At midday yesterday, a rather urgent message
interrupted an already hectic day: it was Andrew from Time and Tide.
"We need a watch for an upcoming auction: Deadline: tomorrow".
There was not a slightest doubt in my mind that a request to donate a watch for such a worthy cause could only be answered with yes, happy to help.
But a twenty-four-hour deadline meant that a Timascus piece - that
takes at least 2 months to machine - would be out of the question. On
the other hand, to donate a standard stock watch would be too ordinary.
"When are you going to make me a watch?" pestered Tanya for years. I was
reluctant to answer, but not without reason: a 44mm ‘Rebelde’ was too
large for her wrist; and she stopped wearing her Cartier Tank when we
started our own brand. Patience!
Finally, in February last year, a Mark 1 prototype with serial number
1/200, a custom red rotor and kangaroo strap became her first 'special'
watch. And she has been wearing it since, daily.
“Sorry Tanya, I need your Mark 1 back to the workshop. Kind of urgent, will tell you more later”.
All I can say is – bid strongly. Currently, there are 17 watches being
auctioned: H Moser, Bulgari, Longines, Hublot, Zenith and a few other
brands which kindly donated timepieces for a good cause. Amongst them:
two humble Australian brands.
I would love to see Mark 1 No. 1 staying in Australia, rather than being
shipped overseas and I am sure that you would too. There is not much I
can do to make it happen, but if you're a subscriber to my newsletter
and end up being the highest bidder, the watch will come with the same
guarantee offered to Tanya- a free lifetime guarantee. As long as I'm around, the watch will be taken care of.
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