My journey into making watch straps won’t really surprise anyone.
We have friends who live in Switzerland, and every time we visit we spend a certain amount of time waiting around on railway platforms anxiously clock watching. So when I discovered that Mondaine licensed the rights to make watches based on the iconic clock design I just had to get one.
And it had to have a white face, with a bright red strap. If you are going to go iconic, do it properly.
All went well, I loved wearing my watch and many of my friends commented on it. Then a year or so on I was looking for a replacement strap. (I am pretty tough on watch straps). To get one that was the right shade of red, and with the branded buckle, I had to wait until my next trip to Zurich to buy one.
I decided to make up a new strap for myself using red Sedgwicks English bridle leather and re-using the original strap buckle. End result a lovely red strap stitched in waxed thread with the branded Mondaine buckle. I made it a little thicker than the original and nearly ten years on I am it is still going strong. Admittedly I have had to reline it, have replaced the fixed keeper and restitched it in white, and the leather has darkened with life experiences, but it is still fulfilling its function.
Admittedly it may only have another few months left before I need to restitch it to replace worn stitching, but it is still the most robust watch strap I have ever had.
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