What are the criteria for choosing the ideal women’s watch?

In the last decades, wristwatches have become more and more popular among women. A fun fact: wristwatches were only worn by women before the 20th century, mainly for decorating purposes rather than timekeeping functions. I guess this still somehow applies nowadays. As women mainly consider wristwatches as a type of accessory, they tend to care most about the look of the watch. But what are the criteria for choosing the ideal women’s watch?

THE MOVEMENT

As a woman, I understand from my experience that not many ladies out there are interested in the technical specifications of a watch. It is, however, important to understand that the movement is the heart of a watch.

There is no doubt that Swiss movements are still the best ones. When it comes to the kind of movement, you can consider mechanical movement or quartz movement.

The mechanical movement seems to be interesting considering the high level of craftsmanship and the premium quality of technical details. However, this kind of movement requires more maintenance efforts. If it is manual movement, you will have to remember to wind it. If the watch is “self-winding”, in other words, automatic movement, you need to wear it often or use a watch winder to assure the accuracy of the watch.

Otherwise, a quartz movement can be a smart choice. Powered by a battery, quartz watches are more accurate and less expensive than mechanical watches. With this type of movement, you only need to change the battery after 2-3 years based on the manufacturer’s instructions or when the battery has been weakened.

THE FIT TO YOUR SKIN TONE

Skin tones generally fall in one of the two categories: cool or warm. You can identify your skin tone by looking at the color of the vein inside your arms. Cool skin tones are characterized by bluish-colored veins. If you have a cool skin tone, you may notice pinkish or rosy-red undertones when looking in the mirror. It is said that most people have cool skin, including dark skin and tan skin. On the other hand, warm skin tones are recognized by greenish-colored veins. When looking in the mirror, a person with a warm skin tone may observe yellow or golden-apricot undertones. People with fair skin have usually a warm skin tone.

A lady with a cool skin tone will look best wearing a watch with stainless steel, silver, or white gold case. In contrast, wristwatches with gold or rose gold case will be the best choice for warm-skinned women.

THE DIAL

For a woman, the dial size should not be too big, but it must obviously suit your wrist size. Another essential element that you should consider is the glass. There are three types of watch crystals, but sapphire crystal is unarguably the best choice.

THE STRAP

There are many types of straps out there for you to choose from. However, since women generally prefer various outfits, I would suggest you either have some women’s watch or have interchangeable straps to fit all the situations.

If you are interested in having a women’s watch with bracelet bands, it would be best to choose the bracelet material which is the same as the case material.

Leather straps can be also an elegant choice. The color of the leather straps for your watches should match with the other elements in your outfits. For example, if you have a black leather bag or black high-heels, it is no doubt that you should choose a black leather strap for the watch.

Make sure to read our post “HOW LADIES SHOULD WEAR WATCHES”