It was during World War 1 that soldiers got tired of fishing around in their pockets for their pocket watches and started wearing them on a bracelet on their wrists. Until then, a watch worn on a bracelet was considered strictly a women's fashion.

Initially ridiculed by the public as a silly trend – wristwatches soon became the norm as their practicality made pocketwatches obsolete.

Some might argue that wristwatches are now slowly becoming obsolete. After all, the cynic would ask why a man needs a watch when he could easily check his phone for the time.

Well, in this article I give you 8 reasons to wear a watch every man should consider:

1. Watches are convenient.
2. Wristwatches a functional.
3. Mechanical and quartz watches are reliable.
4. Watches signal style.
5. They signal your appreciation of craftsmanship.
6. Watches make great heirlooms.
7. You can check the time while avoiding distractions.
8. Watches give you a relationship with time.

#1 Watches Are Convenient

Phones don’t keep you punctual. Watches do.

One of the most important reasons to wear a watch is because they are the most convenient way to tell the time.

I don’t need a watch because I have a phone is a common response from a generation who are now questioning the adverse effects of constant cellphone use. The truth is, regularly fishing in your pocket for a cell phone just to check the time looks desperate.

A quick glance towards your wrist is a much classier way to keep track of time during a date or a meeting. Not to mention how rude it would seem to your companions if you pulled out your phone during a conversation.

On other occasions where it's advisable to leave the phone concealed – like the beach, a funeral or a wedding, a watch is a much more subtle and convenient way to check the time.

#2 Watches Are Functional

Any item inspired by the military has a functional use. Wristwatches included.

Wristwatches were first used in the 19th century by the military to synchronize maneuvers during war. Since then, specialized watches have been used in the depths of the ocean by divers and high up in the sky by aviators.

A complicated watch is designed with features beyond the basic function of displaying the time. Such functionality is called a complication. Two of the popular complications are the chronograph, which allows the watch to function as a stopwatch and the moon phase complication, which displays where the moon is in the lunar cycle.

#3 Watches Are Reliable

The best watches don’t use the latest microchips. They are powered by ingenious mechanical clockwork technology that predates electricity. So when your cellphone runs out of battery – you can trust the technology that keeps running on your wrist.

One of the big advantages of a watch – especially over a smartphone – is how long it can operate in the field.  Many watches are made to either be self-powered through motion or use a small amount of energy from a battery.  Think years of maintenance-free time telling…..compare that to a smartphone's 8 hours!

When you need to keep track of something as important as time – a unique device to measure and manage it is justified.

#4 Watches Are Stylish

The range of acceptable jewelry for a man is limited. Many men are only going to be seen with three main accessories decorating their hands – one of the types of men's watches, a stylish pair of cuff links and a simple wedding band if they're married.

In addition to helping wearers stick to their schedules, wristwatches make it easier for them to display their sense of style. They are a form of self-expression – reflecting a hint of danger, adventure and sports depending on the make of the watch.

So how can a man get compliments with accessories?

Watches can communicate a lot about the wearer's personality. For those that prefer to avoid chunky bling on their wrist, purchasing a Rolex can be an way to sport an understated, timeless and incredibly masculine accessory.

As the saying goes – boys look at their smartphones to check time – men look at a watch.

Call it what you will, one of the key reasons to wear a watch is because a quality timepiece is a man's equivalent of the engagement ring.

#5 Watches Embody Craftsmanship

A wristwatch is more than a time-keeper. It is a symbol of tradition and history encased in a showpiece with extreme craftsmanship.

Not many men realize that they are wearing pieces of art on their wrists. Some watch houses have four craftsmen working on one watch for several months – creating complex pieces of mechanical technology by hand.

It's detailed art at the higher end of human ingenuity and creativity.

An analog watch has a simple and consistent mechanism. The way of expressing it is where the bulk of the creativity comes in. Watch design is inherently artistic. There are a lot of generic and non-inspiring watch styles out there. The best stuff is beautiful though and how often do you call a tool beautiful?

