This is a subject that is met with a lot of different opinions.
Some people absolutely hate the look of wearing bracelets and watch on the same wrist, some people adore it and wear 3, 4 or even five bracelets on the same wrist as the watch.
Other people wear bracelets together with their watch very moderately, only wearing bracelets that complement the watch in a subtle way instead of stealing the show.
That’s exactly what we’ll talk about in today’s article.
We’ll discuss how you can wear bracelets with your watch in a way that looks stylish, yet not too flashy, which bracelets you should choose based on the watch you are wearing, and also how many bracelets you can wear on the same wrist as your watch.
Note that the tips below only are general advice. If you feel like you want to break the rules and still pull it off, you are more than allowed to.
Let’s get started.
Undeniably, the watch you are wearing will decide a lot on which bracelets you should wear next to it.
The two things that will have the biggest effect on what looks good next to them are the material of the watch, the color of the watch, and also the strap of the watch.
If you are going to wear some type of bracelet made of metal, you should always aim at wearing a bracelet in the same metal as the watch. This will make your wrist game look more connected and ultimately lead to a more elegant overall appearance.
As an example, if you are wearing a watch in steel, you should always opt for a bracelet in steel and not a bracelet in another metal, for example in rose gold.
This does not however mean that you can’t wear bracelets that are non-metal on the same wrist as your watch. It just means that if you are going to wear a bracelet out of some type of metal, you want to wear a bracelet with the same metal as the watch.
Here’s an example of a watch and bracelet pairing done correctly. Seen in the picture is an anchor bracelet that you can Get here, matched with a steel Rolex GMT-Master II. Note that the stainless steel of the bracelet complements the steel on the watch without stealing the show, which makes for a great looking wrist game.
Also, the color of the bracelet matches the tone of the strap which further strengthens the look and the signal of fashion and style consciousness.
This brings us the to next point.
When wearing bracelets together with your watch, something that can help improve the look of your wrist game, and make the bracelet blend in better is matching the colors.
The bracelet doesn’t necessarily have to match the color of the watch, and that’s where strap changes come in handy. By having a variety of different watch straps in various colors, you can change the strap based on the bracelet you want to wear so that you make for a more stylish look and appearance.
If you don’t yet have a collection of watch straps, it is recommended that you get yourself some today. Because straps only take seconds to change, matching your strap and watch with your bracelet is super easy.
Going all in and matching the bracelet with the watch and the strap might be too much in terms of color coordinating, but once again, if you feel like you can pull it off, you should definitely wear it.
The best color-coordination however, is when you match the watch and the bracelet in a discreet way that is not too obvious. The result of this will be something that looks effortless yet blends together beautifully.
Here’s an example of a natural gemstone bracelet that is color coordinated with the patina of a Rolex GMT-Master II. Often times, it is the small color details that make the big differences.
At first glance, it might not look like the bracelet is matched with the watch, but when you look a bit closer, you realize just how much thought has gone into this perfect combination. The white and red of the bracelet matches the checkered ring of the dial which makes for a look that is very composed.
But that’s not all…
While a combination of this nature is not too common, it is done perfectly here.
Not only does the color of the bracelet match the watch, but also the pattern of the bracelet as well.
Because the bracelet looks checkered with the blue, white and red contrasting each other, the result is a wrist game that looks like the bracelet is dedicated purely for that watch. And if you succeed to accomplish this, you know you have succeeded with pairing bracelet and watch.
A common question when it comes to wearing bracelets and watches on the same wrist is how many bracelets you should wear.
The boring answer is that it depends, but that doesn’t exactly tell us a lot.
Therefore, let me explain a bit more…
As mentioned in the beginning of this article, there are people who we up to five bracelets on the same wrist as the watch, and there are people who barely dare to wear one, so obviously, how many bracelets you want to wear is completely up to the individual.
However, this article is dedicated to the general guidelines so we’ll stick to that for now.
When deciding how many bracelets you should wear next to your watch, you should always look at the size of the bracelet. As seen above, the anchor bracelets above looks perfect with just one bracelet next to the watch, and two might result in a too busy wrist, with bracelets that steal the show.
You want toe bracelets to complement the watch, not become the center of attention.
Although the nylon cords of the anchor bracelets are relatively thin, the anchors take up a bit of space on the wrist, so the result is a bracelet that is considered to be fairly large, even though it is the anchor that takes up most of the space.
If you are more into wearing many bracelets at the same time, you’re in luck, because thankfully, there are bracelets of that nature as well.
What is important when stacking many bracelets on the same wrist as your watch is to only stack bracelets who are thin and small in size.
An example of bracelet stacking done right is the picture below.
These bracelets do not necessarily need to match the color of your watch strap, nor the color of your watch to look good. The thin bracelets are multi-colored which adds a lot of playfulness to your outfit, and works as attention grabbers, leading people to first look at your bracelets, then move the focus to the watch.
Jens Wirdenius is the editor-in-chief and co-founder of VeloceInternational. He is a social media and marketing nut, sharing his passion for business in his articles.