Women's elastic heart watch Ernest E64001-005

Red and pink hearts, each one drawn a little differently

The hearts are not identical copies lined up in a grid: some lean, some are fuller, and the outlines wobble the way a brush would leave them. Two tones carry the pattern, a strong red and a paler pink, and that mix keeps the dial from looking like a printed sheet. The same hearts continue onto every link of the bracelet, so the watch reads as one printed piece rather than a case dropped onto a plain band.

Where the print stops and the numerals start

Underneath the pattern the dial is white, and that white is what makes the watch legible. Black Arabic numerals mark all twelve positions, drawn thick enough to sit in front of the hearts instead of competing with them. The slim silver-tone hands travel over the emptier parts of the dial, which is usually all it takes to read the time in passing.

The stretch bracelet does the sizing for you

The strap is an elastic flat-link bracelet in silver-tone metal. It gives as your hand goes through, then settles back on the wrist by itself: nothing to buckle, nothing to adjust, and no need to have links taken out. The same principle runs through the other watches that pull on over the hand.

Heart-print watch with a 3.4 cm case: the specifications

The 3.4 cm case stays on the moderate side, which suits a narrow wrist and slips under a sleeve without catching. Mineral glass takes the small scratches of daily wear, and the quartz movement runs on a single cell. Other prints built on the same case are grouped in the rest of the Ernest range.

Wiping the links and changing the cell

A soft cloth, barely damp, is enough for the printed links; work between them without forcing, then dry them at once rather than leaving them to air, since the plates hold moisture where they overlap. When the hands stop, the spare battery supplied in the box means there is no cell to buy before it can be changed.

Giving it on 14 February, or any other day

The print is loud enough to carry an outfit on its own, so a plain jumper or a plain shirt does more for it than a second pattern. It makes an easy present for anyone who likes an accessory to say something rather than blend in, and it sits alongside the other things we put aside for 14 February.