On My Watch: Sarah Belhasa
The stylish entrepreneur and founder of Dubai’s premier fashion boutique Studio 8 talks to Harper’s Bazaar Arabia about her latest Graff timepiece and why you’ll always see her wearing a watch
HBA: Which watch are you wearing?
SB: The Disco Butterfly from Graff’s renowned Butterfly Watch collection in rubies and diamonds.
HBA: Where did it come from?
SB: I bought it last summer when I was in Geneva. I regularly buy watches for myself as I just love them, especially with my abaya; when I wear a watch or jewellery with it people instantly see what I’m wearing.
HBA: Why this model?
SB: It’s very different. When you’re wearing the watch and move your hand the dial spins with the movement. It’s a beautifully crafted piece by Graff and I love its uniqueness.
HBA: Why is wearing a watch important to you?
SB: It’s funny when you think about it, as watches aren’t exactly essential today – to tell the time you just look at your mobile! Yet I can’t leave my house without a watch, even if it’s just to go shopping or meet a friend for coffee. I’m so used to wearing one. I love collecting them as they will never go out of fashion – you buy one and they will become a classic over time. Watches never get old.
HBA: Tell us a bit about the other timepieces in your ‘watch wardrobe’
SB: I have a number of watches by the key brands – Cartier, Rolex, Bulgari and Hublot, for example. Yet what they all have in common is a big dial. This is very important to me as the watch is then always enough on its own, even if I don’t wear any other jewels with it.
I do own one smaller Cartier model but I very rarely wear it. The boutique assistants know my style by now and exactly what to show me – the bigger the better.
HBA: Do you feel your tastes or style have changed since you first started collecting watches?
SB: 100 percent. I definitely used to buy smaller, more ‘normal’ sized watches. But as time went on I started preferring bigger models – the dials have just kept growing over the years!
HBA: Do you wear particular watches to certain occasions?
SB: Definitely. For formal occasions such as weddings I wear watches with only diamonds. It doesn’t have to be by a certain brand as it’s purely about the diamond look – so these include models by jewellery brands such as Bulgari, Cartier or Chopard. When I travel I make sure to have at least one timepiece in yellow gold and another in white gold – then I have a watch to go with everything.
HBA: What’s next on your ‘watch wish list’?
Anything by Richard Mille. My husband only wears Richard Mille now, as he loves their technical expertise. Sometimes I feel like ladies don’t look into technically specialised watches as much, yet it’s such a statement owning one. But maybe that’s just me – I’ve always followed my own tastes.