Watch This Trend: Diamond Watch Chokers Are the Next Big Thing
Tyla, Rihanna, Taylor Swift, and more have given the diamond watch choker their seal of approval.
Tyla, Taylor Swift, and Rihanna are reminding us what time it is, giving diamond watch chokers their sartorial endorsement. Clearly, a watch is not just for your wrist. Redefining the style staple, the timeless timepiece has recently been worn in unorthodox and unexpected ways by your favorite A-listers. The classic wristwatch has been given a maximalist approach, worn as rings, anklets, and chokers.
This month, South African R&B singer Tyla attended the 2024 MTV Europe Music Awards, wearing an aqua tiger print vintage Fall / Winter 2000 Roberto Cavalli gown, styled by Ronnie Hart. Fully embodying the style of the early-aughts, the “Water” singer accessorized with Jacob & Co. diamond high jewelry pieces to take home the awards for Best Afrobeats, Best R&B, and Best African Act.
She wore the jeweler’s 18.23-carat cushion-cut diamonds Eternity hoop earrings, a diamond bangle, and an incredible $1 million diamond watch choker. The 38-carat diamond boutique necklace watch includes 29 carats of GIA-certified Ashoka-cut diamonds and features a watch head with 5.25 carats, a 2.78-carat diamond dial, and 1.05 carats in triangular-cut diamonds.
Tyla is not the first to champion the watch choker trend. Real Housewives of Salt Lake City newcomer Bronwyn Newport wore a gold watch choker on a black ribbon while filming this season. Influencer Emma Chamberlain sported a Cartier Mini Baignoire watch in yellow gold and a black leather strap around her neck at a Miu Miu runway presentation. Olivia Rodrigo was covered in watches on her Rolling Stone cover last autumn and Julia Fox attended the Drew Barrymore show wearing a silver watch necklace after she wore a Hodakova ensemble to NYFW, including a bandeau bra and mini skirt and heels made up from converted vintage wristwatches.
The watch necklace found its roots during the First World War. When the Edwardian era came to a close, it became customary for soldiers who left for combat to leave their Albert chains and pocket watches to their wives and girlfriends. The women would wear them around their necks as a token of love to literally keep them close to their hearts.
The original trendsetter, Princess Diana, converted her Saudi Sapphire choker from two other pieces of jewelry including a diamond wristwatch. The oval-shaped sapphire was cut from a ring and refashioned in a natural diamond frame from a watch. The then-Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia commissioned a suite of sapphire and diamonds from Asprey to give Diana as a wedding gift. The Princess of Wales transformed the diamonds from the watch and ring to create four new pieces of jewelry, including the famed diamond and velvet choker that she was also known to wear as a headband across her forehead.
Taylor Swift
Taylor Swift stopped time at the 2024 Grammy Awards, channeling Old Hollywood in a white strapless custom Schiaparelli gown and black opera gloves. In keeping with her black and white theme, Swift wore 300 carats of black and white Lorraine Schwartz diamond jewels, layering multiple necklaces, including a custom-made vintage Concord watch choker with a black diamond-embellished strap. The timepiece was set to 12 a.m. as a covert reference to her album, Midnights.
Swift’s song, “Fortnight” music video with Post Malone from her 2024 album Tortured Poets Department, included yet another diamond watch choker. Styled by Joseph Cassell Falconer, Swift wore a custom vintage diamond lapel brooch, converted into a choker, courtesy of Manhattan-based jewelers Joseph Saidian & Sons.
Rihanna
Rihanna made a diamond-studded splash at Pharrell Williams’ debut fashion show for Louis Vuitton. She attended the 2024 Menswear Collection runway presentation in Paris, wearing a bold custom Jacob & Co. watch choker. The masterful jewel featured a 47-mm white gold case, invisibly set with 352 baguette-cut white natural diamonds totaling 29.57 carats. The stunner also showcased a flying tourbillon.
Months later, Rihanna attended F1 Grand Prix in Las Vegas wearing a watch in yet another inventive way. The superstar sported another Jacob & Co. diamond watch as an anklet. The $400,000 watch anklet was customized for Rihanna with emerald and round cut diamonds. Rihanna is not the first to re-think the traditional placement of her timepiece. In the frenzied party scene in the 1961 film Breakfast at Tiffany’s, one man leans over to check the time on a watch that is wrapped around a lady’s ankle.
