Rolex

Made by one of the most desirable of watch brands, the Rolex Oyster Perpetual Lady Datejust 18ct Gold Ladies Watch is very elegant. Both the case and the bracelet are made using 18ct gold. The watch face is surrounded by gold bezel with a fluted edge design. The dial is champagne in colour and is marked with Roman numerals. It has a 31 jewel movement which uses synthetic sapphire crystals. The bracelet is President style.

Pierre Nicol

The Floral Collection by Pierre Nicol are attractive watches based on a spring theme. They have an enamelled bezel designed with a pretty floral design. The colour
photo credit: Carmela Nava of the vines and flowers and around the watch’s face match the colour of the face. Colour options include pale blue, pumpkin, hot pink and several other colours. The watch movement is precision quartz. The watch’s band is fairly wide and the style is solid bracelet with floral decoration that matches the face.

Accutron

Due to its accuracy and style, the Accutron watch remains popular with both women and men. The Versailles Goldtone stainless steel ladies watch has  a sapphire crystal in its quartz movement. The hands and the numerals are gold in colour and the face is made out of mother of pearl. This model is water resistant, a useful feature to have.

Swiss Legend

The Swiss Legend Eleganza for ladies has a crocodile-finished strap of black leather. The fastener is deployed by a push button . The case of stainless steel is studded with over a hundred diamonds. The diamonds are in a paired row along the sides of the face and in a single row at the bottom and the top of the face. The watch’s movement is Swiss quartz. The face is black and contrasts with the silver hands. The numerals on the face are Arabesque in style.

Cartier

A good example of this brand is the ladies Cartier Tankissime Solid 18ct Gold timepiece. It is a more or less rectangular watch which has a face featuring roman numerals set against a silver background. The chunky links which make up the bracelet are as wide as the case.  The bracelet is fastened using a hidden clasp.

Technomarine

If you are looking for a watch with a difference, it’s hard to beat the ladies Maori Diamond Black Rubber watch. The face is a triangle which is offset from the centre. The watch has a silver face and features a Maori tattoo, which is also featured on the black rubber strap. A total of 56 diamonds are set into the case and have a combined weight of over 1 carat. The quartz movement is Swiss-made and incorporates a sapphire crystal.

The growth of the internet has made shopping more easy than ever, with just a few clicks of the mouse needed. Many transactions can now be over in just a few minutes or even seconds.

In the past, people would go from one shop to another when choosing a watch for themself or for a loved one. These days, choosing a watch can be as easy as looking at the various websites selling numerous different types of watch.

photo credit: sfxeric

While buying a watch online is very easy, it can be a bit more difficult than visiting a shop because you are only choosing a watch from a photograph without being able to handle the watch or seeing it on your wrist. Those who don’t have time to go from shop to shop in person however, believe that buying their watch online can save them both time and money.

When you choose a watch on the internet, try to avoid choosing one just because it looks good online. Find out the important details of the watch such as the price, the warranty details and the quality of the watch. You should also note the delivery services which are being offered by the company selling the watch.

It can be difficult to choose a watch from the large numbers of watch photos shown on various different websites. Things become easier if you limit your choice to watches which are within your budget.

Try to avoid wasting your time by looking at websites showing watches that cost more than your budget. Restrict yourself to watch catalogues with more affordable prices.

If you are just shopping online to get a watch for a better price, have a look at the photos of different watches on the internet and look at them when you are out shopping. You will then be able to see the quality of the watch before buying online. Take note of the model name or number when doing online research, then you can look at the real thing when out shopping.

Once you have chosen a watch and you have seen and handled it in the shops, you can go ahead and buy online. Do make sure that you are buying the exact same model and also that the online seller gives a warranty on the watch.

While many people choose to buy their loved one a popular type of jewelry gift such as pandora jewelry, a watch can also make a great gift and the ability to look at so many different models online is very useful.

The first step you need to take to get the ideal watch for the person is to do a bit of research to find out what watch features the person likes.
Think about the different options; stainless steel, gold, silver, white gold, platinum or leather strap, etc.

Each one of the options gives a different style and makes a different statement. Take some time when choosing to opt for the one which suits the recipient best.

It’s easiest to first choose the basic style of watch. Common watch types are: quartz (these watches are powered by small batteries), self-winding and the mechanical wind-up types.

You can then look out for the extra watch features, for example an appointment alarm, built-in calendar,
photo credit: nathanmac87or a heartbeat monitor etc. It can be a lot of fun customizing the choice of watch to the gift recipient’s personality and style.

