Giorgio Armani Belongs To The Ages

Giorgio Armani 

The King of Italian Design

Belongs To The Ages

1934-2025

RolexMagazine.com mourns the loss of Giorgio Armani, the legendary Italian fashion designer, who passed away at 91. Armani’s timeless elegance and innovative vision redefined luxury, blending sophistication with simplicity. His iconic designs, from sharp tailoring to effortless chic, left an indelible mark on global fashion. A pioneer of red-carpet glamour and minimalist style, Armani’s legacy endures in every stitch of his creations. We extend our deepest condolences to his family, friends, and the fashion world. Rest in peace, Maestro.

Armani wore and depended on Rolex watches throughout his career, and in the photo above we see him rocking a Datejust, as well as a vintage Oyster Perpetual in the photo below.

In the photo below we see him sporting a vintage Rolex Bubbleback in a polaroid photo taken by Andy Warhol.

When I started my own clothing design career back in the 1980s, I was, of course, inspired by Giorgio Armani, as well as Ralph Lauren, and Calvin Klein. Armani made some amazing colognes and some great sportswear, that I really enjoyed owning over the years. Armani was way more than a clothing designer who was always on the runway, as he was also a pioneer in creating a lifestyle brand that included Armani Casa home decor, luxury hotels, and many interesting accessories, including his A | X Armani Exchange.

One of my greatest Armani memories is how he outfitted Richard Gere in American Gigolo, which was a seminal early 1980s movie. The scene where Gere slides open his drawer filled with Armani shirts was perhaps one of the seminal fashion moments to grace the big screen. This really put Armani on the fashion map worldwide.

Diane von Fürstenberg: Yellow Gold Lady Date @ Studio 54

...Rolex Super Hotness...

Diane von Fürstenberg

Yellow Gold Lady Date @ Studio 54

Luxury Lifestyle Designer

Diane von Fürstenberg is one of the top designers in the world today. She has also been the President of The Council Of Fashion Designers Of America since 2006. Diane was formerly married to Prince Egon of Fürstenberg, which made her Princess Diane of Fürstenberg. She is pictured below at the famed Studio 54 in New York City, wearing her yellow gold Rolex Lady Date.

Diane von Fürstenberg is pictured below in Geneva, Switzerland at age 18, in 1964.

The photo below of Diane von Fürstenberg started her ultra-successful Wrap-Dress revolution.

Adrienne Vittadini 1997 Rolex Explorer Ad

Adrienne Vittadini

1997 Rolex Explorer Ad

I thought it would be interesting to look at this magnificent Rolex Magazine ad from 30 years ago. I remember seeing this Adrienne Vittadini ad 23 years ago, in 1997, and it only took me nine years to find it in high-resolution?!! This is a fairly major piece of Rolex history, and it is probably the first Rolex advertisement that shows a woman wearing a man's 40mm Rolex...

Adrienne Vittadini is an American designer who was born Adrienne Toth in 1944. Andrienne's father was a physician and a staunch anticommunist and was a supporter of the 1956 Hungarian Revolution. Below we see a photo of Adrienne Vittadini taken in 2018 and, notice, she is wearing a stainless steel Rolex Daytona with a white dial...

In this next photo taken in 2012, we see Adrienne wearing a Lady-Datejust... 

Petter from Hungary wrote in and said:
Hey Jake,
Just saw your post on the blog about Adrienne Vittadini. She was born in Győr - Hungary, my hometown.
Lovely little place, have a look :)
Kind regards,
Petter

Rolex Coolness: Michael Kors Women's Wear Designer

...Rolex Coolness...


Michael Kors

Women's Wear Designer

Michael Kors is one of the top designers in the world today, and Vogue Magazine just published a fascinating episode of 73 Questions with Michael Kors which showcases his New York apartment which is fascinating. In the video we see his wearing his stainless steel Rolex Datejust which he wears on a Jubilee Bracelet. 

 

Michael Kors also is pictured below wearing a stainless steel Rolex Submariner, and he also wears a Yellow Gold Rolex Submariner which can be seen in the last video at the end of this story which also features an apartment tour with Architectural Digest.

Ralph Lauren & Rolex...

...Rolex Super-Coolness... 

Ralph Lauren

Pepsi Rolex GMT Master

What does Polo by Ralph Lauren and Rolex have in common? They are both highly iconic brands that hit the apex of their success in the 1980s as the fashion world returned to a clean-cut look. 

Ralph Lauren is one of the top American designers and he has been wearing Rolex watches for 5 decades. The photo of him below was taken at Martha's Vineyard in 1981 by Bruce Weber and shows him wearing his Pepsi Rolex GMT Master. Ralph Lauren is a big Rolex collector and has been for many years. 

In many ways, Polo and Rolex are similar in the sense that they are both timeless, sporty and elegant. Also, Polo and Rolex are very similar in many ways, as they are both really the gold-standard for successful branding in each of their fields of endeavor.

This next photo shows Ralph Lauren with his beautiful wife Ricky on the beach in 1986. Notice they are both wearing Rolex Sports watches. It is fascinating when you think about it, that this photo was taken 32 years ago. In other words, today it is extremely common to see a woman wearing a man's Rolex sports watch, however, 32 years ago, you almost never saw it.

