My New Watch From A Brand No One Has Heard Of
My new Beaubleu watch might be my most beautiful.
My watch collection takes up a nation’s worth of real estate in my head. I have ultimately decided that it is unhealthy and am exiting the game. I decided that I needed to be appreciative of the pieces that are currently in my collection. With that, I have sold off a handful of pieces…and purchased a couple more. I needed to trim that fat and then pick up a couple of “exit watches,” or watches that make you retire from the watch-collecting game. One of which is a piece that if I didn't get my hands on it, I wouldn't have ever been satisfied and it would haunt me. It's the watch that I needed before I ever bought another watch again, but more on that later.
I'm going to stop reading all of the daily blogs. So long Fratello! So long Time + Tide. So long Hodinkee. I will stop watching Horology YouTube obsessively. So long Teddy Baldassarre! So long Brittany Pierce. So long Adrian Barker. This isn't a goodbye, but merely a see you later. I'm not saying I'm walking away forever, but it is best that I step away for now. I will miss the game.
I have a slightly obsessive personality, so it's not great for me when I get too into something. For example, I've been hearing those Kendrick Lamar diss songs in my head while I sleep. “Not Like” Us is that catchy.
One of the watches that I purchased en route to exiting the game is from a brand that nobody has ever heard of. As of right now, French microbrand Beaubleu has 16.8K followers on Instagram. This is molecular in comparison to some of the watch behemoths. Rolex is sitting at 16.3M followers. Auremars Piguet has 3.1M followers, Omega has 4.1M followers, Richard Mille has 2.2M and Patek Philippe has 2M followers. 16.8k is just a drop in the bucket compared to the legacy brands.
I first discovered Beaubleu a few weeks ago when I was originally getting excited for the Windup Watch Fair in San Francisco. Searching through the names of the companies, the French brand stood out. The name translates to "beautiful blues" (even if the watch I purchased was gold). I saw that the brand would have a booth at the show and it quickly topped my priority list for brands I'd visiting during my time at the fair.
The second I tried on the Ecce Lys watch, I knew that it would soon be mine. Take one look at the piece and you'll realize why. There's almost nothing in the watch world that looks like it. It simply took my breath away There are some luxury brands with innovative dials, but they run in the tens of thousands of dollars. This Beaubleu watch cost $900, but I got it for $720 after receiving a 20% off coupon code at the fair.
The watch tells time in a series of circles. The circles get larger with the smaller timekeeping measurements. Similar to any watch, the hour hand is the smallest, followed by the minute hand up to the seconds hand. There is a tiny marker on each circle which denotes the time. There is a date window at six o'clock and the hour markings are replaced by minute markings - a 55 where 11 would go. With a dial this busy, the text should be kept to a minimum. At the center dial is just the name of the brand with the word "automatique" underneath, with a small "Paris" printed at the bottom of the dial under six o'clock. All this is kept in a beautiful 39mm circular gold case on a gold-grained bracelet. The gold is PVD, of course, but don't let that sway you. It also boasts 50M of water resistance and a reliable Miyota Japanese movement.
The brand was founded 2017, by designer Nicolas Ducouder in pursuit of creating watches that were unique-looking, while maintaining sustainability and affordability. "Beyond a simple brand, Beaubleu represents a community united around this vision, in a spirit where hedonism and creativity are advocated" their website reads. The company also seeks to challenge the status quo and promote creative freedom. This is what he says about his choice of using circular hands:
The circle, being the starting point of any conceptualization of space, from astronomy to the proportions of a classic painting, occupies a fundamental place in my thinking. This is how circular hands naturally emerged as an obvious choice, offering a new way of conceiving and understanding time.
I love the watch for a number of reasons. The uniqueness of the dial is what originally caught my eye. Watching the larger blue circle smoothly sweep around the dial was hypnotizing - more than with any straight line seconds hand has. I love the idea of having a watch that is little known, one that I can make my own and effortlessly blend with my personal style. I also find it chic and elegant, versatile for jeans & a t-shirt and black tie. I can wear this watch with shorts and an Oxford in the summertime and a suit at a wedding.
Lastly, I bought this watch as part of my 30th birthday. 30 years is not an insignificant amount of time and I deserve it! As I said, another purchase has yet to arrive as part of my 30th birthday present, but this Beaubleu is by far my most unique watch. I love it and I can't wait to get out there and make memories with it. I can't wait to see it on my wrist in photos down the line.
Peace and Love
