14K Gold Bracelets

Measure the wrist just below the wrist bone with a tape or a strip of paper, without pulling it tight, then add room.

About half an inch gives a snug fit that stays in place; up to a full inch gives a looser bracelet that moves and drapes.

Wider and heavier bracelets generally want a little more than fine ones, because the thickness itself takes up length as the bracelet curves around the wrist.

A box clasp with a safety catch - a tab that clicks into a housing, backed by a figure-eight latch or a fold-over lock. It is the traditional fitting on heavier link bracelets for exactly that reason.

A lobster clasp is spring-loaded, grips positively and is easy to work one-handed, which makes it the practical default on most bracelets.

A spring ring is lighter and more discreet and suits a fine chain, but it is the least secure of the three.

Not by the wrist. A rigid bangle has to pass over the hand, so what sizes it is the widest part of the hand.

Fold the thumb into the palm and measure around the knuckles at their widest point. The bangle must clear that measurement to go on at all.

A hinged bangle with a clasp avoids the problem entirely, because it opens rather than having to pass over the hand, and can be sized closer to the wrist.

Shortening is straightforward - a jeweller removes links and refits the clasp.

Lengthening is possible where matching links can be sourced, or by fitting an extender chain, which also gives the wearer some adjustment.

A bangle is the exception. A rigid bangle cannot be resized in any meaningful way, which is why getting the hand measurement right at the outset matters.

Figaro alternates longer and shorter links in a repeating pattern and flexes readily on the wrist.

Rope is built from interwoven segments twisted together, which makes it dense and textured for its width.

Cuban and curb links are flattened so they lie against the wrist rather than rolling, which makes them read heavier and more solid than an open link of similar weight.

Because gold is priced by weight, and in a bracelet the weight essentially is the piece. A heavier link contains more gold.

There is a practical return on that: heavier links resist bending and distortion better than fine ones, simply because there is more metal in each link.

It is the reason the same style at two different weights can differ substantially in price while looking similar in a photograph.

Take it off for manual work, sport and sleep. Wrists meet more surfaces than any other place jewelry is worn, and most damage happens during activity rather than in ordinary wear.

Watch the jump ring beside the clasp - that is where a bracelet most commonly gives way, and it is a quick, inexpensive repair when caught early.

If a link starts to distort or the clasp becomes loose to operate, deal with it then rather than waiting.

It should rotate freely around the wrist but stop at the base of the hand rather than sliding over it.

Too tight and it digs in whenever the wrist flexes, which is the usual reason a bracelet stops being worn. Too loose and it catches on cuffs and eventually comes off.

If you are between sizes, the looser option is generally the safer one - a slightly long bracelet can be shortened easily.

Plenty of people do, usually on the same wrist as the watch or on the other one depending on preference.

The practical caution is that a metal watch case and a gold bracelet rub against each other constantly, and the harder of the two will mark the softer.

If they are going to share a wrist, a slightly looser bracelet that sits away from the watch reduces the contact considerably.

Warm water, a little mild soap and a soft brush, working between the links where residue collects. Rinse thoroughly and dry completely.

Drying matters more here than on other pieces, because water trapped inside hollow links takes time to leave.

Take the bracelet off before swimming and cleaning - chlorine and household chemicals do more harm to gold alloys than ordinary wear does.