The first timepieces were believed to have been sundials, though non mechanical, these devices were able to give a good indication of the time of day by tracking the suns movement. The portable time piece did not arrive until the 16th century and continued to evolve throughout the 17th century. With advances in technology the portable time piece developed from the pendant watch to the wrist watch. Now sufficiently small to enter the jewelry section, more and more elaborate designs were being created, with such beautifully crafted artwork to suit individual tastes, the designer watch was born.

For a watch to be a designer watch, by definition like any item of designer clothing or accessory, a designer has to be associated with its creation. Though there are a limitless number of designers out there, only a few of these do we usually accept as authentic designers and their creations as being designer made. The reason being the term designer is usually given by us after millions have been spent branding the person, so much so that they become a household name. It is this branding and marketing which elevates the prices of these watches and tempts fraudsters to create cheaper imitations. Agreed the reliability and quality of a watch has a part to play in enhancing a company/ designer name, though compared to the image created through marketing, this is usually a small part.

It is not always easy to tell the difference between a genuine designer watch and an imitation, e.g. a fake Rolex or an authentic Rolex, but there are a few tell tale signs to look out for. The key one being movement, a smooth sweep is a must for most designer watches, followed by craftsmanship. With cheaper mixes of alloys generally being lighter, fake designer watches will tend to weigh less than their more expensive authentic counterparts. However the weight rule may not always apply to the mid designer watches range such as Armani watches, Dolce and Gabbana watches ( D&G watches ) etc.

As a child, the colour, the look and the feel, are just some of the attributes of watches which intrigued me. With so many to choose from, so long as it looked good, felt comfortable and I was able to tell the time should anyone ask me, that was all that I needed from a watch, the brand name just did not matter. These days the above is only half of what many of us look for; the watch must be a big brand name at least and preferably depending on our budget restrictions a designer name.

Like any fashion accessory, yes the look and feel is important, but the image designer watches perceivably create may be equally important. Big brand names after huge efforts in marketing creat a perceived great image and everyone wants to have a good image, preferably one that stands equal or above those people they tend to mix. It is this obsession with image that continues to drive our fascination with designer watches.



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