At a glance
- Bamboo is a grass, not a wood. It has no growth rings, so a bamboo watch shows fine, even lines rather than a wood grain.
- Most bamboo watch cases start as thin strips of bamboo stem, glued into a block and then cut to shape. A wooden watch is cut from the timber of a tree.
- Bamboo weighs about the same as walnut or maple. Ebony is heavier than all three. Every one of them is far lighter than steel.
- Bamboo and wood both cope with a splash, but neither should go in the shower or the pool.
- Forest does not sell bamboo watches. Every Forest watch uses one of ten woods, from £75 to £260.
- Every Forest watch comes with a wooden gift box, ten trees planted through Tree-Nation, a 2-year warranty, 90-day returns and free UK delivery. Engraving is £25 for up to 50 characters.
Is bamboo a wood?
No. Bamboo belongs to the grass family. It grows as a hollow stem divided by solid joints, and it never forms the yearly growth rings that a tree lays down.
That is the main difference you can see. Wood from a tree carries the pattern of those rings, and each wood has its own grain and colour. Bamboo has no rings to show, so its surface is a pattern of fine, straight fibres.
How is a bamboo watch made?
A bamboo stem is hollow with a thin wall, so there is no solid block to cut a watch case from. Most bamboo watch parts start as long strips cut from the stem. The strips are dried, glued together into a solid board or block, and the case and links are cut from that.
A wooden watch starts from the timber of a tree. Each product page names the wood. No two pieces of wood are the same, so the grain on your watch will not match the photograph exactly.
How can you tell a bamboo watch from a wooden one?
Look at the surface closely.
- Bamboo shows fine, straight lines running one way, often with faint seams where two strips meet. It is usually pale straw or, if it has been heat-treated, a caramel brown.
- Wood shows a grain that changes from piece to piece. Zebrawood has bold dark stripes. Olivewood swirls. Ebony is close to black. Walnut is a warm, even brown.
Here are the ten woods Forest uses, with one watch to look at in each:
| Wood | What it looks like | One to look at |
|---|---|---|
| Walnut | Warm mid-brown, soft even grain | Scout, £75 |
| Olivewood | Light honey with darker swirls | Dawn, £80 |
| Ebony | Near-black, dense | Nightfall, £80 |
| Zebrawood | Pale gold with dark stripes | Dusk, £80 |
| Rosewood | Deep reddish brown with dark veins | Royal, £115 |
| Wenge | Dark chocolate brown, straight coarse grain | Nightjar, £120 |
| Sandalwood | Warm amber, tight grain | Hunter, £140 |
| Kosso | Rich red-brown, bold open grain | Windsor, £150 |
| Maple | The palest, cream with a gentle grain | Woodhaven, £250 |
| Whisky-barrel oak | Toasted brown, from old whisky barrels | Barrel, £260 |
Our guide to choosing a wood for a wooden watch goes through each one in more detail.
Is a bamboo watch lighter than a wooden watch?
Not always. It depends on the wood you compare it with.
Bamboo weighs roughly the same as walnut or maple. Ebony is one of the heaviest woods there is, so the same case in ebony would weigh more than one in bamboo. All of them are a fraction of the weight of steel, and that is the difference you notice on your wrist.
We have not weighed the watches side by side, so we cannot give a number in grams.
Is bamboo better for the environment than wood?
Bamboo grows back fast from the same roots after it is cut, so the plant does not have to be replanted.
Every Forest watch plants ten trees through Tree-Nation and the planting projects it funds. Every order's planting date is on a public Tree-Nation page, linked from how we plant ten trees per watch.
We cannot tell you which is greener overall.
Can a bamboo watch get wet?
A splash, yes. Soaking, no. Bamboo and wood are both natural materials that take in water if they sit in it, and water that soaks in can swell them.
Forest watches are splash-proof, not waterproof. Take yours off for showers, baths, swimming and washing up. The full answer is in can you get a wooden watch wet. If you are buying a bamboo watch, check that brand's own water rating before it goes near water.
Can you engrave a bamboo watch?
Yes. Bamboo and wood can both be engraved with a laser, which darkens the surface rather than carving into it.
At Forest we engrave the back of the watch in our London workshop: £25 for up to 50 characters. Some Forest watches have a wooden back and some have a metal one, so how the lettering looks depends on the watch. For ideas on what to write, see what to engrave on a watch.
Does Forest sell bamboo watches?
No. Every watch we sell uses one of the ten woods above. If you want bamboo, we are not the right shop.
If you want a light watch made from a natural material, start with the men's wooden watches or the women's wooden watches. No two have the same grain.
How do bamboo and wooden watches compare, side by side?
| Bamboo watch | Wooden watch | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | A grass | Timber from a tree |
| How the case is made | Strips glued into a block, then cut | Cut from the wood |
| Surface | Fine straight lines, faint seams | Grain that changes with the wood |
| Colour range | Pale straw to caramel | Cream maple to near-black ebony |
| Weight | About the same as walnut or maple | Walnut and maple light, ebony heavier |
| Water | Varies by brand; check the rating | Splash-proof; not for swimming |
| Engraving | Yes, by laser | Yes, by laser |
| At Forest | Not sold | Ten woods, £75 to £260 |
So which should you choose?
Choose bamboo if you specifically want that even, finely lined look and the regrowing plant matters most to you.
Choose wood if you want a grain that is unique to your watch and a wider range of colours, from pale maple to near-black ebony. That is the only kind we sell, and every Forest watch comes in a wooden gift box.
