[SOTC] watches are fun
Clockwise from the top left:
Tag Heuer Aquaracer WAK2110 — This is the watch I own with the most sentimental value. It was my first luxury watch, given to me after I graduated college. I’ve gotten married in this watch, traveled with it many times, and scuba dived with it. It’s a true GADA — it looks great and at 12.5mm thickness, it’s oddly slim for 500m of water resistance.
Louis Erard x Alain Silverstein Regulator Watches of Switzerland Singapore Edition — You’ll either love or hate this watch. I happen to love it. It’s absurdly light (titanium) and comfortable (best textile strap I ever wore). Surprisingly nice water resistance at 100m. It’s fantastic in the summer with a t-shirt. One of 178.
Christopher Ward x Wyrd Bel Canto — this is a special edition Bel Canto, one of 100. I love the fumé and how the blackened hands give it more contrast than other Bel Cantos. TBH, I prefer it on leather because the grade 2 titanium bracelet is a slightly different shade than the grade 5 titanium case.
Grand Seiko Elegance Collection Spring Drive GMT SBGE301 — fun fact, this is the only orange Grand Seiko model ever made! I had to track it down (only 300 were sold, all in Japan) and man… it was super worth it. The smooth sweep of the seconds hand, the texture on the dial, the flyer GMT, the three day power reserve 🤌🤌. It’s a little thick at 14mm but it’s mostly due to the dome crystal.
Swatch Mission to Mercury Moonswatch — Not much to say here. I put it a cheap Barton strap I got on Amazon, which made it look wayyyy better than the default NATO. From a distance, one of my coworkers thought it was a black ceramic speedy, which was pretty fun.
DIY Watch Club Mosel — my wife got me a DIY watch kit for Christmas last year and I loved being able to assemble this watch. It has a display caseback so you can admire your handiwork. It fills a surprisingly important niche of “not flashy dress watch”, useful for weddings where you don’t want to be too fancy.
Studio Underd0g Pizza Party Pepperoni Edition — my most recent purchase! I got it at the NYC WatchTime fair. I know a lot of people don’t like this watch, but I like pizza, so this watch makes me happy.
Swatch ??? — I bought this a few years ago on a whim. Idk. It’s fun. I like wearing it when I go on a beach vacation.
Trilobe Nuit Fantastique Secret — This is my fancy wedding dress watch. I got it to celebrate a big career milestone. Basically, you give Trilobe a location and time and they print the night sky on the dial for that exact moment in time. They also have a super cool custom movement to rotate inner discs that tell the time. It’s very thin, with a beautiful microrotor that you can see in the case back, and it’s made of grade 5 titanium. It came with a blue suede strap, but I sometimes replace it with a white rubber to dress it down.
Casio G-Shock GA2100BP-1A — someone told me that this is a “crip casioak.”I love the blue paisley. It’s a great gym watch.
Panerai Luminor PAM111 — this is an old base model Panerai and I think it’s the GOAT PAM. Iconic design? Check. Sourced movement so it’s easy to service? Check. Seconds hand and no date? Check. Sandwich dial? Check. I love wearing this on brown leather. Right now, I have it here on a green sailcloth strap so I can jump in the pool.
Christopher Ward Twelve Titanium in Aurora Green — what a great sports watch. It might be the watch that I’ve worn the most this year… I used it for skiing, hiking, swimming, and multi-day bicycle trips. I love that it’s so slim (9mm!) and light. I have it on the rubber here, but the bracelet is great as well. Also, the fumé dial is gorgeous!
What’s next? I’m not getting another watch anytime soon, but I’ve given it a bunch of thought.
First, I want a white dial, either: - A Rolex Explorer II Polar 226570. Rolexes aren’t normally my thing, but this watch has lived rent free in my brain ever since I tried it on. - A large two tone Cartier Santos. I love the history with Alberto Santos-Dumont (I’m Brazilian and I’m an engineer so it speaks to me) and I think the two-tone is the logical conclusion to the flashy white swatch I have. - An older gen white VC Overseas Dual Time
I also want a red dial. Either: - A red Moser Pioneer - A Cartier Santos Qatar red. It’s pretty overpriced though, double the price of a normal SS Santos
Finally, I want something with yellow gold. Either: - The aforementioned two tone Santos - A VC Historiques Americaine 1921… if it’s in my budget - A neovintage Zenith El Primero. The “bolognese” 06 series from the 80s/90s seem cool
Leaning towards older Overseas / Red Santos / Bolognese El Primero. We’ll see!
