Are high end watches (e.g., Patek) gaudy?

[Fuuma]

Originally Posted by gdl203

But isn't this more or less true for every product and every price point?
Yeah, I dunno, watches appeal to a special breed of nerds and aesthetic taste seem to be quite limited in that group vs an appreciation for technical qualities (or $$$/status). But yeah, I was just answering the OP's query. I really dislike complications and other gimmicks so this, of course, informs my very biased opinion. I mean you've seen one of the watches I own and, considering I asked you, must have noticed how much I don't care about the technical aspects or brand differences.

 

[gdl203]

I understand what you are saying and that's your own preference to disregard the technical aspect for a minimalist aesthetic. What I'm saying is that, by definition, consumer products - whether expensive or not - are designed and marketed for a multitude of demographics, tastes, etc... so that, for any given individual, most of what is out there (cars, clothes, shoes, houses, etc...) will seem atrocious and only a small % of the wide ranges of products sold will be appealing.

You find most high-end watches ugly - I would agree with that - but that's probably true for everything IMO.

 

[Fuuma]

Originally Posted by gdl203

I understand what you are saying and that's your own preference to disregard the technical aspect for a minimalist aesthetic. What I'm saying is that, by definition, consumer products - whether expensive or not - are designed and marketed for a multitude of demographics, tastes, etc... so that, for any given individual, most of what is out there (cars, clothes, shoes, houses, etc...) will seem atrocious and only a small % of the wide ranges of products sold will be appealing. You find most high-end watches ugly - I would agree with that - but that's probably true for everything IMO.
Yeah, pretty much. However one thing that characterizes my appreciation of things is how I often enjoy stuff that I wouldn't wear/buy. In watches I just find most models gaudy on EVERYONE. Of course this is also true of other consumer goods (best example being cars which I almost universally dislike). Generally speaking you are, however, 100% correct.

 

[gdl203]

Tell me about it. I'm struggling to find any cars that I don't find ugly. When we were on the market to buy a place, we must have visited 40 apartments before we found one or two that didn't depress us. When I flip through watch magazines, I struggle to find two models that I would actually want to own/wear.

 

[Patek14]

Simple, small, timeless calatravas are NOT gaudy. If it were guady it would come from style and an item trying to obnoxiously be more than it is.

I wear a Breitling (colt, non chrono) and Breitling is actually a borderline gaudy brand of watches. In the 4-5 years I've worn it, I have gotten two, maybe three compliments. If I wore a PP calatrava or some other 20K+ understated dress watch I would probably have gotten 0 compliments.

I remember once when I was at a conference and a colleage just bought a new quartz gucci watch (or some similar peice of crap fashion brand). He got more compliments during lunch than I ever have.

 

[Fuuma]

Originally Posted by gdl203

Tell me about it. I'm struggling to find any cars that I don't find ugly. When we were on the market to buy a place, we must have visited 40 apartments before we found one or two that didn't depress us. When I flip through watch magazines, I struggle to find two models that I would actually want to own/wear.

60s fiat, not very practical in cold climates or if you have a family. I also like old Jags. I'm not much of a vintage dude myself, I dunno why things went wrong with cars. If I had to buy one now I'd probably get a gaudy black Mercedes SUV and get rims just cause it would be funny. Waking up one month later and realizing I own this **** would probably cause me a heart attack though...

 

[LabelKing]

A good car for New York.

 

[Fuuma]

Originally Posted by LabelKing

A good car for New York.

This isn't bad.


greg: importe une DS

 

[LabelKing]

Or a Citroen SM:

 

[Fuuma]

Originally Posted by LabelKing

Or a Citroen SM:

You just like the name....

 

[oneeightyseven]

Originally Posted by LabelKing

A good car for New York.

I knew a guy who had one of these in black with black tints..that was, before he was deported

 

[Fuuma]

Wait, GDL is a banker, he should get one of these atrocious machines:

 

[LabelKing]

Originally Posted by Fuuma

You just like the name....

I even like the color.

 

[Timeless Fashion]

A Patek Calatrava is one of the most understated and elegant watches. It takes literally hundreds of hours to manufacturer such a fine timepiece unlike many other mass-produced Swiss watches. There is a reason why their slogan states that "You never actually own a patek, but you merely look after it for the next generation".

People spend their hard earned money on different things. Some people here don't blink while spending several grand on a bespoke suit. And then there are CEOs who wear JAB suits.

One thing about Patek is that many of their watches appreciate in value over time or at least keep its value. We all know that this isn't the case for luxury cars.

 

[DGP]

Originally Posted by gdl203

Tell me about it. I'm struggling to find any cars that I don't find ugly. When we were on the market to buy a place, we must have visited 40 apartments before we found one or two that didn't depress us. When I flip through watch magazines, I struggle to find two models that I would actually want to own/wear.

Only cars that I think really "have it" these days are Audi and Lexus. Everything else just looks like generic crap (at least the ones sold in the States).

In the interest of full disclosure, I do drive a Lexus, but I didn't buy it for its looks.