It’s Always a Good Time for Handmade Silver Watches

Sundials and Stonehenge prove that the need to mark time has been with humans since they first rose on two feet.  And since the beginnings of recorded time, we humans have been trying to perfect how we keep it.

The hourglass and pendulum “grandfather” clock were among the first indoor timepieces.  The wound spring, developed in the 16th century made it possible to construct clocks of more moderate size.  Shortly thereafter, people – mostly men – began carrying a timepiece with them; the pocket watch – usually held in small slash pocket cut into a man’s waistcoat and attached by a chain to his waistcoat button - became ubiquitous in the 19th century. Women, too, began attaching them to their corsets. These were often handmade silver watches, or handmade gold watches, that bore engraved filigree or a monogram (and today are a valuable collector’s item).

During the Boer War - and, even more pressingly, World War I - with all those soldiers arrayed in trenches kilometers long, it became imperative that there be some way to synchronize their movement. Enter the wristwatch or, as it was originally called, the “wristlet” watch. Handmade silver watches became popular because of the durability and value of silver, and the malleability of the metal, which enabled it to be fashioned in many shapes and sizes.  The world’s first aviators also found it “handy” to have a silver watch on their wrist. Together, soldiers and flying aces put an end to the view that handmade silver watches were effeminate! Today, gold, titanium and silver watches are made for men and women alike.

In fact, as in so many other things, women have been the leaders in turning the handmade silver watch into a fashion accessory – for men as well as for themselves.  Handmade silver watches are practical, but nowadays they are also beautiful, and come in multiple styles. Many handmade silver watches for women “masquerade” as silver bracelets, or are enough like them that they can be worn together with silver bracelets to give a generally attractive appearance to the wrist, without disclosing that there’s anything practical going on.

Handmade silver watches may have a traditional round timepiece, a square timepiece, or a trapezoidal timepiece for that matter; the clock face may be colored, or studded with tiny gem chips. The band of the handmade silver watch may be made of solid panels of silver, or the silver links of a chain; it may be thick or thin, straight or curved, smooth or hammered - as any style that is appropriate for a silver bracelet, is appropriate for a handmade silver watch as well.  Some are adorned with gemstones, too.

Handmade silver watches thus make an excellent gift - for yourself or for someone else. They are practical, and lovely, and so affordable that you can own more than one, and change them to suit any outfit or occasion.  Because they’re so practical (and we all need them) handmade silver watches are never an “indulgence”. So go ahead, sparkle up your wrist!