British Indie Brand Farer is Back with the Three Hand Series III

Farer, a British indie brand, debuted in 2015 with watches designed in London and produced in Switzerland. With an extensive portfolio ranging from characterful three-handers to GMTs, as well as chronographs, integrated sports watches, and compressor-style dive watches, the brand’s keen eye for design is paying off. Coupled with its direct-to-consumer business model, which eliminates intermediaries, prices are kept in check. The latest trilogy of Three Hand models, named after famous English vessels, returns with bold new dial colours, textures and enhanced specifications.

Contemporary British watch designers are not afraid of colour, or even playful combinations of colours that defy convention, but which stand out for their eccentricity; a good example is the 2024 Moser and Studio Underdog collaboration.

Now in its third evolution, the 39mm stainless steel case of the Three Hand collection has a slightly thicker height of 11.8mm, decorated with polished finishes and brushed lugs. Enhanced with a monobloc case middle, the large, fluted crown with a bronze cap is now screwed-down to ensure the new water-resistance of 100m (previously 50m) – a feature that makes the watches more versatile and suitable for everyday wear.

However, the focus of the trilogy resides in the new dials. The first stage involves stamping a blank dial to create the underlying texture. This is then spray-painted to achieve a gradient and covered with a transparent layer of lacquer. Lastly, the dial is printed with the minutes track and text, and the luminous numerals are applied.

The Alert model features a deep red dial with a bumpy pattern that emulates a rock fissure. Named after the HMS Alert, a Cruizer-class sloop in the Royal Navy, it took part in the British Arctic Expedition of 1874 – 1876, whose participants were recognised for their daring exploration of the Arctic wilderness. The highly contrasting white Arabic numerals in different sizes, the indices and the glossy white pencil hour and minute hands are all treated with X2 Super-LumiNova (blue emission), and accompanied by a central seconds hand in burgundy with a white Farer ‘A’ at its tip.

Named after the Edward Bonaventure vessel, the first English ship to reach Russia in the 16th century, leading to diplomatic contacts between Elizabeth I and Ivan the Terrible, the Venture features a gradient blue dial with a crackled texture. The long, slim white baton indices are made from Lumicast, a blend of ceramic and Super-LumiNova. The glossy blue pencil hands are also luminescent, and the blue central seconds hand has a peach-coloured Farer ‘A’ at its tip.

Bearing the name of the SY Aurora, a steam yacht that served as an Antarctic expedition vessel from 1911 to 1917, the Aurora features a mesmerising copper dial with a flinqué guilloché-style pattern. The applied Arabic numerals are also made from Lumicast and surrounded by a detailed black minutes track and a black ring framing the centre of the dial. The glossy black tapered hands are filled with X2 Super-LumiNova, and the black seconds hand has a Farer ‘A’ at its tip.

Powered by a soignée-grade (top-grade) La Joux-Perret G101 automatic movement with a robust 68-hour power reserve, it features a customised rotor etched with the Farer logo and a stop-seconds mechanism.

The Three Hand Series III models share a retail price of GBP 1,025 or EUR 1,185. Although the press release does not mention this, the models are paired with leather straps but can, presumably,  be purchased with a quick-release brushed stainless steel bracelet for an additional EUR 190. More information at eur.farer.com.