Shop at an authorized dealer and try to get a good model from a well-respected brand. The dealer can give you advice on which models are best within a particular brand and you will get better after sales service. Try to set a price range, since watches can cost several thousand pounds, so set a range first and then try to stick to your budget.

From multi-featured watches made for trekkers or divers to fashionable watches which have a few more features than just the time, sports watches are very popular.

Unless you are buying it for a specific sport, you should choose a sports watch that has basic features. The features include water resistance, an alarm, a stopwatch or timer function and illumination.

You can choose some more advanced watch features if you think that they are going to be used by the wearer. These features can be a thermometer, an altimeter, a compass, a barometer and a data-link .

If you know which sports the wearer takes part in, you can choose a sport-specific watch. These watches can include specialized watches for runners, divers, hikers, etc.

Ensure that the strap or bracelet will fit around the person’s wrist comfortably. It needs to be adjustable for the best fit.

You should also check the watch’s guarantee details and return policy so that it can be returned if the recipient doesn’t like it or has a problem with it.

Don’t forget to set the watch to the right time if it isn’t already before you wrap it.

Modern times have seen more people giving gifts such as friendship bracelet patterns, but a watch can make a great gift, and if you have the money a matching pair could be given as wedding gifts. They will probably be the best wedding gifts the couple will receive!

Buying a branded watch from an authorized dealer is definitely the best thing to do if you want a quality watch and good aftersales service.

Before buying the watch you should think about where the watch will be worn. For example, a builder will need a different type of watch to an office worker.

It’s a good idea to think about what you want from the watch. Is it going to be worn for outdoor
photo credit: kainr
recreation, everyday casual, sports, dress or other activities? For example a sport diver will want different features on a watch to a hawaii wedding photographer!

There are many quality brands to choose from, with different models ranging from inexpensive to very expensive, so it is a good idea to look at all of the options before buying.

You shouldn’t only look at the familiar watch brands, as there are a lot of quality brands which might have more features for what you are paying.

A good watch dealer should help you to decide on the right watch by showing you the differences in the different brands and making sure that you get the right watch for you.

Some of the brands which have a good name for quality also make cheaper quality models, so you shouldn’t just rely on the brand name. This is another thing that a good watch dealer can help you with. You could also read some of the watch forums on the internet to see what other people’s experiences are.

Don’t get bogged down with technical details and specifications when you buy a watch as most of them will have basically the same functions. Don’t worry whether the watch is a certified mechanical (chronometer), or a non-certified mechanical, as long as it can keep time accurately and keep that accuracy over the years.

Even expensive watches are likely to be mass-produced, but this can be to a very high quality. It is unlikely that it will have been handmade by craftsmen.

Although price needs to be taken into consideration, you should ensure that you get exactly what you need even if that means that it is a bit more expensive. Make the right choice and the watch will last a lifetime if you look after it.

The first watches that were available to buy were pocket clocks, followed by clocks which held by a pendant that attached to the wearers jacket. Over the years, changes in society changed how we carried our timepieces.

It has been said that a nanny invented the first wrist watch around the end of the 19th century. It is said that she attached a watch to her wrist using a band of silk . The first wrist watches manufactured were actually smaller models of pocket clocks attached to a leather strap.

Louis Cartier made the first watches
photo credit: Taz-Vollof the type we see today. He designed a watch for his friend, the pilot Alberto Santos Dumont. By 1911 this type of watch available to the public.

The design of watches started to change from the usual round shape which was fashionable up until that time. From the Cartier wrist watch, other watch brands began to be created which were recognised by their shape.

From around 1913, watches were made in many different styles and shapes. Some examples are Patek Philippe’s ‘gondola’ watch and Louis Cartier’s ‘Tank’ watch, named after English battlefield tanks of that era. These watches are now collectors items. Other watch makers such as Vacheron Constantin and Audemars Piguet,  in addition to Cartier and Patek Philippe, released new watch designs featuring day, month and lunar phases, features commonly foun in today’s watches.

Probably the most famous of all wrist watches is the Rolex watch. The Rolex Prince was their first watch, and was first sold in the 1920s. It had a ‘dual time’ feature which was famous for having the ‘seconds’ area of the face larger than the ‘minutes’ area.

Also in the 1920s, Jaeger Le Coultre released a watch known as the ‘Reverse’, which could be turned 180 degrees in its case, to protect the crystal. The ‘Reverse’ was very popular would have been even more popular but for the   1930s recession and the second world war.

Many people choose to collect the new types of high quality watches.  Others choose to collect the watches of the past.  Watch collecting has grown in popularity over the years and some watches can fetch large sums of money. Many people also buy watches as investments.