CHRONICLE - My quest for a Sarpaneva

What is it that makes you want a watch? I don’t mean just wanting a watch, but being prepared to set aside a lot of things to be able to buy it.

19 may 2009

Frank Geelen - www.monochrome.nl

A good friend of mine told me about how he bought his first grail watch. At first I had a hard time believing what he told me. Not that I didn’t trust him! I just couldn’t imagine someone going this far to acquire a watch. He sold his car to get the funds needed for buying a yellow gold Figaro bracelet for his Cartier Pasha, that Cartier discontinued. You can read his story in the book The Watch from Gene Stone or admire my friend’s Cartier collection on www.troisanneaux.com

A Pash model from Cartier with a Figaro gold bracelet © Geo/ troisanneaux.com

From time to time I have also stretched my financial possibilities to the limit, to be able to buy a new watch. So I’m familiar with a desperate desire for a watch. However I never sold my cars and I still had a vacation every year.

To mark a period in my life, I was looking for a special watch. I think this is a reason more people will recognise. It could be anything, from a marriage, a new job or maybe even when you inherit money after a loved one has gone.

Last year a friend and I organised a European GTG (get-to-gether) for watch conneaisseurs, where a new Dutch high-end watch brand was launched (www.gronefeld.nl). It was there that I met Stepan Sarpaneva. I was already familiar with his watch, from photos and articles on several forums and I really liked his style. Stepan Sarpaneva told me about designing his watches and his ideas really appealed to me. Holding his watches in my hands I my admiration grew even more.

During my conversation with Stepan Sarpaneva I still had no idea about the price of his watches. Since he’s an independent watchmaker, member of the AHCI, I guessed it would be too expensive for me. But Sarpaneva’s watches kept drawing my attention and made me want one. Every time I visited forums I checked the AHCI sections to look for new information or just some wrist shots.

S.U.F. - Sarpaneva Uhren Fabrik - is an affordable line from Stephan Sarpaneva @ Monochrome.nl

 A few weeks after the GTG I was finally brave enough to sent Sarpaneva an email inquiring about the price of his watches. The answer was actually very pleasant and he even has a very affordable line under the name S.U.F. - Sarpaneva Uhren Fabrik. The idea to one day own a Sarpaneva grew and didn’t let go. This was going to be my special watch, the watch to mark a new era in my life. Making a choice from Sarpaneva’s watch was not so hard for me. I quickly narrowed it down to two models from the Korona serie, the K1 in steel or the K2 in black DLC.

The K1 and K2 of the Korona line © Monochrome.nl

 Since my watch-budget is far from unlimited, stretching the limits would not be enough to buy the watch. Sacrifices had to be made… Under pressure people get creative. Not that someone put pressure on me, but reaching my own goal, was my self-inflicted pressure so to speak. Now it was time to start raising the funds by selling some of my watches. Although it was hard to let go of some of them, the thought of buying a Sarpaneva put a smile on my face every time.

Now I’m typing this story sitting in an airplane to Helsinki. Yes the time has come to buy my special watch, the watch to mark a new period in my life. In about two hours Stepan will pick me up from the airport. I never thought I’d feel like a kid on the day before Christmas… even now I know what I’m getting and I know who’s paying for it.

My k1 on the wrist © Monochrome.nl

 Why a Sarpaneva? Check my blog @ www.monochrome.nl!