As gender barriers break down, glass ceiling shatter, and more and more cultural exchange happens between women and men, items and accessories that were previously exclusively feminine have now taken on more egalitarian overtones. One of these that has made the transition very successfully is the world of luxury jewellery, and specifically the bracelet. With brands like Tateossian producing more and more interesting options in this field, it’s a great time to consider the selections that are now available, and what kind of messages you can send with different materials and styles.
Alternative
Bracelets are not in and of themselves a counter-cultural thing for men in the business world to be wearing these days, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t ways to signal your alternative and off-beat sensibilities. Materials like macramé and rubber bracelets featuring causes or symbols that are meaningful to you could definitely send a sign to those catching a glimpse of your cuff that you want to be forging your own path out there.
Cultured
If you want it to be known that you are not only are well travelled with a good few thousand miles on your soul-clock, but you also understand and appreciate the cultures of the places you have visited, there are lots of bracelet options that can help send that message. If Africa has heavily featured in your sojourns, the bright and contrasting primary coloured beads of Mombasa glass make a striking statement, while a Middle Eastern odyssey is beautifully signposted by the classic ‘evil eye’ beads. Wherever you’ve been, a wrist-mounted symbol can be found to share stories and style alike
Practical
Bracelets and jewellery in general are often thought as antonyms to practicality and efficiency, but symbols can be powerful things, even when the means of their delivery don’t always correspond immediately to the style. Bike chain-style links solidified into rigid bangles send a strong signal that this is someone who knows their way around the greasier and oiler sides of engineering.
Steadiness
Calm and focus are deeply desired qualities in a man. Men who have these qualities are suitable for handcrafted agate stone bracelets in soothing colors such as earth tones and natural hues. Agate has many meanings, including balance, calmness, positivity, mental clarity, and concentration. A man who has these qualities or wants to gain them can attract this energy with an agate bracelet.
Rugged
When you want people to know that you can weather storms, face down difficulties, and understand how to get the most out of yourself and others when the going gets tough, few materials communicate this point better than leather. The tough and tenacious material can be woven and blended into a wide variety of forms that clearly communicate the perfect blend of flexibility, durability, and resilience.
Classical
There is perhaps no greater test for a man and his accomplishments than the extent to which both he and they will stand the test of time. To communicate this message, it’s very apt to try and choose a material that has itself been through a great many trials to get to this point. Roman glass is fragments of windows and decorative building adornments that have been through the archaeological ringer, only to come out the other side and be part of something beautiful. If you want to send a signal with your accessories that you are a classic in the making, what better material than something that’s already lasted over millennia from when it was first put to good use.
Pioneer
If you want to be known as someone willing to go the distance, walk the walk, and take the first step on the thousand-mile journey, an excellent option is the mountaineering life saver bracelet. Made of thick cords tightly woven together, lifesaver bracelets are often also mounted with compasses to keep your course straight and your direction true. While their most important use is to grip onto an errant tree branch or rocky overhang as you make your climb, the symbolic use as marking you as the kind of person who would spend their time this way is potentially equally valuable.
Wealthy
If all of these messages are too elaborate, too metaphorical, and too distant from your core point, you cannot go wrong with simple displays of wealth. Plutonium, gold, topaz, diamonds. All these and more can adorn your wrist in a variety of styles and arrangements. Given how far out the realm such things are from normal male wristwear fashion options, not only are you declaring your wealth, you’re revealing that you did not get it by playing by normal rules of the game
Accessories are details. Accents, features, finishing touches. To some they can be fringe and non-essential. But used in the right way, they communicate much, inform intelligently, and give just the kind of impression you need to make a powerful and striking impression, just when you need it most.