Art on a watch can come in multiple forms. The dial can literally be a painting, or the design of the instrument itself is pure art. The movement arouses as much fascination as the dial and case for many people.

#6 Watches Make Great Heirlooms

Not only is a timepiece the quintessential gift – it is the quintessential heirloom. No matter what your philosophy is on the end of life, we can all agree that people can live on through the memories of those that knew them.

Owning timepieces from a different era is a remembrance of people who lived before you. Having their watches makes you think of them, in a real way. One of the best reasons to wear a watch is carrying on a tradition. Take your relative's watch with signs of use, care and love and wear it with pride.

A watch collection is also a legacy. It doesn't necessarily have to be worth a mini treasure – but leaving your watch(es) to someone you care about is in essence passing on values that were important to you, to someone else.

#7 Watches Prevent Distractions

When you look at your watch, you get the time – and nothing else. (If you're wearing an aviator watch you might get an extra time zone or two.) When you look at your phone you get the time, a text message, Facebook notifications, a bunch of emails…and half an hour later you're watching funny cat videos and you've completely defeated the purpose of checking the time.

Don't fall into that trap, gentlemen. Check the time on a timepiece…not a time SINKHOLE.

You can also check your watch without distracting other people. If you want to check the time at a meeting and you pull your phone out of your pocket in front of everyone…now the entire meeting room knows how bored you are. Not a good look in a professional setting, gentlemen. You come off as quite rude, to say nothing of being disrespectful to whoever's speaking. A watch lets you subtly check the time without signaling that you have better things to do.

#8 Watches Give You A Relationship With Time

Since the days of the sundial (and probably before) – men have been obsessed with devices that measure time. They are a reminder that our time is limited.

Wearing a watch has a positive effect on my attitude towards time. I am more attentive to how I spend the 24 hours in each day.

Beyond the technical and mechanical intricacies of a watch, men are fascinated by these devices that claim to mark and control time.

There is a passionate community of watch lovers who dive into the details of watch-making and collecting.

The only other obsession matched with the passion for this inanimate object is the passion men share for cars. A watch collection is far easier to maintain and less expensive as a hobby.

Everyone can rock a watch. Wearing a watch is a great way to add interest to an outfit, especially if you’re a guy.

Find a wristwatch that really stands out from the rest.

It could be the beginning of a long friendship.

Need tips on how to spot a quality watch? Click here to read my article on how to buy a quality watch.

Click below to watch the video: 10 Style Rules Your Dad Didn't Teach You (But Should Have!)

The post 8 Reasons Why You Should Start Wearing A Wrist Watch appeared first on Real Men Real Style.

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Being able to host friends and family in our homes again is fun, exciting and heartwarming after so much time apart – but it does require making slightly more of an effort when it comes to our living spaces. 

If, like us, you’ve enjoyed hunkering down and becoming a homebody over the last year, you may have become used to putting comfort and ease above style. (Working from bed, letting your floodrobe get out of control, allowing flowers to wither in their vase for a little too long...) 

But thanks to IKEA, our failsafe homeware destination, it’s easy and affordable to spruce up our home and make our living spaces feel special and new again. Following the launch of the IKEA Festival on 16th September, which is all about flinging open the doors to how we really live, we've picked nine of the coolest IKEA items available right now (all for under $100).

Click through for affordable pieces that will revamp your living space and turn you into the host with the most.

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Photo by madison lavern on Unsplash

Stress and Hair Loss: Here’s The Connection and 5 Ways to Break It

By Jacqueline Samaroo

Does your hair seem to be thinning? Have you been noticing an increase in the number of strands you shed daily? These could be signs of stress-induced hair loss. Whoa! We know, you’re thinking “Really, can stress cause hair loss AND will it grow back?!”

