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Chanel Boy-Friend Couture Watch Limited Edition
Ref. H9834
The Boy·Friend line began as Chanel's answer to a specific aesthetic problem: how to make a rectangular dress watch that reads as deliberately borrowed rather than merely small. The Couture edition goes further, rooting the watch directly in the Rue Cambon ateliers — the dial carries a tweed jacket motif printed in gold and silver dust, with eight diamonds standing in for the buttons, and the bezel is set with an integrated 18-carat yellow gold chain that replicates the weighted hem sewn into the lining of a Chanel jacket to make it hang correctly. The reference is not decorative shorthand; it is the actual object, miniaturised. At 34.6 by 26.7mm the octagonal case sits across the wrist rather than down it, closer to a cuff than a watch in the conventional sense. The strap reinforces that: black calfskin worked with a grosgrain ribbon pattern, patent leather trim and a gold-coloured lining, so the reverse is as considered as the face. The black spinel cabochon on the crown is the kind of detail that registers only when you reach to set the time, which is precisely when it should.
- Reference
- H9834
- Brand
- Chanel
- Collection
- Boy·FriendCase Size: 34
- Case size
- 26.7mm
- Case material
- Black PVD
- Case shape
- Octagonal
- Dial
- Black
- Crystal
- Sapphire
- Movement
- Quartz
- Water resistance
- 30m
- Bracelet / strap
- Leather strap
- Strap colour
- Black
- Clasp
- Buckle
- Lume
- Luminous
- Retailer
- Goldsmiths
Learn more about Chanel
Gabrielle Chanel opened her first shop in 1910 and spent the following decades removing things from women's clothing — corsetry, ornament, the assumption that formality required discomfort. The jersey suit, the little black dress and No. 5 came from that.
The watches are made in-house, not licensed. Chanel opened its own watch manufacture in La Chaux-de-Fonds in 1993 and has since taken stakes in the movement maker Kenissi, giving it access to genuinely serious mechanics.
Two designs define the output. The Première of 1987 took its octagonal case from the stopper of the No. 5 bottle and its chain-and-leather bracelet from the quilted handbag. The J12 of 2000 was made almost entirely from high-tech ceramic at a time when almost nobody was doing it, and it changed what a fashion house's watch could be taken seriously as.
More recently the Monsieur and the Code Coco have carried in-house calibres, including a jumping-hour movement developed by Chanel itself.
The company remains privately owned by the Wertheimer family.
- 1910
- Gabrielle Chanel opens her first shop in Paris.
- 1987
- The Première introduces the octagonal No. 5 case.
- 1993
- Opens its own watch manufacture in La Chaux-de-Fonds.
- 2000
- The J12 arrives in high-tech ceramic.
- 2016
- The Monsieur brings a Chanel in-house calibre.
Manufacturer’s guarantee
Your new watch
Frequently asked questions, and things you should know about this watch
Can I swim with it?
No. At 30m it will survive rain and handwashing, but not submersion of any kind.
Will the glass scratch?
Unlikely. Sapphire is second only to diamond in hardness and shrugs off everyday marking.
Does it need a battery?
Yes. It is quartz, so expect a battery change every two to three years at a jeweller.
Is it a men's or women's watch?
Listed as unisex, and at this size it suits any wrist that takes the dimensions.
Cheapest place to buy
Goldsmiths is the only UK retailer we track stocking this reference, so there is nothing to compare it against today.
Who are Goldsmiths?
Goldsmiths has been selling watches in Britain since 1778 and is part of the Watches of Switzerland Group, which is listed on the London Stock Exchange. They are an authorised dealer, so a watch comes with the manufacturer’s own warranty.
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