Wrist stacks: never has there been a more polarizing topic. Whether they are a must-do, an offense to traditional watch culture, or an essay in excess, it seems everyone has an opinion on them these days – some even going so far as calling the stack dead. The discourse can frankly be somewhat exhausting.
As a self-proclaimed watch girl and confirmed jewellery addict, I obviously have my own thoughts on the matter. I’ve been stacking since my 20s and I have absolutely no plans to stop. Because here’s the thing nobody says out loud: it’s just fun. It’s personal storytelling on your wrist. No discourse required.
This month, in the spirit of Earth Month and all things eco-conscious, we’re going sustainable. In stacking terms, that can mean a lot of things. It could be vintage, because the most sustainable piece is one that already exists. It could be a solar-powered watch, a lab-grown diamond, a moissanite that honestly looks better than the real thing anyway. Or it could be that bracelet you’ve worn forever and have absolutely no intention of retiring. Sustainability, it turns out, is a very good excuse to wear everything you already own. Consider this permission.
Step 1: The Anchor
Photo credit: Zahra Hemraj
Every stack needs a starting point, one piece that everything else will answer to. Mine this month is a vintage Citizen Lobella timepiece that I discovered a few months ago and have not taken off since. It runs on Eco-Drive, Citizen’s light-powered technology, which means it retains its charge from any natural or artificial light source, cutting back on the need for a battery replacement. This year also happens to be Eco-Drive’s 50th anniversary year, which feels like exactly the right moment to rediscover one. A watch that runs on light and lasts a lifetime is about as sustainable as it gets.
Photo credit: Zahra Hemraj
That said, if you’d rather build around a statement jewellery piece, this El & Elle Time Moissanite bangle is exactly the kind of thing that earns that role. Sculptural enough to hold the whole stack together, interesting enough to not need much help.
Step 2: The Personality
Photo credit: Zahra Hemraj
This is the step most people skip, yet it’s the most important one. Add something that actually means something to you, that has a story behind it. Mine is a hamsa pull-string bracelet I picked up in Istanbul many years ago. Sentimental, a little worn, completely irreplaceable, and approximately zero dollars to re-wear. This is where vintage and secondhand pieces really earn their place: a flea market find, an inherited chain, something you’ve had so long you can’t remember buying it. The most sustainable piece in your collection is the one you’d never get rid of anyway. Start there.
Step 3: The Sparkle
Now the fun part. If your anchor piece isn’t doing much in the shine department, this is where you add it. I’m reaching for this El & Elle moissanite tennis bracelet, and if you haven’t considered moissanite yet, this is your sign. Lab-created, conflict-free, and catches light in a way that makes my eyes sparkle (sorry, sometimes I can’t help but be a little cheesy 😉). Stack it snug against your personality piece and let it do exactly what it was made to do.
Step 4: The Texture
Every stack needs one piece that breaks up the metal, something that adds a little friction, a little intrigue. Mine is a vintage Dior heart & key charm bracelet, and this is exactly where vintage earns its place most: a piece with history, character, and a story you didn’t have to manufacture. This is also the step where the stack stops looking assembled and starts looking like yours. Mix textures, mix eras, mix intentions. Ignore anyone who tells you not to.
Step 5: Edit
Photo credit: Zahra Hemraj
Put it all on. Look at it. Now take one thing off or maybe put one thing on. A good stack has breathing room, personality, and best of all, no rules. It’s all about what speaks to you.
For example, in this case, I added in a vintage Tiffany & Co. 1837 cushion square bangle to add a little more depth.
The whole thing, mixed-and-matched as it may be, has added up to something that shows off who I am and that didn’t cost the earth. Literally, this time.
Style Tips
Photo credit: Zahra Hemraj
In the mood for sporty? That doesn’t have to mean bye-bye stack. Here I paired an Alpina Alpiner Extreme Solarmetre, a solar-powered watch that charges from light, which is exactly as cool as it sounds (and also happens to be one of my all-time favourite watch brands), with an El & Elle Cuban moissanite bracelet. Comfortable enough for an active day, but with all the style power. Sustainability and sport, stacked.
Unique Take
Photo credit: Zahra Hemraj
A fun option is doing something completely out of the ordinary. So why not go full watch stack? Seen here with three Citizen Eco-Drive Fio timepieces and a gold charm bracelet I made with my seven-year-old niece at Gem Studio in Toronto. Fifty years of light-powered technology, one afternoon with a seven-year-old, stacked together. Proof that the rules, as always, are more of a suggestion.
And, with that, I’m now off to flip through Vintage Icons of Fashion while rocking my very sustainable, very vintage, very ME wrist stack.
For more stack inspo, follow along with me on IG: @torontowatchgirl.
Next month in The Stack: we’re going brilliant. Diamonds, white gold, and the case for doing it properly.