Read on as we explore the connection between stress and hair loss. This article looks at:

• Three types of hair loss linked to stress (Yes, three!) and the mechanisms behind hair growth, hair loss, and stress. (We’ll keep it simple.)
• Is stress hair loss reversible? (We won’t let you sweat this one out – yes, it is reversible BUT it takes time – we’ll explain.)
• Five ways to keep stress at bay (and keep your lovely head of hair).

Before we dive into stress and hair loss, let’s start off with a quick overview of stress and its effects.

How Stress Affects the Body

Stress is the way our bodies respond to change. Those changes, or stressors, cause our bodies to respond in physical, emotional, intellectual, and behavioral ways. The upside is that stress can cause us to take necessary actions as we develop coping mechanisms – ways to deal with the stressors.

What’s the downside? The ill-effects of stress are often seen when we experience prolonged, or chronic, stress. Having to deal with reoccurring stress literally wears you down over time.

Apart from hair loss, other signs of chronic stress include:

• High blood pressure
• Aches and pains
• Digestive problems
• Trouble sleeping
• Headaches
• Muscle tension
• Anxiety
• Panic attacks
• Depression
• Weakened immune system

Stress and Hair loss: Three Types of Hair Loss Linked to Stress

Long-term, high levels of stress is connected to three types of hair loss.

1.      Telogen effluvium

Hair growth takes place in a cycle with three distinct stages. A disruption in any of the stages can lead to a disorder in the way the hair grows and the rate at which it is shed. The stages of hair growth are:

• The anagen phase, or growing phase, lasting anywhere from two to seven years. During this time the hair grows at a rate of about half an inch per month.
• The catagen phase, or transitional phase, occurs over a two-week period. During this phase, the hair follicle shrinks and the hair gets cut off from its supply of nutrients.
• The telogen phase, also known as the resting phase or shedding phase, lasts for about three months.

A fourth term, exogen phase, is used for the actual shedding of the hair from the hair follicle as new hair begins to grow. It marks both the end of the telogen phase and the beginning of the anagen phase, starting over the hair growth cycle.

On average, there are about 100,000 strands of hair on the human head. At any given time about 15% of those hairs are in the telogen phase with about 100 hairs shedding each day. Telogen effluvium occurs when an unusually high percentage of hairs enter the telogen phase and are shed without regrowth of new hair.

Causes of telogen effluvium include poor nutrition, changes in hormonal levels, aging, genetics, and chronic stress. During chronic stress, our bodies are exposed to high levels of cortisol, the primary stress hormone, for prolonged periods of time.

Researchers from Harvard University, with support from the NIH’s National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS), have been able to pinpoint the stress and hair loss link as resulting from the stress hormone. Their findings show an extended telogen phase due to stress.

2.    Alopecia areata

Alopecia areata is thought to be an autoimmune disorder. In autoimmune disorders, the body’s immune system malfunctions and begins to attack the body’s own cells. Alopecia areata is often described as an immune system attack on the growing cells of hair follicles.

Alopecia areata can cause thinning of body hair, including the hair on your head. More often, however, it is seen as loss of hair in coin-sized patches, leaving these areas bald. In the most extreme cases, it can cause complete hair loss all over the body.

3.      Trichotillomania

Ever been so stressed or frustrated you felt like pulling out your hair? Chances are you actually didn’t. But for some people, affected by trichotillomania, hair pulling as a stress response is a very real thing.

Also known as compulsive hair pulling disorder, it affects roughly 4% of people with women being up to 10 times more likely to display the behavior. Persons with trichotillomania tend to also suffer from PTSD, anxiety, depression, and compulsive-obsessive disorder.

Stress and Hair loss: Is Stress Hair Loss Reversible?

Yes, stress hair loss is, in most instances, reversible. That is, the hair loss is temporary and the hair grows back. However, the hair loss can occur in cycles with the affected person experiencing periods of excessive hair loss, regrowth, then the return of excessive hair loss.

