Bites: Building a collection - Versatility Vs Focus

Thank you 🙏🏼

I personal like diversity in my collecting but I’m all for how ever anyone wishes to put there collection together.

My collection ends up getting balanced randomly once inspired by a piece. But I do have a soft spot for divers for sure! In addition to that blue dials are also a good reason for me to get weak in the knees, especially if it’s sunburst. And if you entire collection is a blue colorway dials that would be TOTALLY Fine!

As far as a 3 watch collection, that wouldn’t remotely be possible for me personally so I won’t weigh in.

I’ll be at Wind up watch fair on Sat in NY and then at the meet up with @Max

https://www.watchcrunch.com/Max/posts/nyc-watchcrunch-meetup-212315

Hopefully I can be there early enough to get a WC strap to pair with my WC inspired mod https://www.watchcrunch.com/Mr.Santana/posts/my-watchcrunch-inspired-mod-192948?ref=Mr.Santana

Welcome to the Crunch! And great job posting this week! @vaibhav1 @alonso @Lasse63

Thanks for the mention! I feel special now 🙃

As for the watch collection I am actively reducing mine with the aim of having a nice range of versatility,

This is much more difficult than first anticipated 🤣

You're welcome! I'm looking forward to seeing the famous traveling watch! 🥳

It’s got the next leg in Canada, then 3 trips in USA and then Saipan and back to the UK 🇬🇧 👍🏼

I have some versatility in my collection but I currently focus on Dive watches and G-shocks right now. Timing bezels and indestructibility are what I need right now in my day to day with a crazy puppy and more outdoor activities.

I stay away from dress watches for example out of personal preference and not having to go to any occasions that would warrant wearing one.

I also usually bang all my watches on door knobs as I am clumsy as hell so they probably wouldn't last too long.

I'm probably going to be one of those people saying "Here is my collection of white dials.... and here is my collection of blue dials.... and the black dials" 🫣

Windup is a properly next level event 😱 I was looking at the line up... amazing! And the website is saying they are going to be hosting more brands than ever!

Brew, Serica, AnOrdain, Lorier.... so many I'd be dieing to get my hands on!!!

Who would you be looking out for???

Did I say that, or did @Porthole say that? You may have to go to the Escapement Room to find out.

Most of my dials are white, silver, or cream colored. I have some greens, blacks, and a red and a blue. I have chosen non-white dials to mix it up a bit. White dials are the most legible to me and they are my preference in low light situations.

Also, your WC watch is the utter business. You have definitely joined to ranks of the awesome building and modding community on WC 👌

Work, wet and weddings. That's how I describe the main types of watches. And there's nothing wrong in sticking to a type, my main genre is wet, and I've found (to my suprise) that you don't need a 'fidget spinner' on the front of a watch to be a wet watch. But I do love a bit of diversity in the box and having a dabble in another genre is lots of fun (as this weekend attests).

Nothing wrong with white watches, after all its not just about the colour, there's lots of other factors in the look of a watch which adds the interest levels (classic looks always, and there's nothing wrong with classics). I've had a black watch year, great but maybe need to balance the hoard out a bit and have a foray into the crisp white world of dials, but i am a bit afraid about legibility with my old eyes (stuff from the likes of isotope an exemption, awesome watches). I will have a look at some in the new year, either next something with some contrast and colour like the isotope or something like a seiko 5 snoopy ❤ and hang the legibility cos their just fun🥳 (form over function or fun over function). Great post as ever, cheers.

There is nothing wrong with that collection to me! Show it proudly.

I’ll be looking mainly for @Max secret booth with a secret affordable watch crunch release!

Oh my days... the amount of times I have threatened to sell watches and reduce my collection is ridiculous 🤣

I had pretty much just given up on the idea and figured I'd just split it into sub-collections instead, but then @Stricko suggested trying to sell some stuff on Vinted as a better option to eBay, so I may try that 🤔

I appreciate the shout out. Thank you.

I kinda think I have a boring collection but I love it. All my dials are pretty monochromatic and the craziest complication I have is a chrono.

The best 3 watch collection should be reflection of me. If I like whites why not have a 3 watch white dial collection or 3 GMTs if that best describes who I am.

