How Rihanna and The Weeknd are fuelling the bling watch trend: from RiRi’s iced-out Rolex to The Weeknd’s ‘ladies’ Piaget and Michelle Yeoh repping Richard Mille, brighter is now officially better

Aug 11 , 2023

Rihanna loves blingy watches, even wearing them as chokers, and they are having a moment again with demand for them growing in Asia. Photo: Handout

RiRi wore a glammed Rolex King Midas at her pregnancy reveal, while Michelle Yeoh rocked a diamond-encrusted Richard Mille at this year’s Met Gala

Fuelling the trend are ostentatious watchmakers like Hublot and Jacob & Co., whose multimillion-dollar timepieces have been worn by bold personalities including Jay-Z, Cristiano Ronaldo and Floyd Mayweather

Call it a reaction to so-called quiet luxury or the noticeable move toward pared-back vintage-inspired timepieces – because lately, in other places, watches have become noticeably more extravagant.

You only need to – well, clock – Rihanna, queen of the blinged-out watch for proof, from her customised iced-out Rolex King Midas, worn when announcing her pregnancy in that paparazzi photo shoot, to the 47mm diamond-encrusted Jacob & Co timepiece she wore as a choker on the front row at Pharrell Williams’ debut for Louis Vuitton in June.

Michelle Yeoh wore a Richard Mille watch on the red carpet at the 2023 Met Gala in May. Photo: EPA-EFE

Other recent fans of a statement watch include Michelle Yeoh, a long-time ambassador for Richard Mille, who wore a striking diamond “snow set” watch on a black strap to this year’s Met Gala, and singer The Weeknd, who paired his Loewe tuxedo with a Piaget Limelight high jewellery “ladies” watch to the premiere of his controversial series The Idol at Cannes earlier this year.

The latter timepiece was a twinkling reminder that fancy watches are for everybody. One of the best things about the extravagant watch resurgence is the way it dissipates any stubbornly held ideas around gender “rules” in watches.

Canadian actor and singer The Weeknd at Cannes Film Festival 2023 in May. Photo: Getty Images

One brand to continue to evolve this, and ideas of haute horology and razzle dazzle, is Hublot. This year the maison might have shrunk some of its sizes and made an impact with the sporty chic reimagining of the Classic Fusion Original watch first launched in 1980, but it went big on bling.

Among a slew of launches, Hublot introduced two new iterations of the Big Bang Integrated Rainbow, each crafted in“King Gold” and set with colourful gemstones, plus other gem-set pieces such as the Square Bang Unico Diamonds.

Hublot Big Bang Integrated King Gold Rainbow. Photo: Handout

“There is a very strong demand for gem-set pieces mostly coming from Asian clients who are looking for stand-out unique pieces,” says Hublot CEO Ricardo Guadalupe. “Our diamond set and rainbow watches are very popular with our clients as they are genderless and can be worn by all. The rainbow watches in particular sell out very quickly.”