Other things to keep in mind

• Stress-induced hair loss is usually seen about three months after the stressful event that leads to it. This also means you’ll have to wait a few months for the stress effects to wear off and for you to begin seeing regrowth of hair. So, patience is necessary.
• While the hair loss is sudden and excessive, regrowth is much slower. Earlier, we mentioned half an inch per month as the average hair growth rate. Your hair growth may actually be as little as a quarter of an inch per month. So, patience is REALLY necessary.
• There are both prescription and OTC medications that can encourage regrowth of lost hair. Ask your doctor about them if you have any concerns about your hair loss.
• You can encourage regrowth of strong, healthy hair by nourishing your follicles from the inside and outside. We have some useful links for you at the end of the article!

Check out our articles on foods and vitamins for hair growth.

Also, see our series on hair butter for hair growth.

Stress and Hair loss: Five Ways to Reduce and Prevent Stress

1. Meditation, deep breathing exercises, and yoga are proven ways to practice relaxation. And, CurlyNikki.com can help. Join Nikki each weekday morning as she helps you get the day off to a bright, loving, and relaxing start. Check out Go(o)d Mornings with CurlyNikki!

2. Regular exercise is well known to both prevent and reduce stress. Exercise leads to the release of “feel good” hormones (kinda the opposite of those stress hormones!). You get a lift in your mood and know you’re making your body healthier, too.

3. Eat a healthy, balanced diet that includes the nutrients needed for general health as well as for hair health. Your diet and your body’s ability to cope with stress are closely related. If you feel you may be lacking in a particular nutrient, talk with your doctor about whether a multivitamin might help.

4. Surround yourself with a strong support system of family and friends. Social interaction is very important to us as humans. Your support system can provide emotional support in times of stress. Plus, you get a self-confidence and self-esteem boost from knowing you are a part of someone else’s support system, too.

5. Talk with a counselor, therapist, or psychiatrist about your stress. They can help figure out what your stressors are and help you resolve troubling issues. They can also help you to practice behavior modification techniques as one way to cope with your stressors.

So, there you have it. Our answer to “Can stress cause hair loss AND will it grow back?” A resounding “Yes!” to both. However, your best move is to keep stress reduction in mind at all times by using the suggestions we have covered.

Have you ever endured stress-induced hair loss? Care to share what the experience was like? How did you deal with it?

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If only relationships were as simple as they are in rom-coms. Everyone except you can see your other half is blatantly wrong for you, and the only thing keeping them around is the need for dramatic tension. When you eventually break up, it's as though you've been released into the world to finally Be Yourself, before finding your one true love. Two hours, one big night out, and an impulse haircut later and your love life is tidily wrapped up.

But real life isn't like that and relationships don't work for a whole world of reasons. The problems that can arise between two people are complicated, often hard to explain, and can go against every instinct of what you want. Maybe they're the problem, maybe you are. More likely, it's a combination of the two. But even if you don't end it until much later, there is always a moment when you realize, quite clearly, that what you have cannot work anymore. It's this moment, more than anything, that we're interested in.

We asked different people about the moment they knew their relationship was over and why it was the trigger point. For some, it was heartbreaking; for others, liberating. Most importantly, they all survived – even thrived – once the dust had settled.

If these stories can teach us anything it's that relationships, and their endings, are never as clean-cut as we'd like. But that doesn't mean we cannot also find hope and joy after the pain has passed.

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At this point, anyone with an HBO subscription (their own or borrowed) knows Sydney Sweeney. The 24-year-old actress stars in Euphoria alongside Zendaya and Hunter Schafer, and stole the show in The White Lotus, a dramedy series that The New Yorker called a “brilliant, biting social satire.”

Refinery29 caught up with Sweeney over Zoom recently to talk about her new beauty contract with BIC’s Soleil razor, her work with HBO, how she’s grown into her own off-camera, and the beauty products that she uses in her real life — including a hair crimper and a $34 lash serum that gets her eyelash compliments on the regular.

Refinery29: Hi! I’m excited to chat with you. I’m a huge fan of The White Lotus — your character Olivia is fascinating to me. What was it like playing that role? Did you relate to the character at all? 

