Watch Suitability

[TeeJay]

personally i find the history and custom of menswear and formal wear interesting. i am extremely casual everyday at work, but i do own three (vintage) dinner jackets and formal trousers and the appropriate accessories; black patent leather pumps and a pair of black sharkskin seamless bal oxfords, wing and turned down collar shirts, bow ties (that tie, anything else is an abomination), suspenders, cummerbund and a terrific set of 19th century 18k rose gold and black onyx cuff links and studs.

prior to 1860 or so mens formal wear was black tie and tails or for more formal occasions white tie and tails. with boiled stiff fronted shirts and heavily constructed tight fitting tail coats. then henry poole of saville row made a short much less constructed and comfortable jacket (similar to a smoking jacket) for the prince of wales. who evidently could get away with it an american (mr james potter of new york) visited the prince in 1886 and was so impressed he had mr. poole run him up one and caused quite the scandal when he wore this 'casual' jacket to an event at the tuxedo club in new york. hence the name in the us.

until the last few decades when hollywood types corrupted it, the tuxedo was a very simple look. a single breasted jacket with a shawl or peak lapel (notched lapels are for suit coats) and NO vents. vents are appropriate for hacking or hunting jackets to be worn seated on a horse, not a dinner jacket. a white turned down collar shirt with a pleated placket, and french cuffs, worn with decorative studs. black cummerbund (pleats UP with a small pocket to hold your theater or opera tickets), black bow tie, suspenders (black, white or something like silver to be flashy). black pleated trousers with a satin stripe (a military touch), NEVER cuffed. country trousers are cuffed because of the mud. black silk stocking and black patent leather pumps/slippers (usually with a grosgrain bow) or black seamless oxfords. that was it. the only acceptable jewelry besides studs and cuff links was a wedding band and a school or military academy ring. no watch.

if you look films from the 20's, 30's and 40's and even into the 50's you see these rules followed. the secret to dressing well was all in the details. fred astaire being a perfect example. he knew the rules and followed them, but always bent them a tiny bit. he could and still look great because he knew them

the only people who call it a 'tux' are those who rent them, and they invariably look like it too

Again, absolutely my point, thankyou

[b16a2]

I would be very interested in this guide to etiquette in regards to which watch to wear in the different situations. Even if people think it is not something that they would use as a guide, I think we can all learn from it, it would be great information to have as it is a big part of our hobby. Looking forward to it Ethan

[Aidan]

I have a friend who has a curious sexual compulsion to have sex with horses. What would be the most

suitable watch to wear on a third date with a horse at a fairly posh reasturaunt. Are there any definate

no no,s watch wise in these circumstances. Hopefully Ethans guide will cover this fully.

[eddhead]

T

Here's the thing about etiquette and class: you don't have to have or project either if you don't want to. You wanna wear a green Mohawk to work, and sit in a board meeting with a chain running from your lip to your nose, you go right ahead. But you are absolutely deluded if you think that either won't have any impact on the impression others have of you. Of course, if this describes you, you probably don't care.

This response makes the most sense to me, i.e. there is etiquette,there is style, and there is preferance.. three differnent considerations. Etiquette constitutes the formal and classic rules of the road. Think Emily Post. Style = trend.. what is in vogue at the moment. Individual preferance is self-explanatory

Following Ethan's post, I did a bit of research and posted the result. I say a bit because the level of available guidance on etiquette was surprisingly and disappointingly low. Still I was able to find stuff from Emily Post, GQ, Some grad school sites tutoring students on interview etiquette, and a few other sources. Basically, etiquette (which you are free or not free to follow) would dictate that:

-Only dress watches be worn in business situations or with a suit with no accompanying jewlery

-No watch be worn in formal sitauations, i.e. black tie.

The reason for the latter is that at a formal affair is is considered inappropriate to measure the passage of time, i.e... the best i could come up with as an analogy was the 2004 US presidential debate when GW Bush glanced at his watch in the middle of a point being debated by Kerry. Not good form

As far as dress watches are concerned the indications I found were only that they be small, thin unobtrusive with a minimum of dials. Interestingly and surprisingly (at least to me) , I was not able to locate a preferance for strap vs. metal band (intutitively I would have thought a leather strap was appropriate). In fact one site tutoring grad stutents on interview etiquette actually sited a picture of a business man wearing a metal band watch..as an example of a dress watch. i think it was gold but i cannot recall. Not to say that they're correct.. that is just what I found.

I for one an looking forward to finding out more about this from Ethan. Doesn't necessarily mean I will abide by it, but it is something I feel I should at least know about.

[pabra]

I have a friend who has a curious sexual compulsion to have sex with horses. What would be the most

suitable watch to wear on a third date with a horse at a fairly posh reasturaunt. Are there any definate

no no,s watch wise in these circumstances. Hopefully Ethans guide will cover this fully.

It's always "a friend" ...

[Richard Tracy]

Yes, there are rules for just about everything, from how you hold your fork, to what

color your socks are supposed to be..however, those that try too hard to fit in,

are really the most uninteresting sort of people for me.

As far as I'm concerned, individual style, within limits, is fine for just about any situation,..

and I tend to gravitate towards those people who think for themselves, as they have turned

out to be the ones who have anything worth listening to or working with, and are the reason

we enjoy every new invention or change that improves our lives...

I do stress, however, that personal style, to me, is something that does not scream,

flash, or is oversized, which are attemps to impress others, but is personal, subtle and there

because the individual self derives personal pleasure from it.

[FxrAndy]

I regularly attend formal dinners as a matter of duty (Military) We wear the military equivalent of a dinner jacket with miniature medals, the rules that we follow on these occasions are hundreds of years old. Many of the members wear a pocket watch as have i in the past. Now i tend to wear my omega Aqua terra on brown leather or IWC porto chrono also on brown leather (i know it does not match the shoes) but many members just wear the same watch that the have for work, G Shocks and the like and it looks terrible. I would never wear my fiddy as it will not fit the French cuffs of my shirt nor would i wear my rail master as the SS band would not look right. But you know what does look good?

My wife in a long dress and my fiddy with a dark strap for a dark dress and her 217 on an orange Bob with a light dress!