What are the different types of watch bands?
Genuine Italian Leather
Leather is one of the most durable natural materials around, and it is what makes anything more classic. If you want to make your wrist accessory look more stylish or give it a vintage look, just get it in genuine leather.
The genuine Italian leather has a mechanical strength that ensures a longer life of the watch band and it is fire resistant and breathable. The leather strap makes any wristwatch look luxurious and distinguishable, and the person who wears it instantly looks more elegant and refined. This type of strap is also available in a stitched form where the stitching gives it a luxe feel. Not only that, nothing beats a genuine Italian leather watch band for its comfort and exclusive feel.
Nordgreen genuine Italian leather watch straps are the classic choice to complement your watch, and they are available in a variety of colors to match your style. You can choose from classic brown and black to trendy leather watch band in navy blue, pink, grey, or white to oomph up your style and make a statement. We also provide crocodile pattern straps to link your watch, giving an edge to your style.
If you are looking to upgrade the style of your watch band, then a genuine Italian leather strap is the best fit. It is also the best strap for a watch when you want to attend black-tie events as it gives a luxurious feeling. Many dress watches available now also have leather watch bands. Match the color of the leather strap to your leather belt and shoes for an easy boost in style.
Stainless Steel Mesh
Stainless steel is the most popular material used in watches, both for the face and the band. Not only is the material durable, strong, and resistant to rust, but it also costs far less than titanium, gold, silver, and platinum.
A stainless steel mesh watch bracelet is an absolute classic, giving your watch an elegant and cool look. Stainless steel metal bracelets stand out visually, as its design features a tightly woven, sturdy mesh, or small links, giving it a smooth, thin surface. The stainless steel mesh watch bracelet can also be found under the name of Milanese mesh metal bracelets and are extremely comfortable to wear. The fine mesh material prevents hair from getting caught in the bracelet and allows the skin to breathe easily, giving the watches an elegant look.
The design of stainless steel mesh types of watch bands has its origin dating back to the 13th century in the city of Milan, where these watch bands were handmade. In the 1920s, German watch specialists Staib and Vollmer revived the process, leading to a new wave of popularity. When you are looking to buy metal watch straps, be sure to buy high-quality metals that do not have sharp edges, and also offer sufficient flexibility. You can buy the best quality stainless steel mesh watch bands online at Nordgreen. The metal watch bands available in our store come in black, gold, rose gold, silver, and gunmetal colors to help you make a bold statement. Also, metal bracelets or metal watch straps are very thin. We recommend that you wear them with watches over 40 mm in diameter.
We also have stainless steel link watch bands available, with either 3 or 5 links in a row. These styles are perfect additions to dress watches.
Nylon Straps
Nylon may not be the first choice when looking at watch bands. However, it is one of the best watch strap materials, especially for the warmer weather. This is because the nylon material is durable, practical, comfortable, water-resistant, and breathable. A strap made out of nylon material is not only a great addition to your strap style, but also offers great water resistance to those of you with an active lifestyle.
Specifically made for British soldiers during Cold War, the British Ministry of Defense introduced a nylon strap under the name G10. After the war, these strap styles were not used by the soldiers anymore and sold out at military surplus stores. As a result, each strap was given a NATO number, which quickly earned the name NATO strap. In the 70s, these nylon straps became best sellers, thanks to its appearance in the Bond movie Goldfinger, where the actor Sean Connery supported a watch with a NATO watch strap. Watch brands jumped on the trend and began producing NATO or Nylon watch straps.
NATO bands are made of a single piece of fabric, making it easy to change the watch strap. Moreover, it has a locking mechanism that secures the watch to the wrist so that it does not lose its grip even after the spring bar is released. A wide range of colors, high flexibility with a low price point makes the nylon wrist watch band a popular all-rounder.
When you are looking to buy a high-quality nylon watch strap, then Nordgreen is the place to be. Our slip-thru nylon wristbands are flexible and durable, and available in various colors ranging from army green, black to navy blue to add a style statement to your watch.
Rally Straps
Inspired by old school racing gloves, these straps are recognized by three or four large perforations punched below the lugs. The design adds simplicity and is a great choice for summer wear. The characteristic of this strap include increased ventilation, which works well under high temperatures and conditions, offering a comfortable feel to your skin. You can pair this wristwatch strap with a buckle with your chronograph watch. If the style or history of this strap appeals to you, pick the right sizes online at Nordgreen. You can also create a bundle by adding one or two straps with a buckle or link with a watch, and we will deliver it to your doorstep in an elegant watch case.
Vegan Leather
Finally, a watch strap that is both sustainable for the planet and reassuring for your changing values. A cruelty-free option for watches, the vegan leather is made of a cotton and polyester blend with no nasty toxins and chemicals. Our vegan leather wrist watch band styles give a classic leather experience to the wearer with no compromise on quality and eco-friendliness.
