The Gentlemen’s Guide to Watch Styles and Categories

Dress Watches

A watch is more than just a timepiece you wear to tell time. It is a statement that says a lot about yourself. This is why watches come in so many different styles and categories. In order to convey the right message, you need the right watch for the occasion and your style of dress. This guide to watch styles and categories will help you get started in no time.

The Dress Watch
As the name suggests, the dress watch is the style of watch that works really well with a suit or a shirt. Watches in this category usually come with simple watch faces and sleek designs. It is also interesting to note that most dress watches are designed to be thin and understated. The thinner the watch, the classier and more elegant it will look — all things that Ingersoll Watches takes to heart with their classy line of dress watches.
Other common features include simple dials and numerals. Some dress watches opt for Roman numerals. This type of watch is usually paired with an equally-elegant leather strap. Of course, you can wear this type of watch every day to work or pair it with your best suit for an evening dinner.

The Diving Watch
The diving watch is a great all-around watch category, making it perfect for different occasions. A lot of men pair a diving watch with suits – James Bond, super-spy style – but this category of watches is actually not designed for formal occasions; not originally, at least. They work great with formal attires, yes, but they look even better when paired with a semi-casual shirt and short, especially when you’re cruising across a seaside road on your convertible.

The most popular diving watch is of course the Rolex Submariner. Launched in 1953, a lot of today’s watches borrow a lot from Submariner’s playbook. You can expect to see a functional, two-way bezel, luminous dials and a more rugged construction. Aluminum and stainless steel are usually the materials of choice.

The Action Watches
I mentioned earlier that a diving watch doesn’t really go well with suits. If you’re trying to mimic Mr. Bond’s sleek and edgy look, what you need is an action watch. What sets action watches apart is the extra dials usually found on the middle of the watch surface. The dials are designed to tell different things too. Some are used to measure seconds, while others offer more complicated parameters such as altitude and pressure. This category is further split into two: aviator watch and driving watch.

You will find the same rugged construction as diving watches, but there are more styles and watch face accents to choose from. The Tag Heuer Formula 1 Calibre 16, for example, has a tachymeter on its crown and a subtle yet somewhat stunning red accents. The Montblanc Meisterstück Heritage, on the other hand, features a very minimalistic design with a date dial on the right side of the watch surface.

You can explore more examples and options by browsing through Watches.com. Some of the newer models, such as the latest Fossil watches, that offer stylish and unconventional designs that will be perfect when matched with the right person and the right wardrobe.

Remember that a gentleman’s watch is a statement — what statement are you making with yours?

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