A woman's watch is
personal. That is my response to this month's newsletter question.
"A woman's watch
is personal and you can consider several factors when shopping for a watch for
yourself... primarily taste, type of movement, case and band material, and
price." That is the follow-up I usually provide to my initial response. to
When I get a question asking "What can
you tell me about watches?" or "What should I consider when shopping
for a watch?".I give the answers above and explain that I'm not an expert
on watches.
But for purposes of this article I'll tell
you what I look for in a watch... in no particular sequence.
Movement - My first watch had a wind-up
movement. Later, I bought myself a self-winding watch. Neither kept
accurate time over long periods. When battery powered quartz movements
became widely available, I found them to be amazingly accurate.
Specialty
- To me specialty watches include watches for divers, pilots, sports, and
other uses where the watch tends to have multiple dials and buttons. I see most
of these as men's watches... probably because they usually need to be larger.
Case
Material - I prefer stainless steel for everyday use. Yellow gold (and white
gold, and rose gold) cases are nice for dress wear. Titanium watches are
becoming more widely available now... but I have not tried one. I stay away from
plated and base metal watch cases.
Band
Material - Again, I prefer stainless steel for everyday use. Other
common band materials include gold, silver, leather, plastic, and velvet cord.
Bezel
material - The bezel around the watch face often is of the same material as
the watch case. You do see some stainless steel cases with yellow gold bezels in
some high-end watches... and you can get diamond and/or gemstone studded bezels.
Crystal - Synthetic or natural
sapphire is a durable, scratch-resistant crystal material. Other synthetic
materials suitable for watch crystals are also now available. I stay away from
plastic crystals.
Shape - Wrist watches tend to be
round, oval, rectangular, or square. Triangular and half moon shapes are offered
by a few manufacturers.
Waterproof
- To get a
waterproof watch, you are most often limited to round or oval shaped watch
cases. The rubber O-ring used to seal the watch back and case doesn't work well
with square corners.
Luxury
- Luxury
watches are just that... a luxury. If a fine time piece is more important than
price, these may be for you.
A woman's watch
is personal, but I do not feel the need for a truly luxury watch.
Collectible
- There are many collectors of time pieces... grandfather clocks, railroad
watches and railroad regulator wall clocks, vintage wrist watches of many
categories, and of course, pocket watches.
Price - I saved this item of
consideration until the end... because in the end, price is a big consideration
for many of us. You can buy a watch for $10, $30, $100... or a
half-million dollars. It depends on what you need, what you want, and what you
can afford.
A woman's watch
is personal to me also. My personal preference is a stainless steel
case and band, and a quartz movement. You can get them from Amazon at a very
good price.
A Google search using the search box below
and the keyword phrase women's quartz watches (or similar keywords) will show you a number
of links and ads.
Gem Industry News...
Blue Diamonds
In The News
Blue diamonds continue to make news. The current issue of Gems &
Gemology carries two articles on blue diamonds...
This article is gemology-speak related to the characteristics of gray - blue
- violet diamonds from Australia's Argyle Diamond Mine.
DiamondWorld also has an article featuring the Argyl blue diamonds. Rio Tinto
Mining has offered a parcel of the rare gems for sale. This equally rare event
is labeled the "Once In A Blue Moon" tender.
From a supply perspective, now is the time to replenish your depleted inventory.
If you have some money to invest in inventory - there are deals to be had.
And you should have some cash. After all, that depleted inventory was sales.
From a sales perspective, gift giving occasions have not disappeared. Birthdays,
anniversaries, and many other reasons to give nice jewelry at a great price just
keep on coming. Your customers (and their friends) need what you offer!
A market where people perceive they should spend less fits right into your
marketing strategy...
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waterproof watch, you are most often limited to round or oval shaped watch
cases. The rubber O-ring used to seal the watch back and case doesn't work well
with square corners.
