Treat yourself and those around you with care, generosity, and a welcome measure of indulgence to begin 2026 on a fresh, inspired note
In this story, we highlight watches to peruse for the new year.
Patek Philippe’s calendar watches
Staying on top of schedules is never easy, but with a touch of craftsmanship and mechanical intelligence, even the most demanding deadlines feel a little less daunting. In typical Patek Philippe fashion, the brand, too, elevates its calendar watches into rarefied expressions of engineering and craftsmanship. Take, for instance, the Ref. 5308G-001. The white gold watch houses a quadruple complication: a minute repeater, a chronograph with a split-seconds feature (counting as two complications), and an instantaneous perpetual calendar. Perhaps most mesmerising is the instantaneous perpetual calendar: its discs snap forward within a mere 30 milliseconds, revealing the new day, date, and month across three apertures arranged in an elegant arc.
Where the Ref. 5308G dazzles with technical complexity, the Twenty~4 Ref. 7340/1R-010 perpetual calendar for ladies captivates with quiet power. Thanks to the ultra-thin self-winding 240 Q calibre, the watch retains an elegantly slim profile despite its mechanical sophistication. Crafted in rose gold and paired with a sunburst olive-green dial, it is the first non-gem-set round offering in the Twenty~4 collection.
Last but not least, the Ref. 4946R-001 Annual Calendar makes a great unisex option, housing the complication in a versatile 38mm rose gold case. The warmth of the metal complements the brown dial, which features that same shantung-silk inspired finish seen across the latest models.
Breguet Classique Souscription 2025
A worthy winner of the biggest prize at last year’s prestigious Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève watchmaking awards, the Classique Souscription 2025 took home the Aiguille d’Or Grand Prix for Breguet.
Delightfully pared down, with only one hand to indicate both the hours and minutes, the watch appears simple but is rich with details and lineage. It is inspired by pocket watches that the brand’s founder, Abraham-Louis Breguet, made in 1796—robust and reliable single-hand pocket watches for which customers had to make a down payment, and which helped generate income for the then-fledgling company. Clad in Breguet gold, a proprietary alloy developed to mark the brand’s anniversary, the watch features a grand feu dial with discreet inscriptions bearing the word ‘Souscription’, and a a new hand-wound movement with four-day power reserve.
Zenith Defy Skyline
It is not that we are encouraging you to treat luxury watches as an investment. Smart and timely acquisitions can pay off handsomely, but that takes a lot of experience and knowledge. Meanwhile, any investor worth their salt will tell you that gold is widely considered to be one of the safest investments, a safe-haven asset that holds its value during times of economic uncertainty and turmoil.
So (and you know where we are going with this), to have the best of both worlds, you might want to consider a weighty, full-gold model as your next watch purchase. This Defy Skyline creation by Zenith in yellow gold ticks our boxes for its regal disposition and robust utility. The shiny, sunny hue exudes old-school charm like no other precious metal does and, when fashioned into this muscular Defy Skyline case and integrated bracelet, it amplifies its heavyweight disposition.
The sunburst satin-finished olive green dial, carpeted with Zenith’s engraved four-pointed star motif, adds ostentation but does not distract from the time-and-date display, which ticks with unerring precision thanks to its automatic, high-frequency El Primero movement.
Franck Muller Triple Round Mystery
For women looking to usher in 2026 with unapologetic brilliance, Franck Muller presents a fitting companion: the new Triple Round Mystery, an opulent timepiece equally at ease at glamorous evening soirees and beyond.
Available in white or rose gold at 39mm, the watch is drenched in diamonds across both case and dial, with each stone individually set by master artisans to create a luminous play of light. Yet the Triple Round Mystery’s charm extends beyond the gems. What draws the eye, too, is what’s absent: the familiar pair of hands sweeping across the dial. In their place are three separate rotating discs—one each for the hours, minutes, and seconds. The latter spins at the centre, adorned with a lattice motif, its movement smooth and meditative. Each disc aligns with a single coloured gemstone that quietly reveals the time, turning every glance into a small moment of discovery.
H. Moser & Cie. Endeavour Perpetual Calendar Smoked Salmon
Another perpetual calendar makes our list, this time confidently austere yet inviting. Encased in 18k white gold, the Endeavour Perpetual Calendar features a warm, salmon-hued dial decorated
with a vertical griffe texture and enhanced by H. Moser & Cie.’s signature fume treatment. A dark brown alligator strap completes the refined aesthetic.
From the dial alone, the wearer can read the time, the date with a flash-calendar function that switches instantaneously at midnight, the power reserve, and the month via a discreet central hand. Turning the watch over, the open sapphire caseback showcases the decoration and finishing of the hand-wound movement as well as the leap-year indication.
Bovet Récital 12 with unique stone dials
Are you ready for a year of emotional transformation and positive energy, and are you a fan of niche independent watch brands to boot? Award-winning watchmaking house Bovet, known for its technical ingenuity and artisanal excellence, has just the watches for you.
The Récital 12 collection, introduced two years ago and the first Bovet line to feature metal bracelets, now offers two new 40mm titanium iterations with stone dials, limited to 60 pieces each. The first is set with malachite, a copper-rich carbonate mineral prized for its vivid green hue and naturally occurring wavy or concentric patterns, and believed to enhance mental clarity and emotional growth. The second features tiger’s eye,a golden-brown member of the quartz family with patterns reminiscent of a feline’s gaze, which is said to attract good fortune.
Hermès H08 Chronograph
The Hermès H08 Chronograph is a modern classic you will want on your wrist every day. Its sporty, urban, and quietly masculine character stems from its ultra-light, cushion-shaped 41mm ×
41mm case in carbon-fibre composite infused with graphene, framed by a sunburst satin-brushed ceramic bezel and a black PVD-coated titanium crown with an orange-rimmed monopusher at 3 o’clock.
Inside, the watch is just as compelling. It is powered by the Hermès Manufacture H1837 automatic movement with a 46-hour power reserve, paired with a monopusher chronograph module that delivers hours, minutes, central chronograph seconds, small seconds at 3 o’clock, and a discreet date at 4:30. Finishing touches include circular graining, snailing, satin-brushed bridges and rotor, and Hermès’ signature ‘sprinkling of Hs’, complemented by a 10-bar water resistance and sapphire crystal front and back. The result is a true connoisseur’s sports chronograph.
