THE JOURNAL
There exists a year in most of our lives that demarcates our pre-wedding summers and our post-wedding summers. Before this fated year, you were allowed to choose your own holidays, tailoring those precious, carefree weeks to your liking. After this, however, “the weddings” begin. At first, they trickle in, but before you know it, social media is awash with engagements and your summer plans become entirely dictated by the romantic whims of your nearest, dearest and occasionally a distant cousin. Of course, it’s not all bad. Celebrating love is a joyous thing and presents many sartorial opportunities.
For many guys, the decisions begin and end with a suit. For the more meticulous and horologically inclined among us, the more important dilemma is what to wear on the wrist. Your steel diver may a faithful daily driver be, but something a little more delicate and elevated can go a long way on special occasions. Not only will the right dress watch tie a formal look together, but it also represents the more sentimental aspects of watch collecting. For each event that you wear it, it gains more significance, capturing the timeless memories that make a watch such a beautiful lifelong investment. In that spirit, below are five of the best dress watches to wear at weddings this year.
01. Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Control Geographic
Founded in 1833, Jaeger-LeCoultre offers some of the most balanced dress watches on the market. Take this Master Control Geographic as proof. Powered by a Calibre 939AA automatic movement with a handy 70-hour power reserve, it boasts practicality and beauty in equal measure. At 40mm, the case suits all wrist sizes and is large enough to comfortably frame the multiple complications on the dial, ranging from a power-reserve display to 24 changeable time zones. This impressive piece will make for an excellent conversation starter should you find yourself sat next to a fellow watch enthusiast at dinner.
02. Ballon Bleu de Cartier
It’s seen as good wedding etiquette to not wear white as a guest, but no one will remark on you having your own “something blue”. Make it the Ballon Bleu de Cartier with its sophisticated blue dial and let it be known you’re one of the best-dressed guests. Cartier’s dress-watch credentials are undebatable with models like the Tank or Santos ranking among the most popular and evergreen timepieces available. As one of the maison’s less famous but no less elegant designs, the Ballon Bleu has a style-insider air to it. The softened circular 40mm stainless-steel case houses a clean, uncluttered dial featuring a date window. While touches like the Roman numerals and sunburst finish draw the eye, the overall simplicity of the design makes it wildly versatile.
03. IWC Schaffhausen Ingenieur
First launched in 1955, the Ingenieur was designed with practical application rather than black-tie events in mind. Water- and shock-resistant, it was also highly antimagnetic, which – perhaps ironically – pulled in the scientific, engineering and industrial communities. The modern incarnation, meanwhile, draws on Gérald Genta’s 1976 reworking of the line. And if this robust, stainless-steel timepiece still fends off magnetic fields, it should attract attention, for all the right reasons, at any wedding.
04. Oris Artelier S
Better known for its hardworking sports watches – particularly its sturdy divers – the Artelier S is evidence that Oris can scrub up when the occasion presents itself. Here, the bezels and lugs of its stablemates are switched out for an elegant forest-green dial, housed under a domed sapphire crystal. Restraint is key, although the exhibition case back does offer a glimpse of the Calibre 733 movement’s signature red rotor.
05. NOMOS Glashütte Club
A watch can tell you a lot, beside the time. A NOMOS Glashütte, for instance, is something of an IYKYK flex. Made in Germany as opposed to your more-typical Swiss timepiece, it’s for the man who thinks differently. Who values the simplicity of Bauhaus-influenced design. The Club takes this stripped-back aesthetic to a compact 36mm form, with tidy Super-LumiNova features that can be clearly read, when it isn’t neatly tucked under a shirt cuff.