Yesterday, I had the distinct pleasure of lunching with Roland Iten and his lovely wife, Carol Galiano, at a great little Italian restaurant here in London.
Now if you’re not familiar with Roland Iten’s work already it probably just means you move in the wrong social circles – sorry about that.
Best known for his exotic luxury belt calibers, the range also extends to equally exotic and luxurious credit card holders and mechanical cuff links, among other things, all of which Roland will invariably have attached to different parts of his person when you meet him. In fact, in my experience, simply giving Roland the once-over is a great way to learn more about what the brand has to offer.
Yesterday was certainly no exception, with one item in particular really catching my eye; Roland’s very own RZ8 Mark II Cufflinks, codename: Ziletto.
The Ziletto Effect
It’s hard to describe just how cool the Roland Iten Ziletto cufflinks are but suffice to say, they are more than likely far superior to anything that has adorned your cuffs before (unless you own another pair of Roland Iten cufflinks of course.) The quality of construction is superb and it really is a challenge to stop yourself from wanting to touch them all the time, although that is exactly the point according to Roland.
Like nearly everything Iten makes the Ziletto’s have very much a mechanical bent. An evolution of the original Z shaped, spring ejection, double-bullet cufflinks he first created in 2004, this new model incorporates two new improved and patent-pending features: a sophisticated push-button ejection mechanism and a unique click-controlled, sliding sleeve calibration system.
So, what does all that mean? Well, essentially it means you can adjust the cufflinks to suit your needs. According to the brand the click-controlled and sliding sleeve calibration device incorporated into the cuff wing allows a six-position fine adjustment to ensure the cuff fits comfortably, either above or beneath watches of varying dimensions. I could go into more detail trying to explain how it works but it’s easier just to show you this great little video:
Party Time
Undoubtedly you would have noticed by now that these unique cufflinks also conceal a cool little secret of their own. By day they masquerade as simple, albeit still highly attractive, cufflinks fit for the relatively menial tasks of holding your cuffs in place and looking altogether acceptable in the office.
When the sun goes down however and it’s time to head out for the evening (‘party time’ as Roland calls it) a simple press of the button on the wing of each cuff ejects the previously concealed bullets, each adorned with 30 dazzling TW VVS1 diamonds. Truly a sight to behold, believe me!
The collection is issued in limited and numbered series of solid White, solid Black and/or solid Rose Gold derivations with Top Wesselton VVS1 white diamonds. And the price? Well, if you have to ask…
The Final Word
In my opinion Roland Iten’s creations are on a whole other level and simply need to be seen in person to be fully appreciated. It really is easy to write them off as overpriced accessories but nothing could be further from the truth, with each piece offering the same level of exacting quality and complexity you would find in a high-end luxury watch. Don’t just take my word for it though, if you’re based in London why not pop into Harrods and check out the collection for yourself!
Unfortunately we did not have proper camera gear with us yesterday – it was meant to be a relaxing lunch with friends after all! – and so there are no live shots this time around, but rest assured there soon will be!
