Only two months in, this year is already a promising one for watches. And on the eve of International Women's Day, we took the opportunity to look at some of the strongest watches for women, irrespective of their positioning, that 2022 has given us so far. Here are the 10 best watches for women that made the cut.

Audemars Piguet Royal Oak ‘Jumbo’ Extra Thin

Commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Royal Oak, Audemars Piguet unveiled Ref 16202, a replacement for the now discontinued, very popular Ref. 15202. Featuring a bleu nuit nuage dial with a Petite Tapisserie pattern, this 39mm steel watch gets the new self-winding extra-thin movement, the Calibre 7121 (which replaces Calibre 2121) with a 4Hz frequency and a 55-hour power reserve; the movement also has a special ‘50 years’ oscillating weight. Ref 16202 is one of four new 'Jumbo' Extra Thin models with different dial options. The wearer can also choose from a smoked green dial, smoked grey dial, and a smoked yellow gold dial. The watches sport a sapphire crystal caseback and have a 50 metres water resistance.

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Frederique Constant Highlife Ladies Quartz

The Highlife Ladies Quartz models are a new set of nine iterations with an array of dials and bracelets. The 31mm watches have the trademark ‘Highlife’ strap built into the case, with options of an interchangeable bracelet – wearers can change from original to a rubber strap one. The green dial variant gets eight diamonds as hour markers, a date window at 3 o'clock, and at 6 o’ clock there is a ‘Swiss Made’ engraving. The hour and minute hands are sword-shaped and the watch is water-resistant to 30 metres.

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Czapek Antarctique Passage De Drake Salmon

Following the footsteps of 2021’s Antarctique Rattrapante Silver Grey, a skeleton 77-piece split-seconds watch, Czapek's salmon dial Antarctique Passage de Drake variant is limited to just 99 pieces. The 40.5mm steel watch with an integrated bracelet gets central hours, minutes and seconds hands, with a date window at 6 o’clock. Featuring an exclusive trapezoid, stamped ‘Stairway to Eternity’ pattern dial, the salmon effect is created using the galvanic process. The watch comes with Arabic numeral '12' or a double index at 12 o’clock with a choice of the seconds hand; and a customised caseback. Powered by in-house XH5 automatic calibre with more than 56 hours of power reserve, the watch has a water-resistance of 120 metres. The piece comes in a fully brushed metal bracelet with a complimentary strap in rubber or leather.

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 Zenith DEFY Midnight

Launched at LVMH Watch Week in February this year, the dual-toned DEFY Midnight Sunset and DEFY Midnight Borealis are a perfect blend of both sporty and feminine. The highlight of both the timepieces are the wave-patterned dials - in the DEFY Midnight Sunset (Ref 16.9200.670/33.MI001) the dial changes from bright red to deep yellow, and in the DEFY Midnight Borealis (Ref 16.9200.670/34.MI001) the dial replicates the famous Aurora Borealis or Northern Lights, changing from a midnight blue to emerald green.

The 36mm watches feature diamonds on both the hourmarkers as well as on the bezel. The date window rests at 3 o’clock, and the watches, though set with steel bracelets, have an interchangeable strap option that allows the wearer to pair it with leather, textile, or rubber straps. The watches are powered by Elite 670 SK automatic movement and have a 50-hour power reserve and a 100-metre water resistance.

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Hublot Big Bang One Click

Hublot’s One Click’s proprietary strap change system with innumerable options of straps has allowed the wearer to create a truly unique and personalised watch, and the range launched this year expands an already vast universe. The Big Bang One Click in 33mm and 39mms, in both steel and King Gold, and with partially or fully set with diamonds, can be paired with 12 different strap options in rubber lined grained calf leather. Those who like their watches fully bejewelled have the option of designs in which the case, bezel, and white or black dials are fully paved (in these, a mix of indexes and Arabic numbers make up the hour markers). With a date window at 3 o’clock, the watch is powered by the HUB1120 automatic movement, featuring a power reserve of 40 hours.

