From minimalist design statements to exquisite detailing, Timothy Barber presents a selection of luxury timepieces to suit all tastes.

FORM AND FUNCTION – Design-savvy tickers for those who know their Eames from their Aalto.

Rado Ceramica Konstantin Grcic edition

The world of Munich-based industrial designer Konstantin Grcic, famed for his stark, pared-down furniture and radical use of materials, may seem a world away from the traditions and classicism of Swiss watches. But watch design is itself a broad church, and Grcic has brought his vision to bear on the Ceramica by Rado, Konstantin Grcic edition.

First introduced in the early 1990s, the Ceramica brought futuristic, scratch-proof ceramic casing into watch cases for the first time.

Grcic’s reimagining of this design classic brings out a more subtle and organic character in the Ceramica, softening the edges, adding gentle curves and giving the formerly glossy surface a silky matt finish.

It is available in both men’s and women’s styles – the latter with diamond dial markers and a white-cased option – but it is the limited-edition “Signature” version, with its austere, angular dial design, that should be the pick of today’s black polo-necked design mavens.

THREE MORE DESIGN WATCHES…

Nomos Glashütte Tetra Neomatik Nachtblau

Bauhaus minimalism with added contemporary funk from the offbeat German watchmaker

Tudor Heritage Black Bay Dark

The uber-stylish vintage-infused watch gets a contemporary all-black makeover

Christopher Ward C65 Trident Classic Mk II

Style and substance combine perfectly in this on-trend everyday watch

 

SPEED AND STYLE – Whether sporty or classic, there are chronographs to suit every taste

Bremont DH-88 in steel

The chronograph – the watch with a stopwatch – remains the ultimate Boy’s Own style of timekeeper: it’s got history (associated as it is with adventurous pursuits such as aviation, space travel and motor racing), bags of charm and a satisfying sense of action and purpose, thanks to the extra stopwatch dials and buttons.

British firm Bremont looked to the Golden Age of aviation to inspire its latest timepiece, the luxurious DH-88 chronograph. It’s named after the De Havilland 88, a stupendously handsome aircraft that set the record for the fastest flight from England to Australia back in 1934, winning a 20-aeroplane race that captivated the world.

The watch packs in a second time zone, rotating 24-hour ring and date, in a design full of period detail, for one of the most polished and luxurious Bremont aviation watches yet.

FOUR OTHER HANDSOME CHRONOGRAPHS…

Patek Philippe Reference 5170

The venerable maison’s flagship hand-wound chronograph in its most opulent guise

Vacheron Constantin Overseas Chronograph

Comes with interchangeable bracelet and leather or rubber strap options, for the ultimate versatile chrono

Omega Speedmaster CK 2998

The legendary “Speedy” reborn in a limited-edition blue and white livery

Shinola Runwell Sport Chrono 48mm

The Detroit brand’s first titanium watch with a leather strap is part of a gift set that also includes a black nylon strap

 

EYE CATCHER – In women’s watches, inventive decoration and vibrant colours are all the rage

Hublot Big Bang Broderie Sugar Skull Ceramic

They may be small but the dials of women’s watches are proving to be canvasses for an increasingly vibrant sense of creativity and artistic daring, not to mention the deployment of decorative techniques that seem distinctly unlikely.

Hublot’s magnificently monikered Big Bang Broderie Sugar Skull collection is just such a case in point – the brand has unleashed the colourful spirit of Mexico’s Day of the Dead in a series of watches that incorporate silk embroidery into the body of the watch itself.

The needlework is carried out by Swiss artisans more used to embroidering lace lingerie, but in this case stitching a spectacular Mexican skull pattern into the dial, as well as decorating the strap.

FOUR MORE COLOURFUL WOMEN’S TIMEPIECES…

Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Classic Duetto by Christian Louboutin

The shoe maestro brings catwalk glamour to Jaeger-LeCoultre’s heritage model

Harry Winston Premier Precious Weaving

Tiny shards of mother of pearl are assembled on the dial, in accordance with Japan’s “raden” technique

Longines La Grande Classique

A marquetry of coloured mother of pearl decorates the Longines dial

Rolex Oyster Perpetual 26mm

Rolex recently embellished its Oyster Perpetual line with zinging new dial colours

 

OBJECT OF DESIRE – Distinct and traditional, world timers are the ultimate traveller’s timepiece

Montblanc 4810 Orbis Terrarum limited edition pocket watch

For those who believe travel has a grander purpose than as a mere function of business or leisure, this Montblanc pocket watch is the perfect keepsake. In fact, it’s a spot of old-fashioned business travel that inspired it – in 1906, the year Montblanc was born, its founders sailed to America on a fact-finding mission that would prove critical to the company’s success.

Made to mark the brand’s 110th birthday, the steel-cased pocket watch evokes, rather beautifully, the classic era of the Blue Riband ocean voyage – the dial even has hints of an old ship’s engine telegraph, while the back bears an engraving of an ocean liner.

Montblanc’s watchmaking has been on a journey of its own in recent years, from purveyor of generic Swiss tickers to some of the most impressive – and keenly priced – fine watches around. World timers have become a particular speciality, and Montblanc produces in-house the mechanism that enables the time to be read at any moment in zones right around the world – including, in the pocket watch, zones at half-hour differences that don’t make it on to watches.

And the “4810” of the title? That’s the height in metres of Mont Blanc itself.

FOUR MORE TRAVEL TIMERS…

Montblanc 4810 Orbis Terrarum

If pocket watches aren’t your thing…

Ball Watch Company Engineer Master II Diver Worldtime

A chunky, action-bound take on the travel watch

Alpina Alpiner GMT 4 Business Hours

For the sporty exec, this adds the “business open hours” in a second time zone

Bulgari Hora Domus Dual Time

Includes city selector for a second time zone, day and night display, and even the season

Timothy Barber is The Telegraph’s watch editor.