FRIDAY WIND DOWN: Thank you for making our Bamford collab, our first-ever watch, a winner, we love you
For anyone who spends a lot of time on social media, and cruises around Time+Tide’s Instagram on a regular basis, they’ll probably already know that our Bamford x Time+Tide GMT1 sold out in 26 hours over the weekend. And for those who happened to tune in to Insta Stories over the weekend, they’ll also know that I might have celebrated that fact pretty heartily at the Time+Tide Club and then Staff Christmas Party on Friday night. Thanks buyers, thanks Club, thanks darling colleagues for making sure the moment went marked. It was so good to see you all. The biggest thanks, however, goes to the man himself, George Bamford, for making sure I felt the effects too, by kicking off our Insta Live session with some blasting AC/DC. Bless you all. To relive my pain, and to hear how the whole story came about, enjoy this hot mess of an interview with George all over again here. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Time+Tide (@timetidewatches) That wasn’t the only story of the week — here are the three biggest posts as voted by the world’s eyeballs. Thanks not just to our brilliant buyers for backing us…
The post FRIDAY WIND DOWN: Thank you for making our Bamford collab, our first-ever watch, a winner, we love you appeared first on Time and Tide Watches.
In 2019, this was without a doubt one of the pieces I most enjoyed putting together. Not just because I love looking at photos of watches, but because the difference between a good photo and a bad photo is a gulf that isn’t often talked about, and has some of the most impact on how a watch is understood. After all, in the words that I write I can describe the feeling of a watch on the wrist, or explain why it is a significant piece in the history of a brand, but a photo can offer insights that words can sometimes struggle to compete with. It’s true that a picture speaks a thousand words, and even more so when it comes to communicating about the wonderful world of watches. So without further ado, here are six of my favourite watch photos from 2020, in no particular order. Seiko SRPE39K Save The Ocean Seiko make the people’s dive watches, and have for decades. But what I love about them, aside from their accessible prices and endlessly varied designs, is the build quality and detail execution that they nail. For me, this photo represents that perfectly, with the near perfectly formed…
Many guys dismiss the idea of wearing a diamond watch out of fear it’ll seem ludicrously over the top. Admittedly, countless celebrities rock blinged-out watches smothered with so many diamonds you can barely see the metal. But there are other, more subtle alternatives to the fully iced-out look you may want to explore. It is no secret diamonds can add hefty premiums to watch prices, especially when bought at retail. Here are eight of our favourite men’s diamond watches – ranging from the more affordable entry-level pieces all the way to six figures. Tudor Royal ref. M28600-0004 Probably the most interesting thing about the Tudor Royal is the number of configurations and sizes available. With more than 50 combinations to choose from, fans of the design have no shortage of options. When you think diamonds, you typically don’t imagine entry-level pricing. But Tudor is an extremely trustworthy manufacturer that delivers quality offerings at more approachable price points. In this instance they have done so with diamonds, and in a sporty package you can swim with no less. The integrated stainless-steel build doesn’t hurt either. Price: $2950 USD Rolex Datejust 36 ref. 126324 Little brother not enough? Then Rolex may be your…
Hi, my name’s Matt and I’m a watch degenerate … I don’t really want to be. I honestly go into every watch purchase with the heartfelt belief that this will be the watch that I will keep for the rest of my life and pass onto my son. But inevitably I change my mind (again). Before I know it, I’ve traded up for another watch that I simply cannot possibly live without. Ever. Until I discover that, in fact, it turns out that I actually can. Why am I stuck on the watch-flipping carousel? The biggest problem, I think, is that my horological ideal won’t stay still. It continues to change and evolve. Either that or I’m just addicted to the thrill of the chase. This particular tale has its origins firmly rooted in 2018. Baselworld rolled around and Rolex delivered the goods as usual with a new stainless-steel GMT Pepsi on Jubilee. Sign.Me.Up. With Buckley’s chance of getting one of these bad-boys at retail my attention shifted to the smash hit of the 2018 fair – the Tudor Black Bay GMT. At the time I owned a Tudor Black Bay Blue (also now flipped – insert facepalm emoji), so…
When you’re a hardcore enthusiast it’s easy to get stuck in the #watchfam echo chamber, so it’s always nice to get some outside perspective from others who’ve yet to fall down the horological rabbit hole. That’s exactly what we got from journalist Liana Satenstein, as she ponders her first move in acquiring a classic watch. She recently published this story on Vogue about why she is buying her first watch – and the sentiment is very relatable. In “Why I’m Buying My First Watch”, Satenstein explores her relationship with technology. She remarks, “There’s no doubt that the digital abyss of Instagram and work emails has taken years off of my life, and this year, slowed or stopped time for me completely. To cope, I’ve been trying to take 30-minute walks during the day in order to alleviate the weirdness of the passing hours at home and conjure some sense of zen. But ironically, I track the time of these walks with my phone.” We can all relate to our device attachment, and the phenomenon is so real that even Apple has built tools in its software to help users keep track of their screen time. To try to further disconnect,…
