Watches with wraparound straps have been in fashion for some time – for example, Bulgari’s best-selling Serpenti collection that wraps around the wrist or Hermès’ double-strap Cape Cod, which has been spotted on the Princess Beatrice and Gwyneth Paltrow. Omega also made its way: in May, the Swiss house presented its De Ville Mini Trésor watch collection, with a wrap-around bracelet in a toile de Jouy print.
Now 190-year-old watch brand Longines is getting in on the strap action, thanks to Swiss leather and fashion label YVY, whose designs like the Wrap Bra and Buckle Choker were inspired by by equestrian leather goods, but with a subversive touch.
The new Longines DolceVita x YVY collection combines the traditional Longines rectangular timepiece with YVY’s double leather strap, available in three colors: black, studded with rivets ($1,600), brown with diamond-set case ($3,500 ) or beige ($1,600).
The double strap includes the watch strap and an accent strap, coupled by a set of leather buckles. Pieces can be separated so “you can wear it on separate arms or share it with someone else,” YVY founder Yvonne Reichmuth said in a video interview from the brand’s Zurich headquarters. . “You can really play with it.”
Although she is a fashion designer, Ms Reichmuth said she has never been comfortable with the industry’s emphasis on novelty and the expectation of new collections every few months. In contrast, she says, “a watch is really a product in the mindset of people that you invest in. It’s something that you cherish, something that really becomes your personal thing that you might give away. then be someone else’s.”
Reuse has been crucial in her own brand, which Ms Reichmuth introduced in 2015. All of YVY’s leather, she said, is a by-product of the food industry, so animals – mainly cows and lambs – are not killed for their skins. She added that most hides are tanned using vegetable products; no chemicals are involved. The concept seems to have resonated with YVY fans such as Billie Eilish, Madonna, Lady Gaga and Willow Smith.
The collaboration also inspired Ms. Reichmuth to create a two-piece equestrian harness body set ($708), in the same colors as the watch strap. And like him, the harness has removable belts so the set can be worn multiple ways.