Hands-On The Bausele Elemental

Among Australia's ever-growing roster of home-grown watch brands, Bausele stands out. Founded in Sydney in 2011 by French-born Christophe Hoppé, a former CFO at Universo in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Bausele is best-known for its hollow crowns, which contain a piece of Australiana: beach sand, outback dirt or even ground-up tiles from the Sydney Opera House... We talk about watches as being 'of a place', but Bausele takes that very literally.

15 years on from its founding, Bausele is hitting its stride. I was a big fan of the brand's last model, the Sydney Diver - a handsome sandwich-dialled tool watch designed and built to US military MIL-W-46374F specifications that was assembled by veterans at Stoll & Co. in Dayton, Ohio. However, a US-assembled, Swiss-made, Australian watch was slightly difficult for some collectors to wrap their heads around. Bausele's latest model, the Elemental, is a far less confusing proposition and represents a new high watermark of refinement for the Aussie brand.

So, let's get stuck in. The Bausele Elemental is a 40mm-wide, 12.2mm-thick, Sellita SW200-powered steel integrated sports watch with a unidirectional timing bezel and 200 metres of water resistance. So far, so typical. Few segments are more competitive than that of the integrated sports watch, and while on paper these are good specs, you need a compelling design to set your watch apart.

This is where the Elemental really differentiates itself - not only in what its design is, but how it was designed in the first place. When penning the Elemental, Christophe (or Christo to his mates) consulted a group of over 400 Bausele customers – a group that Bausele has dubbed its “Time Architects” – for input into the Elemental’s design.

"400 people designed this watch - not a committee, a community," Christo tells HODINKEE ANZ.

"They voted on every detail, then we handed it to Dominik, our designer, to make it real. I can say it's the best thing Bausele has produced since 2011, precisely because I didn't design it alone. It ends up on my wrist every day: ocean swims, dinners, everything in between. That's the brief it was built to." 

This synergic design process has resulted in a watch that feels distinctly Aussie, but not in an overt or cheesy way. Take the dial: a sandwiched construction layers a sand-textured lower layer beneath a thick lacquer upper layer, upon which the applied indices and logo hover, casting shadows. Christo tells me the effect is meant to evoke the feeling of looking through a diver’s mask beneath the surface of the water at the beach – something sure to resonate with anyone who's spent some time swimming on an Australian beach.

Then, there's the dual-scale bezel: an outer ring tracks 60 minutes while an inner 12-hour scale offers a second time zone. Bausele calls it the “Breathe/Connect” bezel. For a country where roughly 30% of the population is born overseas and often have loved ones across the globe, it feels particularly appropriate - and again, ties into the Elemental's oceanic theme, reminding you to literally breathe as you swim with the watch.

The Elemental was first released in 2025 and is produced on a made-to-order basis, meaning colourways come and go. April 2026's release sees the Elemental's inaugural Oceanic Blue colourway return, as well as the debut of a new style called Coorong Mist, named after one of the most haunting coastlines on Earth, the Coorong of South Australia. Stretching 130 kilometres along SA's southern edge, where the Murray River, the longest river in Australia, finally meets the Southern Ocean, the Coorong is best known internationally as the setting of Storm Boy, a seminal and poignant Australian novel that's been adapted into film and theatre.

Fittingly, this new Coorong Mist model - which features a moody taupe colour-scheme - features a hollow crown filled with pale dune sand from the Coorong itself. Conversely, the Oceanic Blue has sand from Sydney's iconic Manly Beach in its crown, where Christo himself swims every morning, all year 'round.

But how does the Bausele Elemental wear? Having spent quite a bit of time with the Elemental, both on a trip to Bathurst as well as around Sydney, the answer is that it wears very well. The bracelet is a particular highlight (which is important for an integrated bracelet): it tapers nicely, and I'm a fan of how the broad, polished centre links contrast with the otherwise brushed finishing of the case. The deployant clasp, while on the larger side, is sturdy and features on-the-fly micro-adjustment. I'm a fan of its integrated pushers, too. Other highlights include the under-the-crystal magnifier at 3 o'clock, which is a premium touch, and its satisfying bezel action.

As a proud Aussie, I'm naturally inclined to want to support an Australian watch brand. But patriotism alone is not a good enough reason to endorse a timepiece. Thankfully, the Bausele Elemental is a fundamentally good watch. More than any other previous Bausele design, it feels uniquely perfect for the Australian lifestyle. It's sporty, robust and more than ready for aquatic adventures, but it's also refined enough to be worn from beach to boardroom. It's Aussie, but in a way that's not on the nose... This perhaps arises from its authentic and collaborative design process, being the product of a passionate and diverse local watch community.

Brand: Bausele
Model: Elemental
Diameter: 40mm
Thickness: 12.2mm
Lug to Lug: 46mm
Case Material: 316L stainless steel
Dial: Oceanic Blue or Coorong Mist green, textured base with thick lacquer top layer, applied floating indices, Super-LumiNova on hands and indices
Indexes: Applied
Water Resistance: 20 ATM/200m
Strap/Bracelet: Integrated stainless steel, tapered from 26mm to 18mm, micro-adjust clasp, optional rubber and leather straps coming soon

Calibre: Sellita SW200
Functions: Hours, minutes, seconds, date
Power Reserve: 38hrs
Winding: Automatic
Frequency: 28,800 v/ph (4Hz)
Chronometer Certified: No

Price: AUD 1,200 / USD 750 / EUR 650 / GBP 590 / CHF 600
Availability: Available during pre-order window from 15th to 29th April, 2026
Limited Edition: No

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