Christmas gifts - Six Swiss Made watches under 3,000 Swiss francs
If you're looking for something different to offer as a watch this Christmas, or even to break new ground with your own collection, here is a selection of some affordable watches beyond the mainstream luxury brands.
Emile Chouriet - Soleos
Blue may well be a popular colour for watch dials, but it's notoriously difficult to produce a good blue dial. Emile Chouriet's Soleos model is therefore all the more remarkable because of the warm, almost turquoise, tones of its blue dial. A more classic version with a silvered dial is available, and both have a guilloche effect sun-ray pattern, applied hour markers and a distinguished grooved bezel. The Soleos is powered by a Swiss Made self-winding mechanical movement and retails for just over 1,000 Swiss francs and, because of its exclusivity, you are unlikely to bump into anyone else wearing one.
Hamilton - Khaki BeLOWZERO
One of the tie-in watches for Hamilton's association with this year's blockbuster movie "The Martian", starring Matt Damon, the BeLOWZERO offers unbeatable value for money in this category. It is the biggest watch in our selection, with a sturdy 46mm diameter case in black PVD-coated stainless steel that has imposing bolts at the four corners, and is also the most water resistant by far, withstanding depths of up to 1,000 metres (3,300 feet). Inside beats the ETA 2826 self-winding mechanical movement.
Perrelet - First Class
Think Perrelet and you may instinctively think of the unique turbine animation found on the brand's more technical watches. But Perrelet is also keen to show you that they offer a perfectly classical watch in the form of the First Class Collection, which has a stainless-steel case and a choice of black or silver dials. What's more, the collection is equipped with Perrelet's own in-house P-321 calibre mechanical movement. All for under 3,000 Swiss francs.
Anonimo - Militare Classic
For under 3,000 Swiss francs you can own a Swiss Made watch which has a distinctive case in zinc-enriched marine bronze and which will acquire a wonderful patina over time. There are few bronze watches on the market and Anonimo offers one of the most affordable. The Militare Classic retails for 2,550 Swiss francs and if you're lucky you could even win one in our December competition (although you won't get it in time for Christmas, because our competition does not close until 31st December!).
Ernest Borel - Duke
With hours, minutes, seconds, date and a moon phase display, the Duke collection by Ernest Borel has all you need from a luxury timepiece for just 2,760 Swiss francs. Its rose-gold plated case and dark-brown leather strap add a touch of luxury and a small cut-out on the dial reveals the workings of the DD9000 Swiss Made self-winding mechanical movement beating beneath.
Montblanc - 1858 Small Seconds
You may be surprised to hear that you can pick up one of Montblanc's new 1858 small seconds models from just 2,990 Swiss francs. It may not have the cachet of the sublime Minerva movement into the gold model, but it doesn't have its price tag either, costing just a tenth of the price of the flagship model. What's more, it has the unique Montblanc "sfumato" strap to complete the vintage look. For the full vintage look, an extra 200 Swiss francs gets you the beige numerals that recall the original Minerva piece on a black alligator leather strap in a limited edition of 858 pieces.
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