Connoisseurs seeking a dress watch today have more choices than ever before. In the past, dressy watches were pretty much one flavor—small, and usually very conservatively styled. While many very fine watches of this type are still available, there are also a range of watches which dress up well, but offer a more offbeat aesthetic which will appeal to those seeking a bit more edge.

The Chopard L.U.C Twist, and the Bvlgari Bvlgari-Bvlgari XL watches both exemplify this type of unconventional dress watch. These watches share in common the feature of intricate two-tone dials which have strikingly differentiated hemispheres bearing different textures; very different from the monochromatic aspect of traditional dressy watches, these dials are extremely elegant but are unusual and immediately striking, as well. Larger sized cases of 41mm respectively, as well as an unusual off-set crown in the Chopard also differentiate these watches from the old school norm.

With extremely fine movements (a re-worked Frederic Piguet manual wind in the Bvlgari, and a Geneva Seal-hallmarked Manufacture caliber in the Chopard), luxurious 18K gold cases, and superb straps, these watches satisfy the expectation for uncompromising quality which has always been associated with the best dress watches.