Sailcloth watch strap: the technicality of sailing, the comfort of leather

Many brands announce that they work with sailcloth. However, very few offer watch straps made of regatta canvas, a demanding material due to its technicality and rigidity. Avel & Men uses its knowledge of watchmaking and sailing to design aesthetic and resistant straps ready to dress up the latest diving watch or the oldest of the regatta chronographs. In addition to the technicality of the sails used, the Breton brand has the luxury of combining it with the chic of leather, which adds a touch of comfort. So, what is the next canvas watch strap that will sublimate your precious timepieces?

Canvas watch bands, made possible by the technical evolution of regatta fabrics

Regatta fabrics have greatly evolved over time. Originally, they were made of simple cotton. Then came the time of Dacron: a synthetic fibre similar to nylon. Easier to handle and offering the possibility of being folded, these sails had the major disadvantage that they would deform greatly with the force of the wind. Although still used for cruising, regatta boats, out of a concern for performance, nowadays prefer more modern fabrics. As a result, their sailcloth has lost its suppleness and became very rigid.

If modern fabrics imply rolling sails, they are nevertheless lighter, but also more resistant materials. This specificity, which entails some technical constraints at sea, is yet an opportunity for the world of watchmaking. The resistance of sailcloth, as well as its new diversity, allows the colours, wefts and geometric patterns to be played with.

Agnès Broise, co-founder of Avel & Men and head of design explains:

"The exotic materials are of different colours and the wefts also have several possible geometries. They are ideal supports for creating a wide range of products by also playing with leather colours and stitching".

The watch accessory brand specialising in the sailing world therefore takes full advantage of these specificities to market unique sailcloth watch straps. The regatta canvas used for their manufacture comes from two French suppliers, also from the nautical world.

The comfort of a leather watchband, a unique design

The high rigidity of the sailcloth means that it is difficult to turn-in. The turn-in is a leatherwork technique that consists of folding the fabric back on itself to ensure a neat finish. In the case of a technical fabric such as regatta sailcloth, the folds following the cut would be particularly sharp and therefore not very comfortable to wear.

Avel & Men thus takes a gamble on an original technical construction. Each canvas watch strap of the brand is then lined with vegetal leather, which is particularly comfortable against the skin. In addition to bringing great comfort, it allows a play on the patterns of the regatta canvas, but also the colour of the topstitching. This construction is a real technical challenge and requires a very complicated implementation, and a considerable amount of time to assemble the strap. This technical performance thus enables the creation of high-tech bracelets that are worthy of the exceptional timepieces they equip.

Canvas watch strap: different types of fabric to suit all styles

Every sail has its character. The same is true for watches that accompany their owners through different stages of their lives, different daily situations. Avel & Men therefore chooses different types of fabric, each adapting to different styles. So your watch is sure to find the right textile strap for it.

Kevlar weave canvas watchband

A sail should deform as little as possible. The performance of the boat depends on this. Some sails therefore incorporate Kevlar wefts, reinforcing the structure and strength of the fabric. Used in the service of leather goods, the pale yellow of the canvas reinforced with black lattices recalls the patina of the indexes of certain old watches. The La Rochelle canvas watch strap notably uses these Kevlar wefts.

Carbon fibre cloth watch strap

With the aim of gaining speed thanks to a technical fabric that does not distort, some boats use sails made of a grey, carbon fibre-based fabric. This material is often used in the construction of masts and hulls. Light, extremely robust and rigid, carbon fibre is notably present in our Hyères and Carantec sailcloth watch straps.

Watchband made of tourmentine sailcloth

There is one sail that we prefer not to see when sailing: the tourmentine. Very small and easily identifiable because of its orange colour, it is indeed part of the survival kit and only goes out in case of emergency. Less technical than the others, it is however present on every boat. The Groix model is in particular a watch strap in tourmentine canvas. A nod to the proverb "he who sees Ushant (Ouessant) sees his blood" evoking the arduous sailing conditions in the Iroise Sea. The Ouessant watch strap also uses it.

On which watch should you wear your Avel & Men sailcloth and leather watchband?

Each Avel & Men canvas and vegetal leather watchband has a story, a good reason to use the technical fabrics it features. These different models are also designed to fit many different watch models. Each model comes in different widths (19mm, 20mm, 22mm and 24mm) to fit almost every buckle.

You can consider the purchase of an Avel & Men canvas watchband:

• as an alternative to boat watch straps,
• to dress a diver's watch: Rolex Submariner (one of the reference diver's watches), Seiko Diver's (innovative model presented by the brand as early as 1965) or the most recent Scuba Master and Marinemaster for example,
• for a regatta-oriented chronograph (Tag Heuer's vintage Carrera Skipper, Yema's recently reissued Yacthingraph, Gallet's chronograph),
• for most models of nautical-oriented brands such as Corum or Ralf Tech,
• for the timepieces of brands involved in nautical competitions such as the America's Cup. Omega is, for example, widely connected to the world of the sea and sailing. Its Seamaster and Speedmaster are perfect illustrations of this. We could also mention Ulysse Nardin (Diver chronograph), Panerai and its Luminor Flyback (the official watch of the American Oracle team), Bremont, Zenith, and even Louis Vuitton, which brought out the Tambour Navy chronograph for the thirty-fifth edition of the competition.

On the left: Aquastar chronograph and La Rochelle kevlar strap. On the right: Hyères bracelet on Yema Yachtingraf