Seiko dive watches are the stuff of legend. They have inspired everything from the creation of entire Instagram accounts to the cult followings of references that appeared on the silver screen. They might not be the collective dials that launched a thousand ships, but they’re pretty damn close. This global ardour for the water-resistant wonders from Japan is well-merited and is the reason it’s always worth keeping an eye on new additions to the family. Which brings us nicely onto these two releases — the Seiko SPB181J and SSC795J. Both members of Seiko’s hard-wearing Prospex family, these two new special-editions get extra sub-aquatic credibility thanks to the logo just above the word AUTOMATIC on the dial. That logo belongs to PADI, the Professional Association of Diving Instructors, who Seiko have produced a number of special-edition diving watches with, including the wildly popular Seiko Turtle Reissue SRPA21K. You can generally tell a modern Prospex PADI edition Seiko from afar when it has a “Pepsi” bezel. It’s kind of Seiko to reserve such a white-hot colour combo for the PADI editions, because while the PADI logo might be a little too “inside baseball” for the majority of Seiko buyers, that bezel is…
What’s the best way to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Hublot for the Australian arm of the brand? Through our national sport of cricket, of course. And that’s exactly what Hublot Australia have done, bringing together two Australian cricketing greats in Michael Clarke and Pat Cummins to mark the launch of the new Hublot Classic Fusion 40 Years Anniversary collection. The Hublot Classic Fusion 40 Years Anniversary collection is a trio of new references inspired by the first-ever Hublot made back in 1980. Founder Carlo Crocco was behind the design of this original Hublot, which inspired Jean-Claude Biver and Ricardo Guadalupe to later coin the phrase “the art of fusion”, due to the watch’s solid yellow gold case being paired with a black rubber strap. This was a first for the watch industry and the start of a trend that dozens of brands have followed. Michael Clarke, a former captain of the Australian Cricket Team, has been a Hublot ambassador since 2014, and believes this willingness to evolve and push boundaries has been critical to the brand’s success. “This year has been incredibly challenging for everyone around the world, but thinking on your feet has been more important than ever…
To celebrate their 70th birthday, luxury watch retailer Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons have released a limited-edition watch with Bovet. The distinctive black and yellow design of the resulting watch is certainly eye-catching. But what makes the Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons and Bovet 19Thirty Dimier U.A.E Limited Edition such an intriguing proposition? Well, to understand the watch, let’s remind ourselves of exactly who we are dealing with. Founded half a decade after World War II, in 1950, Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons is one of the most important luxury retail networks in the Middle East, and indeed the world. Beginning humbly as a single shopfront in Dubai’s souk, the retailer now has dozens of boutiques across the UAE, representing dozens of luxury watch brands. Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons is also the force behind Dubai Watch Week, the biannual watch fair that serves the horological world more as a conference than a trade show. In the years when Dubai Watch Week isn’t held, they put on the virtual Horology Forum (which was thankfully scheduled for 2020, so no physical event had to be cancelled due to travel restrictions), which is, in effect, a summit for the watch world to discuss and debate. Compared…
You know how it is. You spend ages thinking about your next watch – planning, saving, researching, deciding, changing your mind, procrastinating … And then a new release wanders by, flashes its bright shiny dial and you pick it up with hardly a thought. That’s how the sector dial Baltic Bicompax 002 ended up on my wrist. Baltic first revealed its sector dial earlier this year with the limited-edition salmon dial three-hander and chronograph. An immediate hit, it was no surprise when they recently returned with silver, black and blue gilt variants (alongside the time-only HMS 002). It immediately ticked a few boxes for me. Here was a sector dial, manually wound chronograph (with a clear caseback option) in 38mm, from a brand I’d heard good things about. And – at €649 (inc. VAT) – it was priced to tempt. I had previously looked at higher-end sector dials such as Jaeger-LeCoultre’s briefly produced but increasingly sought-after Master Control line and the more recent, pristine Longines Heritage Classic. But while the latter was especially well-priced, I still hadn’t reached for the wallet. That combination of design and price was enough to make the silver dial Bicompax 002 an impulse buy for…
This year was strange, to put it mildly. The pandemic was ever-present, lurking over our shoulder, keeping us locked in our homes and generally limiting our contact with the rest of the world. Fortunately, for those of us into watches, the new releases have continued to flow with manufacturers adapting their release strategies to meet the year’s peculiar demands. Here are my three favourite watches of 2020. Kurono “Mori” One-Year Anniversary Limited Edition In my opinion, Kurono watches have the best ratio of affordability to artistry. Lucky buyers get world-class dials and hands in a classic 37mm case profile that’s beautifully polished all around (besides its brushed caseback). The Mori One-Year Anniversary Limited Edition has a rich emerald green dial that I have yet to even begin to tire of and looks far more expensive than it really is. For under $2000 USD, Kurono manages to provide consumers with completely distinct and original designs from Hajime Asaoka – who, under his own name, creates bespoke watches priced at tens of thousands of dollars. With Kurono, he still manages to bring the same level of attention to detail, blending both bespoke and affordable elements to the watch. The Miyota movement within…