Roman Numeral Dress Watches for guys on a budget
When I was six years old I was at a friend’s house playing Nintendo and was late getting home by about 30 minutes. We didn’t have a Nintendo so the siren song of Mario and Lugi prevented me from my usually dependable punctual return. My Mother wasn’t pleased. Under duress I blurted out that I didn’t know what time it was because the clock in my friend’s TV room was one of those “with letters instead of numbers.” She graciously overestimated my denseness, bought the fib, and I got off scot free.
Aside from being a nifty excuse for tardiness when you’re in first grade, Roman numerals also look extra formal. Maybe it’s the way the angles of the Xs, Is, and Vs all play off each other, but a watch with Roman Numerals always appears more intricate and sharp. Here’s VI under CC dollars.
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#1 – ESQ Movado Filmore Black Croc Band – $195.00
The Movado made ESQ brand usually costs a lot more than this. Even the rectangular shaped Filmore costs more than its round sibling. All of the details are perfect. Textured dial but just at the center, black roman numerals that offer plenty of contrast, and bright blue hands that are reminiscent of Cartier.
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#2 – BOSS Black Square Face Stainless – $195.00
Rectangle and square case watches are usually either waif thin or massively bulky. This one hits the midpoint between those two extremes. Could be the best looking affordable right-angle case watch out there. Also available with a black dial.
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#3 – Emporio Armani Curved Case Croc Embossed – $195 for brown or black
Bigger & bolder in person. So much so that if you’re under 5’10” or say, under 170lbs, your wrist runs the risk of getting swallowed up by these. Thick enough that you have to wonder if they’ll fit nicely under a dress shirt cuff.
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#4 – Ted Baker TE1038 Automatic – $112.00
(reg. $160)
Carfeul now, Ted Baker watches run a little thick, and they’re often a little funky. This one’s an automatic, seems to have a pretty simple looking dial, and even the skeleton window blends in decently enough.
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#5 – Invicta Reserve Collection Slim Blue Leather Watch – $66.99
A Blue leather band? That’s got to go. But after you swap out the band for a black one, it has some potential. Not everyone will be crazy about the coin edge case, but it’s ultra slim, and if you dig around online, you can find other angles of this model of watch (albeit in a cheesy gold). Under $70? Might be worth the risk.
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#6 – Timex Classic Black Leather Strap Watch – $32.00
So the case is a little small, yet the walls look a little too thick. It’s stainless steel, has a leather band, and that’s kinda what it has going for it. Oh! And the price. Yes. $32.
Which one would you wear? And… got any other suggestions? It all goes in the comments section below.
I’ve got the Tissot T-Classic Desire, and I love it. Nice clean look with a very slim, elegant profile. I got it for $140.
Believe it or not that ESQ Filmore can be had for $137.50, in stock and free shipping.
And the Armani for $126, also free shipping…
Oops, the Armani is out of stock on that site, but it can be found for similair prices at several sites…
Joe,
I had an older version of that ESQ (it had a coined bezel and silver numerals and hands instead of black and blue.) It was a great dress watch. I would not mind wearing the new version.
Here is a watch by TOKYObay that I am thinking of buying. I like how the seconds subdial is off center.
@DaveS and everyone else: What’s your guys’ take on these non Amazon/Amazon Fulfilled watch specific websites? I’m… a little leery. Maybe they’re terrific, but my own personal “this might be too good to be true” alarm goes off with those. Has anyone ever purchased from one of these?
I don’t know why, but I hate spending tons of money on a watch. The Timex appeals to me. Jack Threads had some nice sales on watches too and recently got two!
These are some nice watches. Unfortunately, I have no use for that extra dressyness that roman numerals provide at this point in my life. A watch like this might get used once or twice a year. Also they are (almost) all black band, and I wear brown shoes 98% of the time.
Is there a reason the most roman numeral watches get 4 wrong and 9 right? IIII does not equal 4. I know it is a bit knit-picky, but come on if you can get IX right you should have no issue with IV.
That said, I like the esq and ted baker.
@JMG Never noticed it. That is whack.
I did some numeral research. IIII and IV are both acceptable, IV was added later.
@bar none, I guess they taught it wrong at st. cecilias.
Here is a Rotary for $79 on a SS bracelet instead of strap.
Great post, great looking watches!
This isn’t the first time that you’ve called gold watches cheesy though. The goldtone vs. silvertone choice should be based on one’s skin tone though. People with fair skin look better with silvertone, people with darker, more olive skin look better in goldtone. Both work well with black skin.
Also, goldtone is on the rise from a “fashion” perspective. Goldtone has dominated the runways lately for both men and women, silvertone is on the way out. This shouldn’t be much of a consideration, because one should build a wardrobe one will like over the long term and invest in quality, so the advice about skin matters much more, but it highlights that writing off goldtone as cheesy doesn’t resonate with the advice most would give.
IIII is more “traditional” than IV on men’s watches, tends to be preferred among most high-quality makers. It has something to do with at one point in time the weight of the watch face was more evenly balanced when four metal Is were used rather than IV, which used to matter for one reason or another. Now it’s a way of signalling that a maker cares about watchmaking tradition, cares about important details, etc.
@Joe: Have had lots of good experiences with “fulfilled by Amazon” things. Amazon runs a tight ship, if a seller screws around with customers they get removed quickly
@Adam: Thanks for the kind words. I think we can agree to disagree on gold watches though. Now, I do agree that they look better on people who aren’t fair-skinned. But better might not necessarily mean “good” either. But again, this is just my opinion. I think silver tone/stainless looks great on everyone. A gold watch to me is like a guy who has just a mustache. Not the easiest look to pull off.
As far as gold being on the rise from a “fashion” perspective… I’ve never claimed to be an expert on “fashion.” To me, fashion and style are two very different things. And honestly, I’ve never claimed to be a style expert either. I leave that up to all of you guys to decide on, individually.
Got the ESQ Filmore in the mail today. Very nice watch, but the picture is a bit misleading (aren’t they all though). The blue on the hands is not as bright and striking as in the picture (they look black in most shades of light), and the gray face is so light in color that it almost looks white. Still, its a very nice watch at a great price.