Men : Getting The Right Timepiece

This might come as news, but your watch doesn’t need to be encrusted with diamonds, or have sixteen dials, or tell you what the surf is like in Malaysia right now. It needs to sync up with your lifestyle. In other words, are you throwing on your pinstripes and heading to the firm every morning, or are you hopping on a lift to head up the mountain? Once you answer that question, you’ll have taken the most important step in deciding what kind of watch is right for you

• A Wrist Is a Terrible Thing to Waste

We understand perfectly well that the phone in your pocket tells the time. That’s cool and all, but we still think you should strap on a watch. A watch is the one piece of man jewelry (yeah, we just said “man jewelry”) that we can fully get behind. Not only does it punctuate an outfit; it also says something about who you are—or, at least, who you aspire to be. So forget about technological advances for a moment. Think of a watch as you would a tie: Who cares if it’s not purely functional? It still plays an integral role in what it means to be a man.

• It Only Looks Complicated

If you invest in a serious timepiece, you ought to know what’s under the hood. Get hip to these five watch terms and you’ll sound like an industry pro.

Water-Resistant
Just because a watch says it’s water-resistant doesn’t mean you should swim or shower with it on. To be safe, only do so if it’s water-resistant up to one hundred meters.

Quartz
A movement powered by a battery and regulated by the oscillations of a quartz crystal. It’s way more accurate than other watch types.

Complication
Any function that goes beyond timekeeping. Could be an annual calendar; could be a stopwatch.

Movement
All those bits and pieces inside that run the thing.

Self-Winding
A type of mechanical watch, containing a rotor on a pivot, that’s wound by the day-to-day movements of the wearer’s wrist

• Be a Man of Steel

“I got my stainless-steel Rolex Air King as a birthday present to myself fifteen years ago, and it’s been the one watch on my wrist ever since. I opted for a few details that keep it from being either too techy or too dressy—bars instead of numbers, a dark navy dial, a smooth (not ridged) bezel. It’s really become a watch that takes on the personality of whatever I’m wearing. If I’m in a tweed suit, it’s classic. If I’m on the beach in a swimsuit, it becomes sporty. It doesn’t just work with the clothes I have on—it adds something to everything I wear.”—Jim Moore, GQ creative director

• Of Course, You Don’t Need to Spend $5K on a Watch

There are plenty of smart-looking affordable timepieces out there. The key is buying one—like these—that doesn’t try to look fancy.

From left:
Bulova, $150 Seiko, $165 Timex, $50

• If You’re Not a Marathoner, Don’t Wear a Watch Like One

There’s a difference between a sporty watch and a sport watch. Yes, you can wear a canvas-strap timepiece with a blazer. But no, you don’t want to wear a rubber, wrist-contoured watch that tracks your time in the half mile with your gray flannel business suit. It says either you don’t know how your watch should sync with your outfit or that you’re trying entirely too hard to look like you don’t care.

• A Sophisticated Way to Sneak Some Color into Your Wardrobe

You might not be the kind of guy to wear a tangerine orange power tie or Crayola green socks, but you ought to consider a color-faced watch. The reason timepieces like these look smart is because they have classic bones—nothing gimmicky or goofy about them. Just a shot of color to bring some life to your wardrobe.