It’s not always about buying a new watch. Change the strap and you’ve got an entirely new model. In spirit of the festive season, discover a selection of our favorite watch straps that will bring a renaissance to your staple timepiece in the new year. Thank us later.
Watch straps are largely misunderstood and overlooked. I say this because for a long time, I’ve done so myself. Picture the scene where Andrea Sachs is stood smirking at two cerulean blue belts in the offices of Runway Magazine in The Devil Wears Prada. “It’s so hard to choose, they’re both so different,” offers a member of staff, holding each accessory in one hand.
If you know the scene, you’ll know the epic monologue that follows, rendering you frozen on the spot at the peril of Miranda Priestley. But for those unfamiliar with the nuances of two belts, both in a shade of blue and unable to remark their difference, picture it like a watch strap. Every single one is different, from stitch to fabric. Keep the dial, but switch the watch strap and you’ve got an entirely new watch.
The strap is what frames the watch, the pièce de résistance that brings together the enigmatic beating heart of the – the bit that does the ticking known as the movement – and its scope to mould and inform the personality of the watch is paramount. It’s like hanging a painting on a wall, are you deep-set, floating, gold, engraved? Limitless choices.
While a watch is a reflection of our identity, the strap isn’t to be disregarded in the process – it speaks to who you are just as much. While I was ignorantly conditioned to believe they were either just metal or fabric, my eyes were broadened by the manifold categories of watch straps. You’ve got: the OG Metal bracelet: Most common, but there’s nothing homogenous about a metal strap, the leather strap (think croc, but not the shoes), rubber straps, silicone straps which can even be infused with scent (we’re screaming), nylon straps, canvas straps, mesh straps, and one that might have gone over your head, the NATO strap, a design first attributed to the British military, and its popularity in today’s watch community is ever-growing. Their original purpose was to prevent a service member from losing their watch if a spring bar let loose.