Compared to real leather, there is not much difference to vegan leather. It is as durable as real leather but friendlier for the environment. When it comes to style and quality, most people think that real leather is the go-to material, but this isn’t true. Take a look at our Philosopher, Native, and Infinity watches. With a vegan leather strap, these watches give a luxurious look of real leather, making you stand apart, offering a class where you go. Watches with vegan leather bands are much lighter to wear and more comfortable than real leather watches, and many manufacturers are creating dress watches with vegan leather straps.
Vegan leather straps on the Nordgreen website are available in a variety of colors to match your watch, such as black, navy, brown, and dove grey. Also, they are available in various buckle colors with three sizing options of 16 mm, 18 mm, and 20 mm. The 20 mm vegan leather watch strap easily fits any of our 40 mm and 42 mm watches, offering you countless options for a customized fit. Choose vegan leather straps to save the environment.
Rubber Straps
Spice up your watch’s look with rubber watch straps from Nordgreen. The rubber watch straps we offer are high-quality, soft, and durable, so you can feel comfortable as well as confident in yourself and your watch band. The material is great to help withstand shock and a little moisture and is typically used for sport or casual watches.
The rubber strap is comfortable to wear and available in different color combinations to match any wardrobe. They are also available in various styles like the curved end, adjustable, aviator types with buckle accents. With us, you are bound to get a rubber strap that best suits your watch’s look and your personality. Pair our rubber straps with your active or messy routine and spend less time cleaning and more time looking sporty. Also, there is no need to use a tool to change your strap due to our practical pin release design.
What type of watch band is best?
Your watch is a reflection of you. Sporty and rugged or formal and refined, it is all in the band material you choose. Well, every watch band is the best, depending on your lifestyle.
If you are an avid sportsperson, then pilot watches with lightweight and waterproof rubber straps will work well for you.
Genuine Italian leather and nylon bands are good for any occasion, casual, formal, and informal.
Stainless steel mesh with a polished center link and vegan leather bands go well with business suits or wedding suits.
Whichever strap you buy, we advise you to stay away from impulse buys as it will only cause regret later. When looking to buy watch straps, do your research, look for comfort features and experiment with our interchangeable straps until you find some you can add to your collection.
How do I choose a watch strap?
Picking a watch strap can be tricky as there are different varieties available with a wide range of color choices as well. As you already know the different types of watch straps, let us see how to choose a strap for your watch.
Nordgreen offers quick-release watch straps, and features pull back spring bars with an easy to access bolt that compresses the spring. This makes interchanging your band effortless - no spring bar tool needed to change your strap. So there is no hassle removing the spring bar when you want to swap the band to suit your style. Our bands make a great choice.
Watch Types
When looking for the best interchangeable watch bands, the watch type will influence your choice of the watchband. If you have a sporty watch, then a nylon or rubber strap will go well. However, a leather or metal bracelet will complement any of our watches. Look at your watch model and then proceed further to buy a strap that well suits it.
Size of the Watch
The size of the watches also influences the watch band. While there is no hard and fast rule to this, but the strap should be about half the width of the watch’s diameter. For instance, the watch diameter is 36 mm, the strap size is 18 mm; for 40 mm watches, 20 mm straps will do.
Get the Right Size
Measure the lug widths of your watch (where the strap attaches to the watch) to ensure that you are buying the right size straps. A watch strap too large will bunch up, and a strap too small will have an unsightly gap and won't be comfortable to wear. However, if you are buying a metal band, then the number of links will determine the width. You can add or remove the side links using the spring bar tool. Lug width is measured in millimeters (mm), which is why you’ll see sizes like 20mm, 18mm, and 16mm on websites.
Get the Right Length
Most watch bands come in a standard length that fits most wrists. Common watch band lengths available are 190 mm, 185 mm, 180 mm, 175 mm, and 170 mm. When looking to buy the right length, measure your wrist size and then look for the size on our website to match your preference.
Color of the Watch
Once you have established the size of the watch, the right length, and the right size, next comes the color of your watch. If you have a monochromatic watch with simple designs, the options are endless. You can go for a piece that is trendy, choose a design with a pin buckle, or go for materials like metals or fabric. The color of the dial (or even the watch case) and the primary strap material are the obvious factors that influence your choice, but also think about highlights, like a the seconds hand matching the strap stitching.
These are just a few tips to choose the right watch straps. Even after following the above tips, you find it hard to find the perfect piece matching your styles, then our strap selector makes it easy for you to pick a strap. Our straps have a quick-release mechanism that allows changing your piece easily with any tool needed.
What is the thing on a watch band called?
Watch bands have one or two loops on the straps that help keep the band or bracelet from flopping around on your wrist. It is known by different names like a hoop, retainer, loop, or “keepers.” Another thing that holds the strap in place is known as the spring bar.
