My year in jewellery watches

This is the fun part of covering watches for my job because it means I can be totally capricious – and insanely unrealistic – and pick seven jewellery watches I wouldn’t mind having in my life, one for every day of the week.

Bulgari Serpenti Incantati

Like Liz Taylor, I have a soft spot in my heart for Bulgari and this mesmerising Serpenti Incantati watch with diamonds and rubellites is my absolute favourite watch of the year. Bulgari’s Serpenti collection was given a head-to-toe makeover in 2016 and its sinuous forms revisited in a more contemporary, geometric key without losing an inch of its power to seduce.

Chaumet Liens Lumière

Direct from the City of Light, Chaumet’s Liens Lumière watches evoke the sophisticated cosmopolitan spirit of Paris and this sunny 33mm pink gold model, glowing with a mother-of-pearl dial and diamonds is enough to brighten even the darkest day.

Direct from the City of Light, Chaumet unveils its new Liens Lumière collection with new models glowing with diamonds and mother-of-pearl dials (£26,830).

Audemars Piguet Diamond Fury

Warning: You need tight black leather trousers and a superbike to pull off this watch. Bristling with rebellion and daring geometry, the Diamond Fury cuff watch by Audemars Piguet packs a sparkling punch thanks to the 5,000 diamonds set in its protective armour.

Diamond Fury watch — Packing a sparkling punch, the Diamond Fury cuff watch by Audemars Piguet is set with just under 5,000 diamonds ($637,800).

Cartier Dragon Mystérieux

Cartier’s Dragon Mystérieux watch transports you back in time to China’s Imperial Court. The stylized dragon’s body, crowned with a colossal fiery opal, writhes in diamonds, coral and onyx and coils protectively around a transparent dial. Bearing Cartier’s signature mystery movement, the hour and minute hands seem to be magically suspended in thin air with no visible connection to the manual-winding movement.

Dragon Mystérieux high jewellery watch — The Dragon Mystérieux watch by Cartier coils around the wrist and is crowned by an impressive cushion-shaped fire opal (€1,300,000).

Roger Dubuis Black Velvet

I love the edgy drama and contemporary vibe of Roger Dubuis’ Black Velvet watch. The combination of a dark 36mm carbon case and the electrifying glow of 66 Paraiba tourmalines is spectacular and happens to be the first watch to feature gem-set carbon, a technical achievement the brand has patented.

Black Velvet Paraiba watch — The Black Velvet Roger Dubuis watch combines an ultra-lightweight carbon case with 66 tourmalines (CHF 55,000).

Graff Princess Butterfly Secret watch

Although I can’t stand butterflies or moths in their natural habitat - something to do with their flapping wings and dusty bodies really freak me out - I can’t resist the exquisitely feminine beauty of the Graff Princess Butterfly secret watch. Set with rich blue sapphires, the plump pavé wings separate to reveal a delicate blue mother-of-pearl dial.

Princess Butterfly sapphire secret watch — Graff’s Princess Butterfly watch has a diamond-set mechanism so the wings can slide and reveal the dial ($135,000).

Ralph Lauren RL888 Deco Diamonds

Ralph Lauren is a master of creating moods and dips into the elegant design ethos of Art Deco for many of his creations. This one-off RL888 Deco Diamond watch, set with bold geometric forms made from diamonds and black spinels and a jazzy dial composed of dizzy Roman and Arabic numerals, is your one-way ticket to the city that never sleeps at night. Does it remind you of the Chrysler building too?

RL888 Deco Diamond watch — The white gold strap of the RL888 Deco Diamond is set with a total of 17.31 carats baguette and brilliant-cut diamonds (POA).

Packing a sparkling punch, the Diamond Fury cuff watch by Audemars Piguet is set with just under 5,000 diamonds ($637,800).
The Black Velvet Roger Dubuis watch combines an ultra-lightweight carbon case with 66 tourmalines (CHF 55,000).
The Dragon Mystérieux watch by Cartier coils around the wrist and is crowned by an impressive cushion-shaped fire opal (€1,300,000).
Graff’s Princess Butterfly watch has a diamond-set mechanism so the wings can slide and reveal the dial ($135,000).
Bulgari’s famed serpent metamorphoses into the Serpenti Incantati watch, set with diamonds and rubellites (£55,000).
The white gold strap of the RL888 Deco Diamond is set with a total of 17.31 carats baguette and brilliant-cut diamonds (POA).
Direct from the City of Light, Chaumet unveils its new Liens Lumière collection with new models glowing with diamonds and mother-of-pearl dials (£26,830).
The Serpenti Incantati collection features Bulgari’s iconic mascot coiled around the bezel of the watch (£30,700).