I know I’m not the only one for whom our watches forms sentimental connections, they are on our wrists recording the highs and lows of our lives, physically with their received scratches and dents and emotionally during both significant and seemingly insignificant moments of our own and shared life journeys. I vividly remember certain styles of watches owned by my dad and moments of his wearing them and my playing with, admiring and wearing them, In the same way my son on occasions does mine.

With the below exception for the time (1950’s pre quartz) none of my dads watches were luxury watches. I remember their stylings rather than branding with related moments in time, holidays, my dad working, driving, gardening, shaving etc. These moments were impressionable and in someways has and continues to influence my own watch choices. I’m conscious my own watches may (or may not) form similar subconscious emotional connections for my own son, hopefully without being contrived. Holidaying in Croatia I taught him to dive by continually throwing my SMP300 Into the deep end for him to retrieve over and over. Nighttime camping in our garden and cuddling him before/as he sleeps by the warming luminescent glow of both the indices and numerals of my beater on leather Seiko SNZG17J. These are just couple of sentimental examples for me. They may currently and never have any memory or meaning, or the same meanings to my son, he may subconsciously be forming other memories of his own, I known not.

My dad’s (pre me) early 1950’s Longines. Purchased during a holiday to Italy it promptly broke/would not wind, he effectively wrote it off leaving it in a drawer but I would still often admire and wear it as a kid. I always loved the separate sub dial seconds and believe this influenced my own later choice for the De Ville Power Reserve with sub dial seconds. I recently plucked up the courage to just ask my dad outright if I could have his old Longines, without hesitation he found it up for me. I have since had it serviced to once more working order. I tried to return it to him but he insists I now keep it. New strap I wear it and will also later pass it onwards to my son as part of my own humble and continuing collection, some of which I hope will also hold some happy memories for him.



WOS - share your Watches Of Sentiment.

 

Thanks for sharing. And actually, what a coincidence... the Deville is actually the same that I gifted my dad.

He's not really a watch guy, so he was kind of surprised to receive it.
Some weeks later I asked him his thoughts. And he said, "honestly, I don't really like it. But I wear it daily because you were the one that gave it to me."
I too now carry that same mindset whenever a person with a close relationship gifts me something. I have a backpack that my watchmaker gave me that I use to classes - and it's not 100% not my thing but I still use it daily because he gave it to me.

 

I have some of my Dads watches (mechanical but nothing of note). What is nice is that I recognise them in old photos, some of which feature me as a kid. Everything links. I posted a thread about time a while back and I have bought a couple of recommended books from that which I still need to wade through. All is to a relative degree ephemeral so it is no surprise people form deep connections with timepieces as the chronophage eats away....

https://omegaforums.net/threads/is-it-time-to-know-what-time-is.91808/