LIST: The seven best watches of Only Watch 2015
Felix ScholzIf you pay even passing attention to the world of watches you’ll notice that the last few weeks have seen a spate of one-of-a-kind watches bouncing around Instagram with varying degrees of excitement attached. These are all in honour of the upcoming Only Watch 2015 charity auction – a biannual auction where the watch industry bands together and makes a series of unique timepieces that are auctioned off to raise money for research into Duchenne muscular dystrophy.
Only Watch is an opportunity to raise awareness (and significant funds) for a worthy cause. It’s also an opportunity for watch brands to test the waters with unusual designs in a relatively risk-free environment. It also means that many watch lovers will get very, very frustrated that these pieces will never see regular production.
We’ve plucked out a Magnificent Seven (it was either that or a dirty dozen) from the pack and in case you’re in the enviable position to bid on (and win) any of these lots, we’ve added in some thoughtful wardrobe choices to help you show your new piece unique off.
The Bell & Ross BR01 Skull Bronze Tourbillon
Bell & Ross has created a stunning one-off version of this year’s novelty – the Skull Bronze. The Only Watch version adds a pink gold tourbillon cage, an impressive honeycomb dial, dagger shaped power reserve and accuracy indicators and a hand engraved 18k gold skull.
Wear it with: While the Seinfeld puffy shirt is an option for the bold, a safer bet would be a navy pea coat to bring out the bronze and keep in the nautical theme.
The F.P. Journe Tourbillon Souverain Bleu
We advise you sit down for this one. Because it nearly knocked us off our feet. F.P. Journe has taken elements from several of their most iconic pieces to create a truly beautiful one-off. There’s the chromed blue (or bleu) dial reminiscent of their Chronometre Bleu and their Souverain tourbillion with deadbeat seconds. But more than that, they’ve cased the watch in super heavy and super hard to work with Tantalum.
Wear it with: A bespoke Japanese reimagining of Savile Row’s finest. Tradition with a twist.
The Hublot Classic Fusion Only Watch Britto
Sometimes all you need to do to make a watch with ‘wow-factor’ is to change the dial. Hublot have done just that, turning an artwork by pop cubist Romero Britto into a dial best described as a riot of colour – it’s executed in champlevé Grand Fue enamel. Oh, and it comes with the matching Britto canvas.
Wear it with: A Jeremy Scott Bart Simpson jumper to cement your pop culture chops.
The Maurice Lacroix Masterpiece Gravity Only Watch 2015
We were only telling you about the latest Maurice Lacroix Gravity range last week, and then they announce this blue beauty (blue is clearly a thing this year). The main difference from the regular gravity is the bright blue Powerlite case.
Wear it with: Go watch The Great Gatsby (the 1974 version). Then get someone to make you a version of the pink double-breasted three-piece suit that Robert Redford wore. Then wear it with this watch. Winner.
The Patek Philippe 5016A-010
This is it. The mega-watch of the auction. The 5016 is a tourbillon with minute repeater and retrograde perpetual calendar. Bam. There’s a lot going on behind the scenes. It’s also a discontinued model (back by special demand), with a unique blue enamel dial, and steel case. This watch will, without doubt, achieve the highest price on the day. The last Patek at Only Watch hammered in at around four million dollars, and this one should go much higher.
Wear it with: Whatever you want. With this on your wrist no one is going to dare to judge your fashion sense.
The Piaget Altiplano 900P Only Watch
Piaget are of course the kings of thin, and this year their Only Watch offering is the marvel of engineering that is the 900P – with the case, dial and movement are all integrated to achieve a complete thinness of 3.65mm. This already outstanding watch is given bright red hands to emphasise its unique status.
Wear it with: A Dior suit, slim fit of course.
The Tudor Black Bay One
The Tudor Black Bay is often cited as the most searched for and talked about watched on the intrawebz of the last two years. It’s an instantly recognisable heritage design tweaked in ways that Rolex could never get away with. The Black Bay One (Tudor’s first ever Only Watch) is a very faithful iteration of the ‘50s original. And it has the Tudor faithful baying for a regular production version.
Wear it with: Something unassuming in natural fibres but of the highest quality, and with a heritage pedigree. Like Woolrich.