Heritage is certainly important to a brand like Chanel, especially when said brand doesn't concern itself too much with outside influence, preferring to reference its own worldview. Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel created a fashion legacy through key visual pillars: the little black dress, the quilted bag with chain straps, the tweed suit, two-tone shoes, camellias, pearls, and Chanel No. 5 perfume. Chastaingt has successfully managed to use the codes and transform them into distinctly futuristic pieces such as this year's J12 Xray and last year's Interstellar J12 Cybernetic and Eclipse box set.

Originally Created in 1987, the Première watch features an octagonal case inspired by the stopper of the No. 5 perfume bottle, and a chain bracelet as a nod to the chained shoulder strap of the Chanel flap bag. Now Chastaingt has taken the successful Premiere design and added audio with Master & Dynamic, a New York-based audio company that specializes in high-end headphones and earphones. The headphones can connect to a smartphone (iPhone or Android) or any audio device. They come equipped with a microphone and a remote control to adjust the volume, control audio and video playback, and receive phone calls. The earphone wires loop into the necklace and are removable if you wish to revert back to a simple sautoir without the sound.

This is techy for sure, but the tech is decidedly old school. It's almost more '00s than 2024 in its looks. In fact I can picture it perfectly layered in a Harajuku street-style picture from the early days of Fruits Magazine. So if it is 2024 and Chastaingt is a futurist then why use wired headphones over rechargeable buds? I like to think of it as a nod to the @wireditgirls aesthetic and not just a practical longer-lasting technology vs. rechargeable buds decision. Whichever decade it reminds you of or places you in, it's the kind of eccentric spin on a trend that I can get into.

For more, visit Chanel.

Chanel