High-end collaborations, at times, give us meaningful outcomes that no matter how hard you try, you cannot sidestep. In my recent memory, Audemars Piguet x Swatch Royal Pop – a mindboggling amalgamation of the Royal Oak and the Swatch Pop – is definitely one such example. While everything is a Pop of color and high-end horology, what remains missing is the fact that this collaborative model is not meant to be worn on the wrist; it’s designed as a pocket watch, but one you’d definitely fall for even in 2026.
However, there is a school of thought comprising watch enthusiasts that believes the Royal Pop deserves to rest on the wrist. While the creators themselves don’t believe it, Lambertus, an independent maison, is a firm advocate that it should, and is therefore creating case-straps for the Audemars Piguet x Swatch Royal Pop, now going on pre-order, in whole, for $95 through the Royal Pop Wrist Bands website.
Designer: Lambertus
That amount will reserve a case-strap for you, but there’s a caveat. The creation of these straps has not kicked off the blocks at the time of writing. For the reservation price of $95, therefore, you are banking on Lambertus to carry out all the phases of development i.e., the roadmap from R&D, prototyping, final design, to manufacturing, with no clear deadline for assurance.
The Lambertus creation is called Chapter I. It’s now in the R&D, and should present, on development, as an excellent accessory to the AP × Swatch Royal Pop. The cult timepiece comes in eight different colorways and two design iterations: the Lépine and the Savonnette. The Lépine pocket watch is designed with hour and minute hands and a crown at 12 o’clock. It comes in six color options. Available in two colorways, the Savonnette Royal Pop, features a crown at 3 o’clock and along with the hour and minutes, also has a small second hand at 6 o’clock.
Since Lambertus has a vision to match everything in the Royal Pop portfolio to the T. It will also tailor the straps to match the eight colors of your pocket watch. Even commendable – or you may say requisite – is that the case-straps will be split in two models, like the AP x Swatch collaborative pocket watch itself. The Strap I of the Chapter I will come in six Lépine-style models and the Strap II in two options for the Savonnette-style watches.
Of course, from how it appears as of now, the machined, octagonal watch holder straps from Lambertus will let you snap in the AP x Swatch Royal Pop and flaunt it with passion. But how well the strap material (which remains unclear as I write), of the eight luxury designs in two crown orientations, complements the Bioceramic case of the actual watch is anybody’s guess. And if that’s not as premium as you would like to trust with your AP, we know where the $95 you put in is headed. To ensure the backers have little legal ground to confront, the Royal Pop Wrist Bands website puts out “Our Royal POP compatible straps and wristbands are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Audemars Piguet or Swatch Group,” in fine print.
The post $95 Lambertus strap will turn the Audemars Piguet × Swatch Royal POP pocket watch into a wristwatch first appeared on Yanko Design.