We’d thought it would be fun, here at Watch Gecko, for each of us guest authors to share our personal dream watch collection. A collection that includes five watches from the five main genres: dive, chronograph, pilots, dress and GMT. There’s no budget; we have complete freedom to pick our perfect watch in each category.
This is possibly the most fun I’ve ever had writing an article – for obvious reasons – but it was also a lot harder than expected. Choosing only one watch from each genre with unlimited funds - how do you possible choose? Can’t I just have them all? There are so many that had several close runners up, but ultimately, I made my decision based on what I would wear the most. Not what would impress my friends or just be cool to have in my collection, but a watch that I know I would pick up and wear regularly.
Dive Category: Oris Diver’s Sixty Five
Oris Diver’s Sixty Five - Credit WatchGecko
When it comes to dive watches, there’s always one brand that comes to mind: Oris. I’m not a diver by any means, so when it comes to choosing a dive watch for myself, I’m less focused on looking for huge water resistant ratings, but something that’s solid, reliable and will deal with being in and around water. That’s why I picked the Oris Diver’s Sixty Five.
I really like a vintage dive watch. I find the overall look very charming, and retro aesthetics always evoke a sense of nostalgia. The Oris Diver’s Sixty Five, in particular the Cotton Candy models, offer exactly that with 38mm wide stainless steel cases with wonderful steel bezels with the 60 minute scale in relief. Their dials are bright and exciting, as they should be in a dive watch, available in pink, blue or green, and generously adorned in Superluminova. They have a 100 metre water resistant rating and are fuelled by the Oris 733 automatic winding calibre.
Chronograph Category: Junghans Max Bill Chronoscope
Junghans Max Bill Chronoscope - Junghans
Of all the watches on this list, the chronograph was the one I struggled with the most. For starters, it doesn’t help that I’m not much of a chronograph person. Secondly, there are so few women’s chronographs out there that finding one was a task in itself. The cases are always 40mm or above and their aesthetic lean towards the masculine stylings. That’s good news for men, or women with more masculine tastes, but not us females that want something a little more traditionally feminine.
In the end, I opted for the Junghans Max Bill Chronoscope. It is one of the smaller chronographs on the market at 40mm wide and 14.4mm tall, and due to its minimalistic aesthetic, it still feels a little dressy with a touch of sports elegance. It has a warm yellow gold PVD case that pairs nicely with its autumnal brown leather strap and the crisp white dial’s yellow gold hardware. It is powered by the self-winding calibre J880.2 with a 48 hours power reserve. I have no doubt this will be one of the cheapest watches in this feature, and by other guest authors’ too, but I can confidently say it is one I will actually wear.
Dress Category: Bremont Lady K Fawn
Bremont Lady K Fawn - Credit Bremont
Of all the genre of timepieces available, the one I’m drawn to most is the dress watch. You’d think because of this, choosing a watch for this category would be incredibly easy, which in a way it was, but it was also kind of difficult. There are so many watches I could have placed here; the NOMOS Tangente, IWC Portofino and Cartier Tank are all worthy runners up. But one brand I’ve always wished to own is Bremont, and the exact watch, their Lady K Fawn.
Based upon the solid architecture of their Solo pilot’s watch, the Bremont Lady K is one of those watches that both looks the part and feels incredibly solid on the wrist. It has a 34mm stainless steel case engineered using Bremont’s three-piece case construction, domed sapphire crystal glass and a healthy water resistance of 100 metres. Inside is the 42-hour BE-92AV automatic winding movement. As for the main event, the autumnal orange-brown dial is generously adorned with 33 claw set diamonds which sparkle just as brilliantly as the 60 white diamonds placed on the bezel. It’s both beautiful and robust; what more could you want?
Pilots Category: Breitling Navitimer 36
Breitling Navitimer 36 - Credit Breitling
Of all the pilot’s watches on the market, there really is no design quite as iconic as the Breitling Navitimer. And thankfully for women, Breitling are very friendly to the female wrist and have delivered a rather extensive range of Navitimer Ladies watches for us to enjoy; there’s cases in 32mm, 35mm and 36mm– the latter being my personal preference.
Despite its size and arguably feminine aesthetics, the Breitling Navitimer 36 still maintains all the hallmarks that makes the Navitimer, well, a Navitimer. It has a 36mm wide steel case with the famous beaded bezel and the iconic circular slide rule. The dials come in a range of elegant colours, including several very pretty pastel shades, with classic time-only displays powered by chronometer-certified Breitling Calibre 17 automatic winding movement. I’d quite happily place the diamond-set mint green dial on my wrist any day of the week.
GMT Category: Parmigiani Fleurier GMT Rattrapante
Parmigiani Fleurier GMT Rattrapante - Credit Parmigiani
Finally, we have the popular GMT watch for time zone hopping travellers. This is where I really let the absence of a budget get away with me, choosing the very expensive but ingeniously engineered Parmigiani Fleurier GMT Rattrapante watch. The world’s first GMT watch with a Rattrapante hand, it utilises the functionality of a split seconds chronograph but instead tasks the single 18ct rose gold hand to display home time while the rhodium-plated hand indicates local time. The latter advances in one-hour jumps when you press the tear-drop shaped pusher at 8 o’clock. Then once second time zone reading is no longer needed, you can press the pusher integrated into the crown to send the rose gold hand flying back to hide under the other hand.
It’s an incredibly innovative watch, and one I know I’d have a lot of fun wearing. Its overall aesthetic is also beautiful. It’s one of the most minimalistic integrated sports watches I’ve seen, offering no permanent time displays; just an open barleycorn guilloche-patterned dial in Milano blue. The case measures to 40mm wide and 10.7mm thick and is available in polished stainless steel or 18ct rose gold. Since money isn’t an issue here, of course I’d choose the latter!
So, there you have it, my ultimate watch collection. Did I choose right? Or do my tastes differ completely from yours? Let us know what your dream team of watches would be in the comments below!
