Affordable watch winners, just in time for summer
Editor’s note: As summer is swiftly approaching (in the Southern Hemisphere), a couple of friends who are into watches and I have been increasingly keen on picking up a summer watch. The thing about a summer watch is that you don’t want to break the bank when buying one, just in case you do only wear it during the summer. Which led me to thinking about the best watches that live for the summer months, but are also relatively affordable. Have a read, and let us know your favourite affordable watch for summer in the socials comments. Not everybody can afford the big guns: Patek Philippe, Vacheron Constantin, Audemars Piguet, Lange & Söhne, Breguet … These brands are, for many of us, a little out of reach (unfortunately). But that doesn’t mean we can’t appreciate them from afar. Nor does it mean that we can’t find watches within our grasp that offer enough bang for their buck to earn the approval of even the snobbiest of watch snobs (well, okay, maybe not the snobbiest). Not all of the brands on this list of the best budget watch brands look a lot like any of the watches produced by the haute…
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Exotic stone dials have always been popular with watch collectors, not only for their stunning beauty but also their typical rarity and the unique patterning from stone to stone. This same dial technique has been used in the two examples of stone dial Omega Seamaster 300s, a classic dive watch that is typically considered to be an under-the-radar daily wear watch – until you make the case in precious metal and the dial out of a semi-precious stone. Both the Omega Seamaster 300 with a lapis lazuli dial and a malachite dial express a kind of opulent excess that is deeply attractive in a way that evokes guilt and wonder in equal measure. Part of your brain questions the motivation behind its existence, and the other part can’t help but stare in the same slack-jawed awe you experience while looking up at the ceiling of St Mark’s Basilica. It is certainly unnecessary, but it is also beautiful, which is a justification in and of itself. Firstly focusing on the lapis lazuli example: the richly flecked blue dial is cased in 41mm of a platinum-gold, while the hands are 18k white gold and the bezel is polished blue ceramic. Probably to…
Editor’s note: A couple of years ago, Andrew and the team were lucky enough to travel to Lord Howe Island to explore the Vacheron Constantin Overseas collection and, in the process, enjoy the unbelievable scenery of volcanic spires and fish-filled shallows. While the setting was one of the most remarkable on earth, the focus was on one of the most remarkable brands on earth with a collection of watches that boast the Geneva Seal in a very sporty package. Enjoy the video! We gave a glimpse of our 48 hours in paradise with the Vacheron Constantin Overseas collection a month ago, but now, with the watches officially revealed and reviewed, it’s time to turn up the envy to unforeseen levels. In addition to mouthwatering shots of the collection, hands-down one of the best in the steel sports category this year, we’re also showing here just how spectacular Lord Howe Island is. From the volcanic peaks, to the friendly schools of fish that mill around your ankles in the shallows, to the outlook from the luxury Capella Lodge where my room had, just months before, been home to Blake Lively during the shooting of shark-as-villain thriller The Shallows. It’s all here,…
Earlier this year, Time+Tide celebrated the arrival of the 2019 Breguet collection in Australia. For those who attended, it was a night nobody would forget in a hurry, in part due to the impeccable setting, but mainly thanks to the sensational watches that were on display. Of these sensational watches, the real hero of the evening was the Breguet Marine Collection, which has a number of new additions to the family this year. In this collection, the thoughtful use of materials is immediately obvious. The titanium cases and bracelets of the Marine Alarme Musicale 5547 and of the time-only Marine 5517 give a sensation of weightless effortlessness, while still offering a tactile robustness in their build quality. On the more feminine side of the collection, the Breguet Marine Dame 9518 reference presents a range of dial, bezel and strap options, including a stunning mother-of-pearl dial that has been guillochéd by the hands of a master craftsman. Another option within the Marine Dame 9518 reference is a dial that is as blue and liquid as the ocean itself, and delivers a depth of texture that is rarely seen. While these four watches show the depth and breadth of the Breguet Marine Collection,…