Buying Guide: Shopping For Creatively Complex Watches On a Budget

In our fascinating little bubble of mechanical watchmaking, attention often goes to high-dollar watches, and most of the time, that’s for a perfectly logical reason. The arms race in complexity is partly to blame, as brands try to outdo one another for the sake of winning over the public. But adding a complication on top of telling basic time doesn’t necessarily have to equate to ludicrous pricing, thankfully. There are brands, and mostly independent watchmakers out there, that know how to bring creativity and complexity with more sensible sticker prices. With that in mind, we’ve set ourselves a somewhat reasonable budget of EUR 5,000 and have done some digging to see what we can come up with!

Raymond Weil Millesime 35 Moonphase

First up is one of the most refreshing watch collections we’ve seen in a long time, the Raymond Weil Millesime. Applauded for its ravishingly good looks and sensible watchmaking, one of the more beguiling models is the Millesime 35 Moonphase in rose gold PVD. This adds a romantic moon phase indication to the central hour, minute and seconds hands. Now, this doesn’t add an extreme level of complexity, but it does bring extra charm to the dial. And all this costs a rather sensible CHF 2,225, for which you get a reliable Swiss-made Sellita SW280.

For more information, please visit Raymond-Weil.com.

Quick Facts – 35mm x 9.98mm – stainless steel case with rose gold PVD coating – sapphire crystal front & back – 50m water-resistance – silver or blue dial – hands and Arabic numerals with Super-LumiNova – Sellita SW280, automatic – 28,800vph – 26 jewels – 38h power reserve – hours, minutes, seconds, moon phase – silver dial in PVD gold case CHF 2,225 – blue dial with diamonds in lugs CHF 2,450

Amida Digitrend

Amida is one of those brands that fell victim to the Quartz crisis but has had a loyal following ever since. So much so that some clever people have decided to bring it, and its cool Digitrend, back to life! Following the Take-Off edition launched in April, the collection has now been expanded with steel, black DLC, or gold PVD models. All feature the unique vertical Driver’s display, with jumping hours on the left and running minutes on the right. Power comes from a Soprod Newton P092 automatic with a special module and retails for CHF 2,950 on an Alcantara strap. For CHF 350 more, you get a bracelet to match the case.

For more information, please visit Amida-Watches.com.

Quick Facts – 39.6mm x 39mm x 15.6mm – steel, black DLC or gold PVD case – reflective sapphire crystal prism – 50m water-resistant – dual discs for jumping hours & running minutes – Soprod Newton P092 with in-house module – automatic winding – 28,800vph – 44h power reserve – Alcantara strap or case-matching bracelet – CHF 2,950 on strap (CHF 350 surcharge for the bracelet)

SpaceOne Tellurium

SpaceOne’s wickedly cool Tellurium does something rarely seen in watchmaking, as it shows you the relative position of our home planet, the sun and the moon while in orbit. Everything revolves around one another, with central hands bringing in the hours & minutes. In the bottom window, you can also check the date and month, and everything is set over an Aventurine dial. Pretty nifty! The unconventionally shaped watch, crafted from grade 5 titanium, comes in a couple of coloured variants, is strapped to a black fabric strap, and retails for EUR 2,999.

For more information, please visit SpaceOneWatches.com.

Quick Facts – 50mm x 42mm x 16mm – grade 5 titanium – domed sapphire crystal – crown at noon – solid caseback – 30m water-resistant – aventurine dial – polished titanium stars – central hour & minute hands – tellurium display – date & month – Soprod P024 base, patented tellurium module by Théo Auffret – black fabric strap with titanium buckle – EUR 2,990

Otsuka Lotec No. 6

Otsuka Lotec, the watchmaking name of self-taught Japanese watchmaker Jiro Katayama, has operated in obscurity for a large part of the world for most of its existence. But through the magic of the internet and social media, we get access to watches such as the wonderfully instrumental No. 6. Using an automatic Miyota movement as a base, the double-retrograde module is made in-house. Sourcing one can be challenging, as Otsuka Lotec watches are sold only in Japan. The price is around EUR 3,000, including VAT and import duties.

For more information, please visit Otsuka-Lotec.com.

Quick Facts – 42.6mm x 11.8mm – stainless steel case, straight-grained finish – sapphire crystal, see-through caseback – 30m water-resistant – silver, brushed dial – double-retrograde hour & minutes indication – date window – seconds disc – Miyota 9015, automatic – in-house module – 28,800vph – 40h power reserve – leather strap with pin buckle – sold in Japan only (for now) – JPY 440,000 (approx. EUR 3,000 incl. VAT & import duties)

Christopher Ward C1 Bel Canto & Bel Canto classic

The C1 Bel Canto is a ringing success story for Christopher Ward, quite literally, as it brings the chiming hour mechanism down to an unexpected price point. Starting at EUR 4,095, the Bel Canto comes with a sunray-brushed dial and a leather strap. Spend a bit more, and you can add a titanium bracelet to it, or opt for the new Bel Canto Classic, which has a laser-etched guilloché dial. Either way, you get an exposed chiming mechanism, off-centred hour and minute dial, Swiss-made movement and a grade 5 titanium case. Plus, a lovely hourly chime, of course!

For more information, please visit ChristopherWard.com.

Quick Facts – 41mm x 13mm – grade 5 titanium case – domed sapphire crystal – stamped caseback with sound motif – silent-mode pusher – 30m water-resistant – sunray-brushed or stamped guilloché dials – suspended hour & minute dial – suspended chiming mechanism – Sellita SW200-1 base with in-house FS01 chiming module – grade 2 titanium bracelet or leather strap – EUR 4,095 to EUR 4,885 depending on model and strap/bracelet