Decent looking ladies watch (white ceramic AND/OR automatic)?

[Macchina]

I have a small common watch collection (half auto half quartz from Seiko, Citizen, and Marathon) and my wife has always had a few Fossil watches I never much cared for. The Fossil watches have been dropping like flies lately with multiple returns, lost time, easily worn finishes, etc.

I'd like to get her a decent ($50 - $150) everyday watch but everything that is durable in my experience is not very lady like. She likes a decently large watch face for a lady's watch (around 30mm) and was interested in silver or white for any surface (leather, stainless, or ceramic band). She prefers a chronograph (or date wheels) when possible.

She was looking at this Citizen Chrono with ceramic links and white face, but it's $600..

Any recommendations on where to look? Good brand for ladies? And decent looking watches dit ladies similar to the Seiko 5 series?

 

[Piso Mojado]

Vostok Ladies' Amphibia 051463

That will cost about $38 + $15 airmail shipping via Russian Post. Mechanical but not an automatic, hand winding only — and you can overwind it, so stop when you feel resistance. Screw down crown but only 100 M water resistance. Chrome plated brass case and stainless steel case back. The case is 34 mm wide (38 mm with crown), 39 mm lug-to-lug, 18 mm lug width. Domed plexiglass crystal. The lumed hands and bezel fade fast but the movement is extremely accurate. Red, white, blue and black dials in two patterns. This dealer has most of them in stock

http://chistopolcity.com/en/36-050-women-s-amphibian

and this dealer will order two white dial patterns from the factory (which takes 4 to 8 weeks now).

http://meranom.com/amphibian-classic/051/

The rubber straps are wearable but you would probably want to replace them. In that width, Hirsch and Di-Modell make nice waterproof leather straps that won't cost any more than your watch.

My wife likes hers and I'll probably order one of these for backup.

 

[Cypress]

Ceramic is the buzzword in the horology world right now, and usually commands a price to play. Citizen makes a fantastic watch that only requires light to survive. My personal favorite watch is a Citizen, even though I have a few very nice autos.

Does she wear a watch often enough to justify an automatic that will die if it isn't worn for a day or two?

You say she's hard on watches, and that is generally a bad thing for auto watches (tiny sensitive springs and whatnot).

I went through this same dilemma when I nearly bought my lady a watch. I almost ended up with the FB1350-58A (pictured. she liked the blue characters), which fits most of your criteria, but then she found a new jacket she couldn't live without instead. It's slightly out of your price range, but finding a decent chronograph for less than $200 is challenging. Of course, "decent" is a purely subjective term.