A quick iPhone shot of her Omegas- unlike some of the teeny jewel-like frilly ladies watches of the 50’s, these I think are classics and wear very modern- but are unique compared to what’s offered today
1958 Lady Seamaster
Early 60’s (late 50’s?) cocktail watch
Late 50’s men’s 14k dress watch
‘69 Seamaster
The Deville you are looking at would wear the same as the ‘58 Seamaster in the first pic- Hannah has a 5.5”’wrist- teeny, always have to buy short length straps for men’s watches and she’s within the last 2 holes on ladies straps. Caution if buying men’s watches with bracelets- you usually can’t get enough links out to get them that small- although the Rolex bracelets do go down that small...pitty-huh 😉
There are several vendors of good straps that offer them in short sizes for mens watches, just make sure you pay attention to that.
The vintage ladies watch market is pretty wide open if you can rock the smaller sizes (most ladies “sport” watches from the 60’s are 22-29mm). Omega’s, Tudors, Rolex’s, Tag Heuer’s- at a fraction of what the comparable men’s versions go for. Just find a good watchmaker in your area and build a relationship- have that in place you will find collecting fun. If not- it can be frustrating as they all need service.
And since most of the men’s watches from the 30’s-60’s were under 34mm, it opens the field for bargains as most men find them too small. If you want to pick the brain of someone who has been at this for a while and can share some great ideas on vintage men’s watches that wear fantastically on women- you may want to reach out to @Syrte. Search some of her posts and you’ll see she has incredible style and an amazing eye.
How about we let people develop their own interests rather than presuming the trajectory of their interest.
as a female (I presume) and getting into watches, I think you will soon gravitate towards the full size models as that seems to be the trend for women nowadays. my wife hasn't ever owned a "lady's" size watch 😀
Hi @janice&fred what would be wrong « gravitating » in the other direction? You’re making it sound as if going towards larger watches is « progress » - as if women who like lady size watches were somehow out of touch, and should conform.
As for myself, I went the opposite direction— from men tool watches and even military issued watches, I now also enjoy some very specific models of ladies watches.
As @connieseamaster says, everyone has their own path.
Hi Cate, welcome to the forum— below are a couple of wrist shots showing the breadth of options you have. Thanks @JwRosenthal for the kind words.
Hi @janice&fred what would be wrong « gravitating » in the other direction? You’re making it sound as if going towards larger watches is « progress » - as if women who like lady size watches were somehow out of touch, and should conform.
As for myself, I went the opposite direction— from men tool watches and even military issued watches, I now also enjoy some very specific models of ladies watches.
As @connieseamaster says, everyone has their own path.
Hi Cate, welcome to the forum— below are a couple of wrist shots showing the breadth of options you have. Thanks @JwRosenthal for the kind words.
Hi @janice&fred what would be wrong « gravitating » in the other direction? You’re making it sound as if going towards larger watches is « progress » - as if women who like lady size watches were somehow out of touch, and should conform.
As for myself, I went the opposite direction— from men tool watches and even military issued watches, I now also enjoy some very specific models of ladies watches.
As @connieseamaster says, everyone has their own path.
Hi Cate, welcome to the forum— below are a couple of wrist shots showing the breadth of options you have. Thanks @JwRosenthal for the kind words.
Cate- there are many threads on the topic of servicing older watches and the general consensus is to NOT take a vintage watch to Omega as they will service the watch to “be like new” which including refinishing the case, replacing dials and hands and other cosemetic features that can affect the esthetics and collector value of the watch. Also the price can be higher than using an independent watchmaker although sometimes not the case.
Finding a watchmaker you trust also allows you to broaden your collection to other watch brands besides Omega’s. Omega does have a strict policy on which watchmakers can have parts accounts so in some cases a certified Omega Independent is your best route. That said, my watchmaker does not have an Omega or Rolex parts account but still has his sources for factory parts.
Let us know where in the world you are and we can hopefully recommend a watchmaker near you.
Make a new post in the General discussions section for “watchmaker in Lisbon, Portugal” and you should get some responses.
That was a Waltham A-17 indeed. Nice Bulova !
