Strap Guide: F.P.Journe Chronometre Bleu

Strap Guide written by @the.horology.club. Thank you Helbert!

Introduction

While bracelet watches are all the craze these days, strap watches have always been my preference due to the ability to completely transform the look of a watch by changing the strap. The FP Journe Chronometre Bleu is probably the favourite strap watch that I have in my staple. The Chronometre Bleu’s ever-changing blue dial paired with the dark grey tantalum case means that it will look great with anything from a three piece suit to a shorts and t-shirt ensemble. It also truly deserves the title of a ‘strap monster’ since it handles straps of any colour or material that you throw at it with flying colours. As with all FP Journe watches, the Chronometre Bleu requires curved lug straps, which is normally quite challenging to find in the market. However, Delugs offers great curved lug straps in a variety of materials, which allows me to constantly change the look of this watch.

Grey Saffiano Signature

When it comes to wearing the CB to work, I find that darker coloured straps work really well in a more formal setting. The Grey Saffiano is a great choice for the tropical summers in Hong Kong as I find the slightly more water resistant nature of the Saffiano endures the monsoon season here quite well. To the untrained eye, the CB paired with this strap would look just like any other watch and totally flies under the radar.

Millenium Electric Blue Crocodile Signature

Despite what a lot of pictures would suggest, the CB’s dial actually displays a dark navy colour when viewed from most angles. Only when viewed at certain angles, the very shiny chrome light blue will come through, so the watch would appear quite subtle most of the time. Even though I can’t get the watch’s dial to shine all the time, pairing it with this Electric Blue strap would at least get me part of the way there.

Natural Buttero Slim

I still remember the first time I handled a CB, that example was paired with a honey coloured alligator strap. At the time, I really liked that combination. Since then, I’ve really wanted to find a strap in that colour. While the Natural Buttero isn’t an alligator strap, the colour of it comes very close. I find this pairing works very well for the weekend for when you may want to dress the watch down a notch.

Matte Green Ischia Alligator Signature

This Green Ischia strap is the one to have on the watch when you want to leave one on and not switch straps for a while. While green is a colour that is more likely to stand out, the tone is also fairly dark and muted. The shade of green goes so well with the blue dial. If I can only have one strap to wear with the watch, I would choose this one. Colibri Chèvre Slim

Colibri Chèvre Slim

Onto every watch collector’s favourite colour of the season - Tiffany blue / turquoise / baby blue etc. Colibri Chèvre would be the Delugs version of it. I have to confess that this is not a colour I often use, but nothing spells fun more than a CB paired with this strap. An added bonus is that I love the durability of a chèvre strap.