Sydney Sweeney: White Lotus was one of those crazy blessings — especially during such an insane year. I was beyond petrified, starstruck left and right. I couldn’t believe I was in Hawaii filming a show during a pandemic with such talented comedians. I think that every girl can relate to Olivia in terms of the bickering, the relationship between mother and daughter. But my actual personality, I would have been scared of her.

Refinery29: Olivia’s personal style was so purposeful and of-the-moment, like her aviator reading glasses and bucket hats. Did you like the fashion and hair and makeup you wore on set?

Sweeney: What’s fun is that I actually had a lot of control over how I wanted Olivia to look. I wanted her to be very different from Cassie, my character in Euphoria. They’re both on HBO and airing in the same world, same times. So for Olivia, I loved that we did wavy, crimped hair, not that long, blond poofiness. I wanted her makeup to be more minimal and not trying too hard.

Refinery29: Very cool that you had some creative input — what kind of crimper did you use?

Sweeney: I actually have this big crimper; it’s three large clamps, and gives you those cool waves. Then for the makeup, we were in Hawaii and it was so hot, so we didn’t wear foundation. We wore concealer, blush, minimal mascara, and that was basically it.

Refinery29: In your real life, off set, what does your beauty routine look like?

Sweeney: Makeup depends on how my skin looks. Usually I just use NARS concealer and then a bit of Charlotte Tilbury Pressed Powder, because I do get shiny. I love the Glossier blush. I use Anastasia clear gel on my brows. If it’s for red carpet or work, that’s a whole different world. We usually use the Armani Luminous Silk Foundation. Finding a foundation that works for my combination skin has been a battle. But this one doesn’t split on my face, it stays, it works for my skin. I love it. 

Refinery29: Have you ever struggled with acne or skin issues?

Sweeney: Horribly! Middle school through high school I would beg my mom not to send me to school because I was embarrassed of my skin. My T-zone is very oily but dry, so I would get really bad cystic acne on my forehead or chin, or in the crevices of my nose. I could not, for the life of me, not pick. I would dig and dig and have these terrible scabs on my face.

Refinery29: Hormonal acne is the worst. Did you find anything that helped or do you think you grew out of it? Your skin is gorgeous now.

Sweeney: I think it was a mixture of growing out of it and not putting makeup on my acne. For school, I would cake on makeup to cover my skin, and when I got home, it would be all crusty and much worse. When I got to my first year of college, I think I stoped caring so much and stopped wearing so much makeup. What helped me a lot with the picking — and probably why I don’t have scars, which is crazy — is that I would mix Neosporin and aloe and put that on my face until everything healed.

Then I found products that didn’t throw my sensitive skin out of whack. I wipe my face with Bioderma water before cleansing. I mix an exfoliator with my gel cleanser. Then, SkinCeuticals, I love their oils, I use a bunch of them. I have this collagen cream from Avène that I use. Also, for my body, I use BIC Soleil Sensitive Advanced Glide razor. When I was younger, I used to get terrible bumps and rashes. Now, I don’t have to use shaving cream, which used to break me out.

Refinery29: What about nails? Any colors or designs you’re into right now?

Sweeney: My nail artist Zola is unbelievable. Usually every two weeks she does my nails. Right now they’re dark blue, but then they have a cat eye. Zola got this new thing where you hold a magnet to the nails and it creates a design. It’s fun, like another part of your style where you can express yourself. I bring ideas and mood board before every appointment.

Refinery29: Where do you think your beauty and style inspiration comes from? Do you use TikTok or Instagram to get ideas for hair and makeup?

Sweeney: I love watching all the videos and reading articles that have tips. I find and follow people who have skin like me and try to order things that might work. But now that I’ve kind of figured out my products, I really just watch and read the fun stuff. I saw this TikTok of this girl who uses this eyelash serum, and I ordered it, and my eyelashes started growing like crazy.

Refinery29: Which serum? I need it. 

