by Sylvia Mcelherron

Created on: October 09, 2009

As men become more aware of the importance of creating a positive lasting impression, nothing quite completes an outfit or makes a powerful fashion statement quite like a well chosen watch.

Watch manufacturers have always been innovators in terms of the technology and skill required to create outstandingly complicated, functional watches, and now even the old masters of Swiss watchmaking are creating a range of contemporary designs to meet the requirements of the latest fashion trends.

Larger watches, like those created by Panerai have become a fashion trend with dials measuring up to 48mm across. Once considered to be huge by industry standards, larger watches are now commonplace and of course are impossible to ignore. Most watch brands now sell these out-size pieces.

Sports watches make for a bold style statement. The unidirectional bezel, a standard requirement in the modern divers watch adds to the chunky appeal of these watches and the highly legible dials, luminous markers and bright dial colours such as those created by Doxa, although originally created as safety features create a perfect impact for the style conscious wearer. Sporty styles generally have added features such as chronograph functions which add to the impression of sporting chic.

Construction material of your watch is an important design feature. Stainless steel, commonly used in sports watches co-ordinates with either formal or more casual wardrobes and will not tarnish so will always look good. Cutting edge materials such as ceramic and pvd coating have been used to great effect by brands such as Hublot in its Big Bang collection with the creation of watches that are almost completely black and visually stunning and totally stylish.

If you require something a little bit tamer, classical elegance never goes out of fashion, and most brands still have pieces in their portfolios such as the Blancpain Villeret range with its discreet styling and classically plain dials. These are watches which transcend fashion trends, will never go out of style and look good no matter what you are wearing.

As with most fashion trends, iconic designs live forever and many watch houses such as TAG Heuer are re-visiting some of their older styles to update and re-release them to a customer base keen to purchase some retro chic. So if you are a fan of vintage clothing or just want something a little bit unique then these classic styles could be just what you are looking for.

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