Ladies' Watches - Fashion Meets Function

Historically, ladies' watches have posed the greater challenge to watch makers, partly in finding a design that appeals to women, and partly in manufacturing a watch that would not overwhelm a woman's wrist. For women who prefer a chunky, functional sports watch, this is not such a problem, but when designing watches to be worn as fashion items as well as timekeepers, many complications had to be surrendered to reduce the space that the movement took up.

This could be why, for the most part, ladies' watches over the years have developed into clean, simple designs that focus on the elegance that a watch can possess as it sits on a wrist. While men's watches developed variations and additions to chronograph functions, the features of a ladies watch remained much the same. Changes were instead made to the shape of the dial and case, and to colours for the wrist strap and dial itself.

Ladies' fashion watches come in two types. There are the delicate watches produced by fashion houses themselves, which often have quartz mechanisms to allow for the small dials that they usually have. Expensive case materials and luxurious straps accent diamonds placed in the dial and the case itself. Fashion houses such as Gucci and Christian Dior sell watches like this to accompany bags, clothing, and even perfume.

The other type of ladies' fashion watch is that made by a watch house, which contains a mechanical movement. These watches are usually slightly smaller than the men's ranges to account for women's more delicate wrist. Size is dictated to a certain degree by the movement placed inside the watch, and so the biggest difference between a men's watch and a ladies watch will often be the materials and dial.

For example, Rolex's ladies' watches often have diamonds embedded in the case surrounding the dial, which can turn an ordinary-looking watch into something fit to be worn at the most prestigious of occasions. Cartier watches have a fine balance between simplicity and extravagance. Although diamonds are often seen as the symbol of luxury, many Cartier watches have few or no diamonds at all. Instead, the square dial in a gold or white gold case shows tasteful refinement, and is instantly recognisable as the brand it is.

Jewellery watches, as may be gathered from the name, are like a bracelet that  can tell the time; something to be proudly displayed at parties. They are usually encrusted with diamonds, a dress watch to be worn on special occasions only. Jewellery watches are now often described as 'bling' watches, as their great cost makes them a statement of wealth as much as taste.

Making a ladies' watch has often been considered a challenge, but as watch movements have developed and become smaller over time, this challenge has eased somewhat. It is now possible to buy a ladies' watch from all major watch houses that will flatter the wrist and complement an evening outfit.