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Bulgari Serpenti Mysteriosi

The Bulgari Serpenti has its legion of women followers, and this year’s Mysertoisi upped the ante by several levels. Hosting the BVL100 ‘Piccolissimo’, touted to be the smallest calibre in the world at just 12.30mm in diameter, 2.5mm in thickness, and just 1.3gms in weight, this year, four new references were added to the Serpenti Misteriosi collection - Ref 103559 has a black-lacquered rose gold case; Ref 103560 has a white gold case with green lacquer; Ref 103558 has a rose gold case with diamonds and turquoise inserts; and Ref No103561 has a white gold case and head, set with diamonds. The dial, indicating the hours and minutes, is hidden inside the snake's mouth and revealed by pressing the snake's tongue. The crown is set on the caseback.

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Panerai Luminor Due 38mm 

Panerai has of late been playing around with sizes, giving wearers who prefer smaller dial sizes, a chance to experience the brand where ‘bigger’ has meant better. Proof of that is the Panerai Luminor Due in 38mm. With this watch, Panerai retains the classic aesthetics of a typical 38mm Luminor Due, while updating it with new dial colours and treatments. The steel PAM01248 has an ivory sun-brushed dial, matched with beige Super-LumiNova and gold coloured hands, with a polished red alligator strap and a polished steel buckle. There’s a date window at 3 o’clock, and small seconds at 9 o’clock. Beating inside is the Calibre P.900, an in-house automatic movement with a 72-hour power reserve, developed by the Panerai manufacture in Neuchâtel. Water-resistant to 30 metres, the watch also has a quick-release strap system.

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Carl F Bucherer Manero Peripheral BigDate

What we love about the new Manero BigDates are the colour combinations, and of course, the peripheral rotor, which someone who is into watch technicalities would surely love (and possibly show off). Carl F Bucherer’s name is synonymous with the ingenious peripheral winding mechanism (even though they didn't invent it). Introduced to the masses in 2009 in the CFB A1000 calibre, the beauty of the peripheral movement lies in the fact that the oscillating weight is set around the movement, as opposed to on top or within it, due to which there is an unobstructed view of the movement. Maximising space, it also allows for the movement to be made thinner. Typically, the peripheral rotor is set on ceramic ball bearings and is bidirectional. 

This peripheral technology is part of new steel Manero BigDate watches, sporting a small seconds, day of the week, and power reserve indicator set against light blue or grey dials. At 41.6mm, the watches are on the bigger side, but then there are many women who prefer larger dials. Powered by the Caliber CFB A2011, the watches have a 55-hour power reserve, Our pick: The dark grey dial with a contrasting olive-green strap with small-seconds subdial and power reserve indication in the same colour. The iteration comes with a stainless steel bracelet as well.

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Girard-Perregaux Casquette 2.0

Unveiled as the sequel to the original Casquette, this new watch combines the bold, the futuristic and the sturdy. The watch is made entirely of scratch-resistant ceramic and comes with a Grade 5 Titanium caseback, and weighs just 107 gms. The watch is powered by Calibre GP03980 and the new movement comes with the month, year, chronograph, second-time zone, and secret date functions. The display glass is made of sapphire crystal and the pushers are made in Grade 5 titanium. The bracelet comes in black ceramic with a rubber interior and a titanium buckle.

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TAG Heuer Aquaracer 30mm

Launched at this year’s LVMH Watch Week, the 30mm ladies watch now comes in two automatic and five quartz variants. Powering Ref WBP2410.BA0622 and Ref WBP2411.BA0622 is the automatic movement; the watches have a black and blue mother-of-pearl smoky dial, diamond hour markers, and a date window at 6 o’clock. The watches come with a polished, fine-brushed case, with a steel three-row bracelet. Other options include black dial, a light blue dial, and a silver sunray brushed dial; their indexes and hands filled with white Super-LumiNova. The watches come with a 30metre water resistance and a three steel row bracelet with a folding clasp.

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Images: Courtesy brands