It’s not just Watches & Wonders in Geneva! While the great fair of luxury watchmaking gathers enthusiasts in the aisles of Palexpo, the center of the city at the end of the lake also lives to the rhythm of (very) beautiful watches.
And while some houses unveil their novelties in palaces like the Beau-Rivage and the Four Seasons, it is at HEAD, the Geneva School of Art and Design, where the other major event of the Geneva Watch Week takes place: indeed, about fifty brands are gathered for the third edition of Time to Watches. We therefore invite you to discover the 5 watches that caught our attention during our visit.
Carl Suchy & Söhne Belvedere Titan
Right at the entrance of the exhibition, the star of the Carl Suchy & Söhne booth isn’t a watch, but a magnificent table clock, the Table Waltz Tourbillon. However, the one that caught our eye is indeed the new Belvédère Titan, one of the most beautiful titanium watches of the moment.
The Austrian house had already presented this Belvedere at the 2023 edition, but this time, its 40.8 mm case is adorned with titanium, as is its dial, which offers a superb play of light (even more beautiful in reality than in pictures). On the back of the watch, the golden rotor of the CSS201 movement, decorated with the Viennese Belvedere, is also a very beautiful piece of watchmaking.
Elka D09
Despite its claimed sixties inspirations, the brand Elka was only born in 2022. Or rather, reborn. Because its founder Hakim El Kadiri discovered that Elka Watch had indeed existed (named after Eduard Louis Kiek of Amsterdam) before disappearing… in the 1960s. A nice nod of history for this Swiss brand that is now riding the neo-vintage trend with watches that are both retro and timeless.
Among the models displayed at HEAD, the D09 perfectly embodies this balance. Inspired by a minimalist dial designed by Ulysse Nardin for the late Elka Watch, this Series D watch has something hypnotic. Even more so in this deep blue limited edition. Powered by a La Joux Perret G100 movement, it has a 68-hour power reserve.
Priced at around 1600€, this Elka D09 seems to offer good value for money, with a great style!
Fears Brunswick ‘Aurora’
Heading to Great Britain, and more specifically Bristol, to get to know the Fears brand. It too has had a tumultuous history since a certain Edwin Fear founded it as early as 1846 before disappearing from the scene in the 1970s.
Relaunched in 2016, it is today directed by Nicholas Bowman-Scargill, the great-great-great-grandson of Edwin Fear. The “Aurore of Brunswick” watch displayed in Geneva stays true to the brand’s slogan, “Elegantly discreet”. This is the first Fears watch to feature a mother-of-pearl dial, made from two pieces of Pinctada Maxima, a fairly rare pearl oyster.
Its 40mm case thus highlights a dial that catches the eye with its iridescent reflections, all powered by an ETA 2824-2 movement. Price of this beautiful little English watch: €4400.
Sinn U50 Hydro SDR
It’s hard to miss the Sinn booth at Time to Watches. Not only because it is located right in front of the entrance, but also because it’s one of the largest at the fair! As a result, there are many new products presented by the German brand.
And next to the 356 Pilot Classic, which is causing quite a stir, it’s a diver’s watch that attracts all or almost all eyes. Specifically, the U50 Hydro SDR, whose water resistance is guaranteed up to 5000 meters! For this, its 41mm steel case offers “extreme resistance to seawater” and great anti-magnetic properties thanks to TEGIMENT technology. This process is actually a hardening of the steel, used in the design of submarines.
The robustness of this watch is also ensured thanks to HYDRO technology: this time, it is about filling the case with a special oil, protecting the mechanism (quartz, of course) from pressure and temperature constraints.
Zannetti Regent Full Sky – MK II
We conclude this (very) brief overview of the watches on display at Time to Watches with the work of an independent watchmaker based in Rome, Italy. Riccardo Zannetti himself creates watches in the purest tradition of high-end watchmaking.
His Regent collection is the most emblematic and contains the most beautiful pieces. Next to a declination equipped with a meteorite dial, the Regent Galaxy and (especially) Full Sky are at the center of everyone’s attention thanks to their multicolored enameled dial, handmade. The steel case, 42 mm in diameter, is also distinguished by its “bezel” engraved with Arabic numerals in a very stylized typography.
Of course, with nearly 50 brands represented, we could have mentioned many other models. Among the beautiful watches to discover at Time to Watches 2024, the Chapter 4.9 of BA111OD with its meteorite dial (yes, again!), the new Yema Flygraf Bi-Compax in the colors of the Air and Space Army or the futuristic creations of the Chinese brand Behrens also seem to have serious advantages to charm the visitors!
💡Also read: Discover the most beautiful watches from the Watche & Wonders 2024 show!