Ladies Watches Showing Style and Form through History

Ladies watches have a long history, as far back as Elizabeth I who received a watch studded with gemstones in the 1500\'s. Today, women can still buy a watch studded with genuine gemstones and as far as price is concerned, the sky is the limit!

Wristwatches have evolved from the spring-driven, portable clocks which appeared around the 15th century. These timepieces were made portable by invention of a mainspring. Some sources credit Peter Henle, a Nurberg clockmaker with the invention around 1511. Many references, however to \'clocks without weights\' suggest that clocks powered by springs appeared around 1400.

Timepieces that were the first to be worn were produced in 16th century Europe. They were half-way in size between clocks and wristwatches. The \'clock-watches\' were worn attached to clothing or on a neck chain. They were relatively large, drum-shaped brass boxes a few inches in diameter, frequently engraved and decorated. The clock face had no glass, but a hinged cover. The cover was usually pierced filigree-style so that the watch-face could be seen and time read without opening.

These watches only had an hour hand and normally were wound a couple of times per day. These early watches were not so much used to tell time as the accuracy of the movements was poor. Sometimes these watches were off by hours, they were nearly useless. They were made for their decorative value, odd shape or interesting mechanical workmanship.

Improvements in the accuracy of timepieces prior to 1657 dealt with leveling out the mainsprings steep curve. Up until this time, women\'s timepieces were still valued mainly for their decorative value. A huge step ahead in accuracy happened in 1657 when the balance spring was added to the wheel by Robert Hooke and Christian Huygens. This balance spring made the wheel an harmonic oscillator, having a natural \'beat\' which had a resistance to disturbances. This increased the accuracy of watches to a huge extent from hours during a day to minutes. Suddenly, watches were functional!

Today a watch is not just a functional item to most women, it is an expression of their tastes and personality. It can be an expression of their moods. Watches can be inexpensive enough for a woman to own one for every day of the week or to match every outfit. A watch can also be as expensive as a fancy sports car, it depends what your style is and how deep your pockets are!

Watches are as different as people and that\'s one reason why people love watches. It\'s the same reason people like cars, jewelry, and everything else that helps us express ourselves.

Just like jewelry, a watch is not only an expression of personality, it gives us a sense of variety. People aren\'t like they were many years ago when you would buy a watch and wear it until you die! People want variety today and times have changed, they can have it! And they will find it quite affordable!

Ladies watches have a long history, as far back as the gemstone studded clock watches of the 1500\'s. Today, ladies can still buy wristwatches studded with genuine gemstones and as far as price is concerned, the sky is the limit!