This article about a free product was originally published by TheJohnP at MoT’s Watch Deal Forum on April 5, 2020.

PRODUCT OVERVIEW:

The full grain leather from Provincia di Vicenza, Italy has been treated to make it stain and water-resistant.
Soft and supple straight out of the box, it does not require a “break in period” and creates a distinctive vintage looking watch strap that conforms to your wrist for a perfect fit.
Quick release spring bars allow for extremely fast and easy installment without the need for tools.

Specifics:

Vario Vintage Italian Leather (Forest Green)

• Cost is $42
• Provincia di Vicenza full-grain leather with leather backing.
• Available in 20mm only for green, other colors are offered in sizes of 18mm, 19mm, 20mm, and 22mm.
• Stainless steel buckle available in polished silver, polished gold, polished rose gold, or matte black.
• Strap lengths measure approximately 4.5″/115mm long end, 2.9″/75mm short end.
• Buckle is 17mm long and 19mm wide.
• Comes with quick-release spring bars.

Background:

Similar to my reasoning behind the Vario Herringbone Tweed strap, I didn’t want to play it safe with my choice. With ten colorways to pick from, I didn’t want a color you could find for sale everywhere, so that meant no black, brown, blue, tan, or grey. That left three to choose from – red, orange, or green. Since I had a green-dialed Orient and the gold dialed Ball, that seemed the best option to try out.

To test versatility, I wore the strap a week straight on various watches with different colored dials. A couple that were more complimentary, a couple of neutral, and a couple that you wouldn’t think to pair.

First Impressions:

Again, I placed the order with Vario and the package arrived from Singapore within 10 days. The items were well packed. And the strap came in a plastic sleeve with a pocket for each part of the strap.

I thought the color in real life had a hint of blue/teal than true forest green, but it is subtle. Especially when you get it in natural light.

The backing leather felt similar to the Harris Tweed strap. It was stamped Vario on one end and Genuine Italian Leather on the other.

At 3mm, the leather is thick, but not overly so. A good balance of substance and flexibility.

The two keepers were of the same material and color matched to the strap. The buckle is signed with the Vario wordmark.

Versatility Test

The first two watches I tried this strap on were more complimentary, with the gold dial Ball Trainmaster Legend and green dial Orient Tri-Star. Both were winners in my opinion. I really liked the combination with the Ball, but think it’ll stay on the Orient moving forward.

Then I tried them on a couple of watches with neutral dials, the grey dial Minuteman A11 Field Watch, and the black dial NTH Antilles. Both worked well, not superb. Although if the colors matched a sports team you like, it could be a better option for you.

Finally thought I’d see how this strap would work with something completely different, the burgundy dial Orion Sylph and the blue dial Codek Spiral. I was really surprised how much I liked how these worked together. The Codek looked great with a blue and green combo and the Orion on this green strap makes for a great Christmas pairing.

Summary

As described, the strap didn’t need to be broken in and was comfortable and pliant from the get-go.
Having quick-release spring bars made it extremely easy to swap out with all the watches I tested it on during the review period.

I also think this is a well-made strap and feels like quality leather. Not sure if the grain pattern is supposed to mimic a more exotic skin, but it wasn’t distracting by any means.
My only complaint would be that depending on the watch I was wearing, the hole positioning made the strap either just too loose or just too tight.

As with the Harris Tweed strap, I was impressed with how quickly it arrived to me from overseas. I liked how it was packaged to minimize damage en route.

Now with a second experience with Vario, I feel they do make some quality straps. Now more curious to see what they can do with watches.

Would I Buy This

But the question is, would I buy this strap for the asking price of $42.

Not at full price.

Even though I really like how well it is made and how well it paired with all the watches I tried. $42 seems just a bit too much for me to comfortably spend on a leather strap. Even though I picked the more obscure color. However, with coupons and deals Vario sometimes has, I would purchase the strap.

Thanks again to Ivan at Vario for allowing me a chance to review this strap!