Do you have any memorable timepieces from your childhood that strike nostalgia?
My double wrap Nixon watch, which I wore in middle school. It went with my wannabe sk8r girl aesthetic. I grew up in Hoboken, New Jersey, but all I wanted to be was a California girl. I got the watch at Mitch’s Surf Shop in La Jolla, where my dad was raised – so I inherited the Southern California spirit and used the watch to help me channel it.
When did you first become interested in watches?
I had the Nixon, I had a Baby G. In my early 20s, I wore cheap Seikos from American Apparel. But watches never struck me as anything other than accessories. It wasn’t until I started working on watch content with the editorial department at Sotheby’s that it hit… Watches are so much more wrist candy.
What is it about watches that you find most fascinating?
Watches are inserted with sentimentality in a way that most wearable objects are not. It isn’t often that you hear a heart wrenching, inspiring story about a pair of Manolo Blahniks (unless it comes from the mouth of Carrie Bradshaw).
Without the people who wear them, watches are special in the sense that they are often designed with deep intention, carefully fitted with movements and built to keep the time (no small feat!). And then on the wrist of a person, a life is breathed into the watch. It becomes a part of the wearer. It’s the start of a story. Some people like to brush off analog watches as obsolete luxury items, needlessly expensive. But the monetary value is irrelevant in my opinion. You can wear a $200 BREDA or a $200,000 Patek Philippe… A watch’s true worth is based on what you inject into it.
What has been the most rewarding part about expanding the dialogue of women and watches?
The most rewarding part is when women – friends, family, strangers – tell me they’ve started wearing a watch because of me! I’m not out here trying to get people to spend a bunch of money on a chunk of metal. What I’m attempting to do with Dimepiece, rather, is inspire women to invest in themselves. I’ve had people reach out, saying they’ve serviced and now wear their grandmother’s watches that have been collecting dust in a safe. I’ve had people reach out saying they’ve bought Rolexes, Cartiers, BREDAs. These aren’t just watches, but symbols. Of success, family, personal style. Men have been taught for years that a watch is the object to commemorate an occasion, to be passed down for generations. Now women can increasingly share in that symbolism and ceremony.
What are you most excited about for the future of watches?
I’m excited to see what will become of the watch industry as it becomes more inclusive and in tune with modern demands for creativity. To be inclusive is not the opposite of exclusive, by the way. I think the industry can be both. It feels to me that we are on the verge of a great era of innovation in watchmaking.
Any advice you can give to those who are looking to get into watches? Or watch collecting?
When I started DIMEPIECE, I didn’t own a watch. I had never owned a luxury watch in my life. But I was okay with that because I treated watches as art objects (and still do…most of the watches I cover will never be at home on my wrist). You can enjoy watches without owning them.
But if you have the means, start wearing a watch! It can be anything. If you’re not ballin’ on a Rolex budget, choose a BREDA. The hobby of watch collecting can be so intimidating because…who has money to drop like that? But you don’t need a fat bank account to start the fire. Wear a watch and see how it feels. Get used to that extra weight on your wrist. Train your eye to look at it for the time instead of picking up your iPhone every 2 minutes.
What are your thoughts on BREDA’s new Groove Collection?
I love the Groove! This may all seem like branded content, but I was initially genuinely drawn to BREDA because of how true it is to itself. The biggest faux pax in watch collecting, in my opinion, is to buy a cheap imitation of the original. If you want a Cartier Tank, don’t buy a knockoff Tank. BREDA watches don’t try to be anything that they’re not. They are accessibly priced, unique pieces of intentional design. The Groove is no different. It’s creative, innovative and FUN! Having everyone wear one at my dinner felt like such a treat. These watches on our wrists were little invitations to let loose and live in the present.
Photos by Caroline Friedman