Sydney Sweeney: It’s RapidLash; I use it every day. Everyone has said something. I don’t ever tell anyone. My makeup artist, Melissa Hernandez, was like, “Sydney, your eyelashes are longer.” Then Donni, my makeup artist for Euphoria was like, “We don’t even need to put eyelashes on you anymore.”

Shop Sydney Sweeney’s favorite beauty products, below:

At Refinery29, we’re here to help you navigate this overwhelming world of stuff. All of our market picks are independently selected and curated by the editorial team. If you buy something we link to on our site, Refinery29 may earn commission.

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Everybody may very well be talking about drag-loving teenager Jamie New in the film Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, but his best friend Pritti Pasha isn’t a character to be ignored.

Lauren Patel portrays Pritti in the Amazon Prime Video flick, and while much of the film explores her on-screen bestie’s desire to be a drag queen, Priti has an important and uplifting role to play.

Speaking to Refinery29 Australia over Zoom, 20-year-old Patel opened up about how proud she was to call this her first major acting role where representation was front of mind, and her British Indian character wasn’t just defined by her appearance.

“I think the thing I loved about Pritti and a reason why I felt comfortable taking this role is because as much as she is a hijabi Muslim, she doesn’t have to be,” said Patel.

“It’s not even really addressed in the film, it’s not mentioned. She just is in Jamie’s life and happens to be wearing a hijab.

“There’s obviously elements of her faith that help resonate and add to the story but if you took that back, she was still the same character and it would still be the same story.”

The movie does make religious and cultural references related to Patel’s character throughout, but in a subtle yet powerful way.

For example, at one point Pritti tells Jamie, “I’m a Muslim girl with a Hindu first name… the looks they’d give me at mosque.” In another scene the school bully, Dean Paxton, calls Pritti a ‘spaki’ – a derogatory term insulting Pakistani people with a disability.

Patel said “there’s obviously elements of her faith that help resonate and add to the story”, but if they weren’t there, she’d still be Pritti, she’d still be “the same character and it would still be the same story.”

“I think it’s important to have representation on screen where it’s not just about the thing that makes them a marginalised group,” she explained. “We can just exist in wider stories, the same way we exist in real life.”

Speaking of Patel’s real-life experiences, the rising star sent through an online video audition for the role when she was 17 and “putting off doing my homework”.

“Twenty days later I found out I got the job, and then a month after that was my first day on set, so it’s just been an absolute whirlwind of an experience,” she gushed.

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Growing up, Patel struggled to see many people who looked like her in the entertainment industry.

“Thankfully, [there was] slightly more on British TV, but I genuinely thought there were no Asian American people,” she said.

“I didn’t realize that was a thing because the only people I saw on American TV who were Indian were thick, stereotypical Indian accented people. I didn’t realize that there were Asian Americans.”

When she eventually learned the truth, Patel was “quite angry” that Asian Americans weren’t seen on screen in authentic roles.

“I’d like to think it’s improving, but I think that even though we’re on the screens, we need to also be behind the cameras,” she said of the industry’s progress towards greater representation. “We need to be in the rooms making the big decisions.”

Along with discussions about representation often comes talk of racism too. For Patel, the experience of facing adversity isn’t foreign, but she also acknowledged that she benefits from having a fairer complexion.

“Especially in the UK, there’s a lot of subtle microaggressions and systemic issues that need to be broken down and I feel like everybody is influenced by that,” she said.

“I also have a lot of privilege being very, very light and there’s a lot of colorism that goes on. So I have [faced racism], but I have also been very very fortunate and a lot of people have dealt with things that I couldn’t even imagine. It’s terrible.”

Since the film’s premiere, Patel is cherishing her newfound platform and the start of a promising acting career.

“It’s just surreal and I feel so lucky every day to just be a part of this because everybody loves this story and these characters and this film so much,” she said. “I feel really privileged to be a part of it.”

Inspired by the 2011 TV documentary Jamie: Drag Queen at 16, Everybody Talks About Jamie was also a West End musical before being turned into a movie. It’s now streaming on Amazon Prime Video.

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