About time: Dr Hue
Abid Rahman
Bold, vibrant colours are this season's must-have menswear trend. Hot pinks! Electric blues! Cumberbatch green! It's the thing to be seen wearing! With everyone sufficiently enthused (the exclamation marks hopefully helped to get you there), this week we'll look at three watches that tie in with the colour trend … OK … Full confession: vibrant colour isn't the thing this autumn-winter, if anything it's 1970s brown, but I've been pushing back a colour-themed column since late August and now its time has come. Moving on, colour is a big thing in watches these days, no really.
We'll start with JeanRichard, a youthful upstart of a brand that, curiously, is also the oldest watchmaker in the world (JeanRichard can trace its roots back to 1681, albeit with gaps). Now, as well as creating watches for the world's greatest football team (Arsenal, obviously), JeanRichard also makes rather nifty mechanical watches, such as the Graphiscope (top), designed by French graffiti artist Gully. A colourful variation of the Terrascope, this limited edition uses the same 44mm steel case and features the JR60 self-winding movement, which has a 42-hour power reserve. Features are kept to a minimum, after all, it's all about the graphics. There are simple hours and minutes and a date window at the three o'clock position, a black leather strap and 100 metres of water resistance. Gully has been kind enough to create three versions of the Graphiscope, each featuring Pollock-esque action painting. Each version is limited to 25 pieces and is signed by the artist. The JeanRichard Graphiscope is priced at HK$22,800.
Next we go all blue with the Victorinox Maverick (about right). The colour is the key attraction of the watch, which has a dependable yet unspectacular Ronda 715 quartz movement and is a bit light on features. Yes, it's more of a fashion watch but at about HK$2,000 it becomes an affordable accessory. A dive watch by design, the Maverick has a stainless-steel 43mm case a unidirectional rotating bezel, crown protector, luminescent hands and 100 metres of water resistance.
Finally, we have a retro watch that could be described as "groovy", in a good way. The Vulcain Nautical Seventies (right) is a vision in greens and black with a striking dial design. Different shades interplay nicely on the dial, which features decompression tables that may seem odd for a dive watch, but this is how they used to look. Other dive features include 300 metres of water resistance, a screw-lock crown and, best of all, an underwater alarm, although I doubt you will ever take this watch for a dive. Inside the 42mm steel case is the legendary Cricket Calibre V-10 movement. The other standout feature is the leather sports strap with air holes. Prices for the Vulcain Nautical Seventies will be confirmed shortly.
