It is rare to find a fashion accessory and a truly practical device existing in the same piece, but watches do just that. Gone are the days of boring watches that served only the purpose of keeping time. While a watch still provides the useful function of telling time, it can also be a fun and unique way to express yourself. When picking a watch there are several elements that you can mix and match to create a personalized piece.
Women's Watches
Women's watches come in several varieties, ranging from classy and formal to fun, funky and dressed down. When selecting your watch, there are several aspects beyond function to consider; watchband, color, and shape being three of the most important.
There is a large range of variability in the available watchbands for women, depending on the type of watch you prefer. A formal watch's watchband may be a sleek silver band, or it may be completely concealed within a bracelet. Jewelry watches may have crystals on the band, or may have a fun pattern to add a little bit of edge to the fancy and formal watches. More dressed-down and informal watches have the option of fun color bands that may be interchangeable.
Another aspect of your watch that should be considered is the color, both of the band and the face of the watch itself. There are fun colors available, from bright pink, blue, purple or green to more traditional bands of silver, gold, and black. You may chose to have a rather subtle or normal color for either the band or face and a more exotic color for the other. For example you could have a traditional brushed metal watch face on a more fashion-forward band with pearl or crystal inlays.
Finally, a fun way to choose a unique watch is to find a slightly different shape or style. Instead of a normal band maybe you could pick one that pulls in toward the face and gives an almost bow-shape to the watch, or there are watchbands that are wider than traditional ones. The face itself can be different sizes, perhaps a smaller circle contained within a larger square and on a fun and quirky band. Even a subtle change in the style or shape of the watchband or watch face can make a boring traditional watch fun, interesting and unique.
Men's Watches
While fashion and accessories are often considered a women's forte, men can have fun with them as well. Men are no longer stuck with boring traditional watches that all look the same. Today's men have almost as many options available to them as women when it comes to watches.
In terms of selecting a timepiece that is both unique and personal, many of the rules are the same for men as they are for women. Look at the band, the face and the color, and mix and match to find just the right watch for you. Unlike women, however, men's watches tend to come in only two styles: sporty and dressy.
Like women's watches, it may be possible to wear a dressier watch on a less dressy occasion by simply pairing it with a more casual outfit. Also like women's watches it may be harder to make a sporty watch look fancy if it does not already have that fancy flare to it. Trying to dress up a watch with a multi-colored face or a skull pattern may not go over so well, so make sure you consider this when purchasing your watch.
Unlike with women's watches there are far fewer options in terms of the actual shape of the watch face; most men's watches stick to the classic circular face with a regular band. However men's watches also tend to have more variety in their watch faces in that there are a variety of dials that may be included on a man's watch. Some watches will have only your basic hour, minute and second hand, whereas some will also have 24-hour clocks and/or date dials included on the face of the watch. Be sure you understand what all the dials are for before purchasing a watch you cannot read!
Whether shopping for men's or women's watches, fancy or informal, there are several elements to consider. Just because you need a watch to tell the time does not mean you cannot have fun picking out your watch, nor does it mean you cannot use your watch to express a little bit of who you are. If you do not want to have a traditional watch, then buy one with a quirky band or an interesting watch face. Just because you want to know what time it is does not mean you have to give up your sense of style!