Classics Ladies Automatic Double Heart Beat Reimagined in Three Gem-Set Dials

Key Highlights

• Three new 36mm interpretations in opal, malachite and aventurine glass dials, released May 2026
• Signature double-heart aperture repositioned to 6 o’clock for the first time in the collection’s history
• New La Joux-Perret calibre developed exclusively for this collection, with a 68-hour power reserve
• Open-worked mainplate preserves an unobstructed view of the escapement through the heart motif
• Aventurine glass version features a bezel set with 40 diamonds totalling 0.447 carats
• Each watch includes two interchangeable straps: a seven-link steel bracelet and a colour-matched alligator-style leather strap
• Black ceramic cabochon crown introduced for the first time across the collection

Distinctive Traits

Twenty years after its debut, the Classics Ladies Automatic Double Heart Beat has been comprehensively redrawn. This is not a refresh — the aperture has moved, the hearts have been redrawn, the movement is entirely new, and the dials are now mineral and blown glass rather than conventionally decorated surfaces.

The decision to shift the double-heart motif from 12 o’clock to 6 o’clock is the most immediately legible change. It alters the entire visual grammar of the dial: the “Frédérique Constant Genève” signature now occupies 12 o’clock, restoring bilateral symmetry. The hearts themselves have been redrawn with more refined, contemporary lines, and are rendered almost fused — a deliberate symbolic gesture that the Maison was willing to commit to at the design stage. The crown at 3 o’clock receives a black ceramic cabochon, a detail that reads as quietly modern against the polished case and would previously have seemed out of character for this collection.

Design & Materials

The three dial materials are the centrepiece of this reissue. Malachite presents a deep, intense green animated by lighter horizontal patterns inherent to the stone. Opal operates differently: its partial translucency allows light to penetrate and illuminate from within, revealing iridescent tones of blue, pink and pastel green that shift with the angle of observation.

The aventurine glass version has the most theatrical backstory. This deep midnight-blue blown glass traces its origins to a 15th-century Venetian glassmaker who accidentally dropped copper filings into molten glass, producing an unintended but enduring material. Frédérique Constant pairs it with a bezel set with 40 diamonds totalling 0.447 carats, a pairing that amplifies the copper shimmer within the glass without overwhelming the dial. The hour circle across all three models is punctuated by 11 diamonds.

Each watch ships with two straps included as standard. The seven-link polished steel bracelet gives the piece an urban, contemporary character. The alligator-style leather alternative is colour-matched: green for malachite, burgundy for opal, navy for aventurine. The interchangeability is handled without tools, which matters for a watch positioned as a daily companion rather than a display piece.

Movement & Mechanics

The new calibre, produced by La Joux-Perret and developed exclusively for this collection, represents a meaningful technical step. La Joux-Perret was founded nearly 45 years ago and is now part of the same group as Frédérique Constant, alongside Alpina Watches, which facilitates genuine in-group movement development rather than an off-the-shelf solution.

The 68-hour power reserve is a practical improvement over previous generations. More pertinent to the aesthetic rationale is the open-worked mainplate: the calibre has been specifically modified so that the view from the dial side onto the escapement remains unobstructed, which preserves the fundamental promise of the Double Heart Beat. The caseback is sapphire crystal, revealing vertical Côtes de Genève decoration on the oscillating weight and automatic bridge — decorative finishing that is visible daily only to the wearer, which is precisely the point.

Market Position

The original Heart Beat concept dates to 1994, when Frédérique Constant built an aperture to expose the movement at 12 o’clock — a genuinely novel idea in a market still gravitating back towards mechanical watchmaking from quartz. The Maison famously did not patent the concept; it was adopted widely across the industry in the years that followed. The Double Heart Beat, introduced in 2006 as a women’s interpretation of that same aperture, became one of the brand’s most consistent commercial successes.

This 2026 reissue positions the collection squarely in accessible luxury, where fine Swiss Made construction, in-house-group movements and genuine material interest intersect at a price point that competes with the entry tier of the major maisons. The 36mm case diameter keeps the proposition firmly centred on women’s horology, and the three dial personalities — one earthy, one luminous, one nocturnal — cover a meaningful range of aesthetic preferences. For the Watches and Wonders season, it is a considered release from a Manufacture that has now developed 35 in-house movements since its founding in 1988.

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