A visual glossary to the other part of your watch appearance that gets most attention!
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A visual glossary to the other part of your watch appearance that gets most attention!
Watch straps are essential accessories that enhances the overall look of your watch.
Leather watch straps are one of the most popular watch straps on the market due to variety of shades and textures it offers, but not all of them are created equal. Learn more about the best types of leather for watch straps here.
Below are 4 of the best leathers for watch straps in terms of style, durability and longevity.
Full grain leather is one of the most commonly used leathers for luxury brand watches for its durability & longitivtiy and a safe go to for day or night time wear. Most of the premium leather straps are full grain leather because it is super comfortable and classic.
The durability and toughness of this leather make it suitable for goods that see heavy and rough use and require long-lasting performance. It will develop a rich patina as it ages, lending it a beauty that is much sought after by watch aficionados.
Full grain leather, apart from being durable, has a tighter grain which tends to hold together and therefore is more durable.
Italian pueblo leather strap, one of the most eye catching leather from Badalassi Carlo tannery, which is a member of the Genuine Italian Vegetable Tanned Leather Consortium.
A leather with unique rustic texture that ages well with time and use , adding a unique characteristic to the overall look of your watch. Italian pueblo leather straps perfectly walks the line between rustic and sophisticated
Shell cordovan is a type of leather commonly used in high-end shoemaking, wallets and watch straps, and known for its aesthetic qualities and exceptional durability. Cordovan is an equine leather made from the fibrous flat connective tissue (or shell) beneath the hide on the rump of the horse.
Shell cordovan has a unique non-creasing characteristic. Because it is made of connective tissue, it is smooth and lacks the pebbled effect of leather derived from animal skin.
If you’re looking for a luxury watch strap that can guarantee longevity and durability, Shell cordovan straps are the ones to choose.
A classy watch strap crafted from refined shell cordovan leather for a glossy, uniform look and exceptional durability. Handmade for individuals with voluptuary taste & style
Alligator leather is known as an exotic leather that can be used for a wide variety of luxury products including high end watch straps. Alligator leather is soft, smooth, and quite flexible; therefore, watch straps crafted from alligator leather will be highly elastic.
Alligator watch strap are a must have for every luxury brand watch collectors and owners, apart from offering durability it offers a premium look that elevates your wrist game & style.
Suede tends to offer a more casual, yet still considerate look and can be worn in any occasion or time. Due to its soft touch, and zero break in it's the comfiest leather watch strap by far. So, If you're aiming for comfort as well as style, suede leather straps might be the perfect strap material for you.
Super comfortable soft suede (goat) leather straps available in variety of shades to exponentially enhance your watch look suiting your style.
The guide will be updated with more images shared by clients with my handmade straps paired with their watches.
With this blog, i hope to inspire you with some custom made leather watch straps for various watches.
If you are looking for the best handmade and hand stitched leather bands for your watches from the likes of seiko, omega, panerai, Rolex to name a few and need some ideas, inspiration or recommendations, you are at the right place!
Leather watch straps - Indian leather craft
Indianleathercraft - Instagram
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It was 27th April 2017 when a fellow bullet lover messaged me on Instagram inquiring if i could make the Royal enfield leather key cover by sending me a reference image of the product to which i agreed on making as i was experimenting on various leather products to enhance my leather crafting skills.it looked very challenging but it was worth a try as i had nothing to loose.
Little did i know what was in store for me when i was working on it and things changed when i posted the image on my Instagram.
I was stormed with comments and Dm's like never before and this product took my leather crafting journey to next level.
A step by step guide to how i make the Royal enfield leather key cover
A product that i build to last long enough to accompany you throughout various journeys.
It all starts with selecting the Appropriate part of the Hide keeping in mind how the leather will adapt to the key shape and wouldn't squeeze while hand stitching due to thread tension.
Most of the Royal enfield leather key cover were/are made using vegetable tanned leather which ages beautifully over time, unless a different type of leather ( chrome tan,oil pullup, oiltanned ) is chosen by the client due his personal preference which doesn't affects the durability of the product.
An outline/pattern of the key shape is drawn on the flesh side of the leather which will helps us determine the cutting pattern.
An outer area of 15mm- 20mm from the drawn outline is cut using a sharp knife and a centre hole is punched using a dye.
The leather is glued with the key inside to get an impression/marking of the hole on the flesh side of the leather that will help us to insert the leather loop later and to punch a precise hole which exposes the royal enfield emblem on the key front
The glued leather is carefully opened and holes are punched using punching dye, the rough edges of the punched area are hand burnished to make the edges smooth making sure all the punched holes are precise so that leather leather adapts onto the key shape
Aesthetics
The next step involves gluing the leather again making sure everything aligns perfectly which is very important for our next step when we punch holes for stitches.
Holes are Punched using the hole punch tool following the outer line which the leather has adapted so that we get a nice clean stitches maintaining the aesthetics.
My favourite part Hand stitching
The product is then hand stitched using the traditional stitching method of saddle stitches which is much better than machine stitches.The thread i used is 0.55mm beige polyester waxed thread which is strong and doesn't unravel, unless removed with physical force.
when finished with the stitching the leather outer is then cut using a sharp pair of scissor maintaining the key shape. the rough edges if any are burnished using a wooden burnisher to smoothen the edges of the leather
The final step involves inserting the leather loop thru punched hole and there u have a meticulously handmade & hand stitched Royal enfield leather key cover which is build to last long.
The whole process takes 3-4 hours and the results are worth the time & skill invested.
Over the years i have received enormous support for clients across India & Abroad. Sharing few Images of the product crafted using different types and colours of leather for various clients.
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Step 1: Determine your lug width & buckle width (A and B)
To determine your width, you can take a ruler or caliper, and measure the width of the part of the strap that uses spring bars / screws to attach to your watch case. Measure this in millimeters. Width is expressed, for example like this: 24/22 (24mm wide by 22mm wide). This first number (24mm) is the width of the strap between the lugs of the watch case. The second number (22mm) is the width of the strap at the buckle.
A “straight” strap is one that is the same width at the lugs and the buckle, i.e 24/24 (24mm wide at lugs by 24mm wide at buckle). While a “tapered” strap is one that tapers in width from the lugs to the buckle, i.e 24/22 (24mm wide at lugs by 22 wide at buckle).
If you don’t find lug width of your watch below, and feel difficulty to determine the lug width, please tell us the brand name, and model of your watches, or simply the pictures of your watches, and we will help you figure out.
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Step 2: Determine your long strap length and short strap length (C and D)
There are two lengths required, the tail end (length of long section), and the buckle end (length of short section, excluding buckle). Length is expressed, for example like this: 125/75. The first number (125) is the length in millimeters of the tail end with holes. The second number (75) is the length in millimeters of the buckle end.
The strap length suggestion is based on wrist size. To determine the your wrist length, you can simply wrap a piece of string/thread around your wrist at the point where you normally wear your watch, mark the string where it crosses itself, lay it flat on a table and measure the distance between the marks. This is your wrist size.
The table below is an excellent place to start for help you decide your size length order.
However, don’t let this table be your strict rule. Choosing the strap length is all personal preference. There is no “right” or “wrong” in choosing them. A length that we consider “too short”, or “too long” might consider to be “just right” for you. Strap length is an art, and as your taste changes, your idea of what looks “just right” will probably change too. For example, If your wrist is 6.7”, you can also go with 125/75mm for a more conservative look (less tail, centered buckle), or you could go up to 130/80 for a longer look (more tail, buckle over to the side more).
Congratulations! You now know what size band your watch accepts and are ready to find the perfect new strap.Click here to shop now