When you only have 3 watches there is no room for I have to have this because..... So thankfully we can have more than 3 watches and expand our taste and boundaries.

I was hoping it could adventure to Sweden and Morocco with me, but it looks like it's dance card is too full! 😆

Yes I do apologise, as it’s my first go with this idea I wasn’t too sure how people would take to it, but it’s been an outstanding show of support 👍🏼 it’ll come to you soon enough

These days there's no rhyme or reason to what I collect. It's just got to make me happy when I look at. Although lately I've been trying to avoid new releases and just focus on dialing in my vintage collection.🍻

I am a completionist so I tend to have a list and strive to acquire the items on said list. HOWEVER, I make no secret over my appreciation of red watches. While not an overwhelming part of the collection, it is the one color slowly catching up to the black, blue, and white dials. This does not count red indices, bezels, etc.

I'm starting to move away from blue dials. Though when I see a really pretty one, I am like the bugs in Wreck It Ralph drawn to the light.

I started in the hobby collecting vintage Hamilton exclusively. Then I got a couple of modern new Hamilton and I liked it. Then I got a couple of modern non-Hamilton and I liked that even more.

My strategy became to collect vertically in the vintage sphere, just Hamilton across all eras, and horizontally in modern, collecting a variety of modern brands and styles.

The other part of my strategy was to consider which watch might get displaced by a new addition. For instance, if a new watch is similar to an existing one, would the new one actually get worn in favour of the old? Can they coexist or will the old one not get worn and have to move out?

As a result, I tend look less at models that are similar to what I already have and try out styles that are out of my comfort zone. I think this has led to a varied and versatile collection.

Great topic!

I say variety is the spice of life...so my collection is very spicy...

Over the past month, these colors have made an appearance...

And in the prior month...

Cool article as always. Good question too, versatility vs. focus.

First off, from the way you have written the article, it seems that you are equating versatility with variety. These 2 are vastly different (besides the spelling, hehe). A person can have just one watch yet it's versatile to wear in a host of scenarios or use cases, i.e. business meetings, sport, casual everyday, a.k.a. it's a GADA watch. Whereas variety means one's collection can have a mixture of dial colors, watch complications, dial styles and designs, case shapes, eras, etc. So, I think your real comparison is variety vs. focus/"type".

Secondly, having said that, I think a person can choose variety or focus, or even both. One doesn't exclude the other. Add to that, one can also choose to acquire watches out of a whim, or to "spice up" one's collection, without falling neatly into any of the boxes of variety or focus. How one defines "spicing up" is all up to the person. This leads me to my last point.

End of the day, each one will justify why he/she acquired a particular watch, or why he/she let go of a watch, at a particular moment in time. Ultimately, a person builds his/her own collection depending on one's context and criteria (or preferences) of watch selecting. A person will prefer one watch over the another for so and so reasons. Everyone has a grid they use, regardless of how seemingly organized, or random/whimsical it may be. Because of such criteria, some choose to be 3-watch collectors, others go for a 6-categories/complications collection, while others have a whole cabinet or even a museum of timepieces!

To each his own. Be grateful and glad for what you currently have, and what you may still add in the future. If you doubt your collecting direction because someone questioned your choices, don't doubt. But if you doubt your collecting direction, because it's not what you really like, then go ahead and pivot. What matters most is that you enjoy your collection. You are collecting for you, and not for anyone else.

Cheers, madam!

Good point - and one I mull over myself frequently. Like white dials for you, I have some awesome diving watches:

And yet crazy me still wants more awesome diving watches

But, that’s dumb, right? I should get more still awesome, even if they are not diving watches, watches, if I’m smart. I think.

🤔

I might not have the perfect collection in the world but for me I based on my wrist size and I like variation style, brands and movements.

That M.A.D. 1 Red, swoon!

Just pure fire. Some amazing pickups.

It is such a cool watch. I admittedly don’t have the wrist to pull it off, but still wear it from time to time. Closest I’ll likely get to an MB&F.

You have one of the coolest collections here!

Thank you Celine! Truly appreciate the kind words especially from someone as knowledgeable as yourself.

Thanks!

Love the mix of modern & vintage, in addition to all the beautiful designs. Nice!