I’ve been looking forward to being the first woman to present her perfect watch collection on Chrono24. Full disclosure: I’m not a collector. Instead, I only buy watches that fascinate me. Some of them I hunt over a longer period of time, while others are more of an impulse buy. My perfect $24,000 collection consists of one watch that I’m still in the market for and several watches that I already own. In any case, I have literally no investment intentions with these watches. I’ve never “flipped” a watch in my life. What I buy, I wear. I might even loan it to someone without worrying about it getting a scratch or two. My watches are everyday objects – pieces that I could talk about for hours, and that sometimes reveal more about me than I would care for people to know.
Rolex GMT-Master II Batgirl – Price: $10,400
As a watch lover, I’m always going to want a Rolex in my collection. For me, this is the GMT-Master II “Batgirl,” the only watch on today’s list that I don’t yet own. Currently, a Datejust 36 with a mint green dial takes the Rolex place in my collection. What do I like about this timepiece? Well, for starters, I of course like the bezel’s color combination that lets the watch combine so wonderfully with my other jewelry. And as a huge comic book fan, I mean, is there really any other watch out there that’s going to be better than a Batgirl?
IWC Ingenieur 666 AD – Price: $4,000
I remember the first time I saw the IWC Ingenieur 666 at the IWC Museum in Schaffhausen. I had just arrived in Switzerland and was still new to the world of watches. This timepiece caught my eye, and I jokingly said to my partner, “I want it!” Time passed, and over the years, I visited the exhibition again and again. Every time I saw that watch, I realized that I really wanted to own it. Well, back then I had no idea about vintage watches. So I started doing my homework. I went to watch fairs and visited second-hand shops and marketplaces until I finally found my IWC Ingenieur on Chrono24. I now have a variety of straps for it, and it’s the watch I wear the most (I always like to think my mint green Datejust is a little jealous). I love it. And not just because it reminds me so perfectly of how stubborn I am. Most of all, I love how it focuses on the engineer (the homo faber), how it offers hope for a positive future, and how it carries progress within it. Even more to the point, in the world of watches, engineers are people that I can identify with much more than, say, divers or race car drivers.
Universal Genève Polerouter – Price: $900
This is another watch I bought after an extended search at watch and flea markets. I was lucky to find it in good condition at a price I could live with. One look at this watch might make you (correctly) ask why I need another watch that looks almost exactly like the IWC Ingenieur 666 AD. The answer is simple: I love the story behind it. This timepiece was developed for the polar routes flown by Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS) from New York or Los Angeles directly to Europe. This route crosses the North Pole through strong magnetic fields. It was clear at the time that the flight crew needed a watch that could withstand these conditions: the Polerouter. This watch was also powered by a movement typical of Universal Genève and ahead of its time: a micro rotor caliber. I love how my Polerouter joins a piece of human history with horological heritage, not to mention the story of how I purchased mine, which involved several hours of cleaning and polishing its case and crystal.
Omega Speedmaster Ladies Chronograph – Price: $3,900
Of course, my collection also includes my first “real” watch. About a year before I bought my Speedmaster, I began to explore the world of luxury watches, discovering the exciting stories behind some of them and realizing that women’s watches aren’t all diamonds and mother-of-pearl. While searching for the right watch for me (back then, yes, I still naively thought I would only buy one watch), I came across the Speedmaster. I had not only stumbled upon the first watch on the moon, but a sporty timepiece that looked incredibly elegant. A watch that was so right for me. I was still a student back then, and only had a part-time job. But this watch was motivation enough to start saving up. Eight months later, I could finally call the Speedmaster my own. I wore it every day for years. Even though I no longer wear this watch every day, it still reminds me of the beginning of my passion for watches. I’m proud of how stubborn I was to save for months to buy a luxury watch. I was sure then, and still am, that it was worth it.
IWC Mark XX – Price: $4,500
Why is the IWC Mark XX part of both my personal collection and the perfect watch collection we’re looking at today? Well, my dad wears the predecessor model every day. He loves it. Reason enough for me.
Swatch, Casio, and More – $300
“You’re a watch lover, and wear this?” I get asked this question way too often when I’m out and about with a Casio or a Swatch on my wrist. I wear these watches because I’m a watch lover. I’m not only fascinated by luxury watches, but by other historical timepieces as well. This includes the groundbreaking plastic watches from Swatch, which made it possible to wear colorful, playful watches on your wrist, and the legendary digital watches from Casio, with features like an alarm clock. You better believe my perfect collection includes a Casio, a G-Shock, and a Swatch. I regularly wear all of these, and love each and every one of them.
What the Future Holds
Will this be my perfect collection from now on? Nope. At some point I’m sure I’ll discover another watch that excites me, and it will find its place in this fictional collection, or better yet, in my real collection. But what will remain is the character of these timepieces: watches with stories behind them, and that aren’t investments, but (sometimes idiosyncratic) collector’s items just for me. I won’t be flipping these watches, but rather sharing them with my loved ones.
