Magali Metrailler is a walking contradiction: a young blonde looking like she belongs in a page of Vogue, who, however, refuses to work on ‘girlie” watches and is fascinated by everything there is to know about watchmaking mechanics. This is how the designer of the AMVOX and Master Compressor ranges from Jaeger-LeCoultre could be described in a few words.  “I came to Jaeger-LeCoultre a long time ago, in 2000. I had studied architecture at first, and during that time I decided to change my major and moved to industrial design – I spent three years at the design school in Milan. My first project had to do with furniture and interior accessories, and then I discovered watchmaking through my father in law who is a watchmaker and with whom I would have long talks about technology. This is how I decided to become involved in watchmaking; I sent several CVs and chose Jaeger-LeCoultre because I was impressed by the manufacture and the people, who are true experts in their industry – to me they seemed extremely passionate about what they were doing,” Magali Metrailler recounts. The designer chose to work at the factory in Le Sentier, despite the town being isolated and seemingly forgotten, because a workshop in another town would not have allowed her to interact with the brand’s specialists as much as she does here, and the creative side would have suffered.  “The difference between design and reality is often huge, because most of the times numerous modifications are needed and to do that it is best to be where the action is. I believe I found the perfect job, because the level of involvement is fantastic, there is an incredibly creative and effervescent atmosphere and as a designer, I appreciate the chance of working with both sports and classical models.” Besides the two lines she is in charge with, Magali Metrailler has also worked on Gyrotourbillon and on Atmos (celebrated by Jaeger-LeCoultre in 2008) and in 2009 did what she never thought she would - an haute joaillerie piece. “I said to myself “why not?’. I wanted to try and make a less girlie haute joaillerie model, without flowers and ornaments, and very powerful instead. I worked with a Master Compressor Diving and a very geometrical, unexpected and very technical model came out.” Metrailler was also very involved in the creation of AMVOX2 DBS Transponder, which made quite an impression at SIHH in January 2009, considering it can be also be used as key/remote by the owners of the Aston Martin DBS model (the watch is only available to them). “When we began the partnership with Aston Martin, the idea was to do something that was connected to the car but we worked on style first. Eventually, when Aston Martin informed us they wanted to replace the key, we said to ourselves ‘Now’s the time to do something really really special’. So we got together and put our heads together to find a solution. It wasn’t simple though because we encountered many technical problems and most of the times I was so disheartened that I thought it would never happen. For instance, it was unbelievably difficult for us to put all the technology from an Aston Martin key into a watch and keep it from reaching a huge size (the watch is less than half the size of the key). We also had a lot of trouble with the antenna, for which we had to find a place and which also had to have quite a range and be quite far from the movement. The number of modifications was huge,” Metrailler recalls, who at some point would change something once or twice a week. “We did it, eventually, the electronic system was fully integrated and you cannot even see the antenna. The Englishmen at Aston Martin, who are usually so reserved, were beside themselves with joy when they saw we did it, which seems all the more extraordinary to me considering we don’t normally do such a thing. To me it was not only about design, but also about creating a very close interaction with the car.” Metrailler admits that the AMVOX line gives her greater creative freedom because it is one of the most innovative of the brand, where everything goes as long as it stays true to the spirit of the manufacturer. “Why not? It is a concept watch – and as long as we bring something new and special there will surely be a place for it in the AMVOX range. It is true that there is a brief almost all the time, but it always leaves the door open to suggestions. Such as the innovative chronograph handling system of the AMVOX that had not been planned but one of my colleagues came up with the idea and our CEO Jerome Lambert said ‘Try it!’" Magali Metrailler does not rule out work on a feminine line in the future, provided certain conditions are met. “I would not be interested if it only were about making some masculine models smaller and slapping some diamonds onto them. Yet it would be interesting to design a women’s watch line from scratch, something for women only, with movements for them. In that case, I would be delighted.”