Your engagement watch will be one of the most precious and meaningful pieces of jewelry in your collection. In the literal sense, a watch keeps time, but it can also mark your very special moment in time. A great watch will, like your spouse-to-be, accompany you for a lifetime.
Here are our picks of great wedding watches under 10K that can serve as a lasting reminder of your special day:
The Rolex is not the most romantic of choices, but if you were to pick one timepiece to last you a lifetime, it would be a Rolex. And it’s not just their excellent marketing talking. Rolex is well-known in watch circles not only for being a symbol of personal success and achievement, but for its reputation as a quality and precision timepiece. Roli are subjected to the most stringent of tests, which makes their reliability, sturdiness and accuracy second to none.
The first Datejust debuted 1945 and was the first watch to have an automatic date-changing window. Over the years, Rolex has made continuous improvements to the to its movement and added numerous features and design options to the original Datejust. The modern version's boasts a self-winding automatic movement with a 48 hour power reserve, making it the perfect watch to wear worry-free day in and day out.
The original lady-matic first appeared in 1955 and was created especially for women. The modern version of this watch is powered by the in-house co-axial caliber 8520 which is considered one of the most revolutionary advancements in modern watchmaking. Created by English watchmaker George Daniels in 1974, the co-axial escapement reduced the sliding friction over the teeth of the escapement wheel, resulting in a movement with greater accuracy over time that lengthens the amount of time needed between servicing.
With a whopping 50 hour power reserve the Ladymatic is as practical as it is beautiful. The mother of pearl dial set with 11 diamonds on the indices and white gold hands, with the date window at 3'clock.
The Chopard Happy Sport is an ode to cheerful, free-spirited women everywhere. Back in 1993, Caroline Scheufele (now co-president of the independent family-run brand) wanted to show that diamonds could be fun, and the Happy Sport was born. The Happy Sport was the first to combine precious diamonds with the unexpected material of stainless steel.
The Happy Sport's unconventional design features diamonds that are freed from their setting, which allows them to dance playfully on the dial. The modern version features seven floating diamonds on a silver dial with a guilloche-worked spiral sunburst at its center. It's a self-winding mechanical movement that beats at 4 Hz. As a bonus, for its 25th anniversary, the Happy Sport was upgraded with an in-house movement.
When people think of haute horology, Hermes is not a brand that immediately comes to mind. That attitude has changed in recent years for the French maison, whose latest watch creations out of La Montre Hermès S.A and the development of their own in-house movements demonstrates that they should not be discounted by traditional manufactures.
The medium version of the Slim d’Hermes features a quartz movement that allows the watch to be extremely thin. The font of the numerals are distinctly Hermes, designed especially by Parisian graphic designer Philippe Apeloig to be loyal to the tradition and philosophy of the brand. The bezel features a whopping 70 diamonds around the bezel, with a silvered opaline dial and anti-glare sapphire crystal.
Charles Lewis Tiffany debuted the engagement ring as we know it in 1886, and the Tiffany & Co brand has been synonymous with engagement jewelry ever since. Which is why it’s no surprise that Tiffany’s makes our list for engagement watches, combining the pedigree of Tiffany diamonds with fine swiss watchmaking.
The New York inspired Tiffany Metro is a stainless steel watch with a white lacquered dial featuring a set of eight round-cut and 3 baguette-cut diamond indices and a small seconds sub-dial. The 34mm case houses a self-winding mechanical movement with a 42 hour power reserve and the bezel set with a ring of brilliantly cut diamonds.
What we describe today as an "in-house” movement was a means of survival for German watchmakers after WWII who were cut off their supply chains and forced to produce watch parts themselves. Glashutte Original was one of the brands that revived their watchmaking tradition after Germany was reunified in 1990.
Timepieces for women have especially been an essential part of the watchmaking revival in Glashutte, and the Lady Serenade is no exception. Their manufactory produces exquisitely finished individual watch parts specifically for designed their in-house movements. The Lady Serenade features a Glashutte Original manufactory hand-finished movement which has a 40 hour power reserve. The bezel is set with 52 brilliant-cut diamonds and the watch is waterproof up to 5 bar.
Still not impressed? Check out our next article if money is not an issue and we'll introduce you to some wedding watches where "The Sky's the Limit".