Time may not stand still, but good design sometimes does. Especially in watches, where luxury brands have launched new and reinvented collections meant to recall favorite timepieces of years past. The latest styles tend to have smaller faces and more subtle detailing than those of recent years. Here are seven classic, nostalgic designs.
Carl F. Bucherer
$19,900 at Tourneau
The rose-gold Heritage Chronometer Celebration watch by Carl F. Bucherer harks back to a 1960s design.
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Jaeger-LeCoultre
Starting at $21,700 at Jaeger-LeCoultre.com
The Collectibles are rare timepieces from the 1920s through the ’70s. The most recent batch, including this one, sold out, but another is on the way.
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IWC Schaffhausen
Price on request at IWC.com
The Ingenieur Automatic 40 by IWC Schaffhausen recalls designs of the ’70s–steel features, integrated bracelets, and patterned dials–by watchmaker Gérald Genta.
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Chanel
$5,950 at Chanel
A nod to Chanel’s first-ever watch, designed in 1987, the shape of the Première Édition Originale is inspired by the Chanel No. 5 perfume bottle and features the leather/metal braided chain for which the brand is known.
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Grand Seiko
$6,000 at Tiny Jewel Box
The SBGA493 by Grand Seiko is a reimagining of the 44GS watches from 1967.
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Breitling
$8,000 at Breitling.com
Inspired by ’60s sports cars, the newest models of Breitling’s Top Time collection include the B01 Ford Thunderbird, with its “racing red” leather strap.
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Chopard
$32,900 at Chopard.com
The L.U.C. 1963 Heritage Chronograph by Chopard evokes quiet luxury in vintage form, with a leather strap and a classic case shape.
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Photographs courtesy of Jaeger-Lecoultre, INGENIEUR, and Carl Bucherer, Breitling, Chanel, Heritage, and Grand Seiko.
This article appears in the November 2023 issue of Washingtonian.
Amy leads Washingtonian Weddings and writes Style Setters for Washingtonian. Prior to joining Washingtonian in March 2016, she was the editor of Capitol File magazine in DC and before that, editor of What’s Up? Weddings in Annapolis.
