Watches with sentimental value - share yours!
Which watches in your collection have a significant meaning to you?
For many of us, our first watch was a gift. It may not have been the nicest watch, and it likely isn’t something you’d go out and buy yourself at your current stage in your watch journey — but you’ll always hang on to it.
I’ll start with 3 in my collection that have immense sentimental value to me:
1) Tommy Hilfiger quartz. My girlfriend (now wife) gave me this watch for my birthday when we were in college. I had never owned a watch before that, and I honestly thought the concept of watches was silly, especially in the era of smart phones. That was almost a decade ago, and I still wear this watch on occasion. It’s by far the least “valuable” watch in my collection from a monetary perspective, yet I can’t help but smile whenever I wear it.
2) Tag Heuer Aquaracer (quartz). This was my dad’s watch, which he received for 25 years of service at his company. He gave it to me the day I became a father earlier this year. While I wouldn’t go out and buy the quartz Aquaracer (or any quartz Tag) myself, this is my most worn watch. It’s a symbol of his hard work - of coming to a new country and busting his ass to provide for his family.
3) This Santos Dumont (small) is special. It’s the watch my wife and I picked out together at the Cartier boutique with the intention of giving it to our daughter when she’s older. We both wear it on occasion, and while it definitely looks better on her, it’s a piece I enjoy wearing as well.
Those are my 3! Would love to hear stories from other crunchers!
Insta: @avniwatchco. Most watches I post are available for sale! Check out my website: avniwatchco.com
Sentimental because I assembled it myself based on a wrecked thrift store pocket watch.
I have a few but I'll match your 3.
My first watch. A gift from my wife.
The PRX. I bought 3 different colored dials. One for me and 2 for my sons.
And this one represents my Dad, who passed away last year.
It's cliche but this borked F-91W is the watch that started it all. I wore this for almost a decade I think. No buttons work anymore, it's the correct date and only off by a few minutes.
I bought this one to celebrate completion of #1wc challenge.
Orient Mako Gen I, first auto purchased waaay back in '07 after doing a ton of research.
First issued watch, has literally been all over the world, don't bring it out as much anymore since it chews up batts, from 2011.
5 yr anniversary present from the wife
The watch that I cherish the most is by far my Camy Club-Star. I bought it on 31 December 2022, so not only is it a symbol for new beginnings and optimism with the whole new year thing going on, but it also marked the start of my relationship with my watchmaker, who is, and I mean it without any exaggeration, my hero. He is the one I go to when I mess something up or want to buy a vintage watch at a good price. He has always been eager to help and has blessed me with some of his knowledge and skill. We live in a world where watchmakers, especially in small towns, are becoming rarer and rarer, so I consider myself very privileged to know him.
Secondly, I've been wearing my Nivada Grenchen Antarctic Spider a lot lately and I'm struggling to take it off. It took me a while to build up the motivation to get it running, which taught me that oftentimes the true value of something isn't always right before our eyes. It's very rare and it has been one of my more popular watches on the platform, also fuelling my decision to start blogging on watches too. In that way, it represents me "coming of age" and moving up in the watch world.
And then there's the one that started it all, a Casio Outgear Fishing Gear watch. This as a birthday gift that myself and my parents contributed some money to. It's hard, looking back now, to imagine I wore one watch every day for over a year. These days, I rarely wear one for more than two consecutive days. No matter how many arguments or whatever happens in the world, this watch is a reminder of my fortune in having two parents that love each other and look out for the family.
My dad bought this for me when I graduated high school. No longer works but so glad I still have it. Never going anywhere
Casio A158.
Sentimental because it was a gift from a relative whom I never thought shared so much in common. Ever since, we talk watches non-stop.
My dad gifted me this Bulova when I got married 29 years ago and I'm still married to the same gal. I'd say this is a keeper.
Im in the process of finding my childhood watches and currently have one watch with me, in my disposal, that has a tremendous amount of sentimental value
The watch my dad wore every day I was growing up that he gave me when I was 20
And the watch I gave my mother for her 75th that she left me when she passed