This next photo shows Ralph Lauren with his brother, Jerry Lauren, and they are both wearing Rolex sports watches. Jerry Lauren has been the head of the Polo menswear line since its inception.

I recently spoke with a former Polo Ralph Lauren employee who told me:

"Ralph use to hand out Rolex GMT's in the 80's—like candy—to his favorite and deserving employees during the holiday season as gifts. Ralph especially gave GMT's to his Creative Services employees, which were the ones who would do the windows in the Polo Mansion in New York."

Ricky Lauren is pictured below in earlier years wearing a ladies Datejust on an Oyster Bracelet.

Ralph Lauren not only wears Rolex watches but has featured them in many of his ads over the years like the one below from his 1995 Polo collection which features Tyson Beckford wearing his Rolex GMT Master. This photo was also taken by Bruce Weber.

Ralph Lauren was always a big fan of Cary Grant and later in Cary's life, Ralph had the chance to meet him as we see in the photo below.

In the more recent photos below we see Ralph Lauren still wearing a Rolex GMT.

Rolex Coolness: Tom Ford Super Stylish American Designer...

...Rolex Coolness... 

Tom Ford

Super Stylish American Clothing Designer

There are many different Ford's that wear Rolex. We have Harrison Ford, President Ford, and William Ford. Another famous Ford that is a Rolex fanatic is Tom Ford.

Tom Ford is a fashion designer, film director, film producer, and screenwriter. The Italian brand, Gucci did really well in the 1980s, but by the later 1980s sales started to slow. As a result, by the early 1990s, Gucci was on the verge of Bankruptcy. 

One of the lawyers who was handling the bankruptcy case decided they needed to hire a designer to come up with one last Gucci collection, which would give them time to liquidate more assets. That lawyer hired Tom Ford as Creative Director for Gucci in 1994, and Tom Ford shocked the fashion world with his first collection which received nothing by accolades from the fashion press. In other words, Tom Ford saved Gucci. By the end of the twentieth century, the Gucci brand was valued at more than $4 Billion.

So how into wearing Rolex is Tom Ford? Not only does he wear Rolex watches, but he insists that everybody close to him also wears Rolex watches, and if they don't already own a Rolex, he gives them one as a gift.




Many Hollywood actors, celebrities, and musicians wear Tom Ford clothing including Daniel Craig who is pictured below wearing a Tom Ford Tuxedo at a 007 movie premiere. Also, notice Daniel Craig is wearing his GV Rolex Milgauss. 

Brad Pitt is pictured below wearing Tom Ford glasses, which feature the sideways "T".

Legendary Tennis player, Roger Federer is pictured before rockin' Tom Ford in a recent photo from GQ.

The rapper, Jay-Z not only wears Tom Ford clothing but also wrote a song named "Tom Ford", which you can watch him perform below.

Jay-Z Rolex Life...

Winner of 21 Grammy Awards

...Rolex Coolness... 


Jay-Z

A Brilliant Career Wearing Rolex 

The 60th Grammy Awards list of nominees was released this week, and Jay-Z, an American entrepreneur and hip/hop rapper, is again a top contender. Jay-Z has sold over 50 million albums so far and has already won 21 Grammy Awards. The nomination this week gets him eight nods for the album “4:44,” which mixed dark personal confessions with meditations about race. According to Forbes Magazine, Jay-Z is estimated having a net worth of around $810 million dollars and he is one of the owners of the NBA New Jersey Nets. He recently sat down with Dean Baquet, the executive editor of the New York Times, for this interesting interview, and notice he is wearing his platinum Rolex Day-Date.

In the photo below we see Jay-Z wearing his trademark platinum Rolex Day-Date in 1997 on the cover of his album named "In My Lifetime."

Jay-Z is married to the ultra-talented, and ultra-gorgeous Beyonce Knowles and you see them together below, and notice Jay Z is wearing a new stainless steel Rolex Daytona with a ceramic bezel.

Jay-Z is pictured below with his daughter, and notice he is wearing a Rolex Sky-Dweller.

The photo below shows Jay Z holding his son, while he is wearing his stainless steel Rolex Daytona, with a ceramic bezel.

Forever Young 
Beyonce and Jay-Z

Platinum Rolex Day-Date II
In this next video, we see Jay-Z being interviewed on The Daily Show wearing his all-new Platinum Rolex Day-Date II.


In this recent interview (below) we see Jay-Z wearing a different yellow gold Rolex Day-Date II.


The video below is a fascinating CNN interview with Jay Z from 2011.

This next image is very interesting. It shows Jay Z wearing his yellow gold Rolex Sky-Dweller with the biggest gold necklace and bracelet I have ever seen in my life...It's interesting how his watch kinda matches his gold chain and bracelet...

The video below is absolutely fascinating as it features Jay Z and Warren Buffett being interviewed by Stephen Forbes. One interesting thing Warren Buffett and Jay Z have in common is they both wear Rolex Day-Date models.