Clockwise from the top left:
Tag Heuer Aquaracer WAK2110 — This is the watch I own with the most sentimental value. It was my first luxury watch, given to me after I graduated college. I’ve gotten married in this watch, traveled with it many times, and scuba dived with it. It’s a true GADA — it looks great and at 12.5mm thickness, it’s oddly slim for 500m of water resistance.
Louis Erard x Alain Silverstein Regulator Watches of Switzerland Singapore Edition — You’ll either love or hate this watch. I happen to love it. It’s absurdly light (titanium) and comfortable (best textile strap I ever wore). Surprisingly nice water resistance at 100m. It’s fantastic in the summer with a t-shirt. One of 178.
Christopher Ward x Wyrd Bel Canto — this is a special edition Bel Canto, one of 100. I love the fumé and how the blackened hands give it more contrast than other Bel Cantos. TBH, I prefer it on leather because the grade 2 titanium bracelet is a slightly different shade than the grade 5 titanium case.
Grand Seiko Elegance Collection Spring Drive GMT SBGE301 — fun fact, this is the only orange Grand Seiko model ever made! I had to track it down (only 300 were sold, all in Japan) and man… it was super worth it. The smooth sweep of the seconds hand, the texture on the dial, the flyer GMT, the three day power reserve 🤌🤌. It’s a little thick at 14mm but it’s mostly due to the dome crystal.
Swatch Mission to Mercury Moonswatch — Not much to say here. I put it a cheap Barton strap I got on Amazon, which made it look wayyyy better than the default NATO. From a distance, one of my coworkers thought it was a black ceramic speedy, which was pretty fun.
DIY Watch Club Mosel — my wife got me a DIY watch kit for Christmas last year and I loved being able to assemble this watch. It has a display caseback so you can admire your handiwork. It fills a surprisingly important niche of “not flashy dress watch”, useful for weddings where you don’t want to be too fancy.
Studio Underd0g Pizza Party Pepperoni Edition — my most recent purchase! I got it at the NYC WatchTime fair. I know a lot of people don’t like this watch, but I like pizza, so this watch makes me happy.
Swatch ??? — I bought this a few years ago on a whim. Idk. It’s fun. I like wearing it when I go on a beach vacation.
Trilobe Nuit Fantastique Secret — This is my fancy wedding dress watch. I got it to celebrate a big career milestone. Basically, you give Trilobe a location and time and they print the night sky on the dial for that exact moment in time. They also have a super cool custom movement to rotate inner discs that tell the time. It’s very thin, with a beautiful microrotor that you can see in the case back, and it’s made of grade 5 titanium. It came with a blue suede strap, but I sometimes replace it with a white rubber to dress it down.
Casio G-Shock GA2100BP-1A — someone told me that this is a “crip casioak.”I love the blue paisley. It’s a great gym watch.
Panerai Luminor PAM111 — this is an old base model Panerai and I think it’s the GOAT PAM. Iconic design? Check. Sourced movement so it’s easy to service? Check. Seconds hand and no date? Check. Sandwich dial? Check. I love wearing this on brown leather. Right now, I have it here on a green sailcloth strap so I can jump in the pool.
Christopher Ward Twelve Titanium in Aurora Green — what a great sports watch. It might be the watch that I’ve worn the most this year… I used it for skiing, hiking, swimming, and multi-day bicycle trips. I love that it’s so slim (9mm!) and light. I have it on the rubber here, but the bracelet is great as well. Also, the fumé dial is gorgeous!
What’s next? I’m not getting another watch anytime soon, but I’ve given it a bunch of thought.
First, I want a white dial, either: - A Rolex Explorer II Polar 226570. Rolexes aren’t normally my thing, but this watch has lived rent free in my brain ever since I tried it on. - A large two tone Cartier Santos. I love the history with Alberto Santos-Dumont (I’m Brazilian and I’m an engineer so it speaks to me) and I think the two-tone is the logical conclusion to the flashy white swatch I have. - An older gen white VC Overseas Dual Time
I also want a red dial. Either: - A red Moser Pioneer - A Cartier Santos Qatar red. It’s pretty overpriced though, double the price of a normal SS Santos
Finally, I want something with yellow gold. Either: - The aforementioned two tone Santos - A VC Historiques Americaine 1921… if it’s in my budget - A neovintage Zenith El Primero. The “bolognese” 06 series from the 80s/90s seem cool
Leaning towards older Overseas / Red Santos / Bolognese El Primero. We’ll see!