Notched Strap for the Frédérique Constant Highlife
The Frédérique Constant Highlife is an integrated-case design: the strap does not meet a pair of open lugs, it disappears under metal end pieces that are shaped to the case. A straight-cut strap will not go there. It bunches, it lifts, or it simply will not seat. A notched strap for the Frédérique Constant Highlife solves it by cutting the leather away exactly where the metal needs to sit.
Build sheet
| Watch | Frédérique Constant Highlife Heart Beat Retrograde (FC680X3H5/6) |
| Strap type | Custom center-notched |
| Leather | Green Buttero |
| X | 20 mm (0.79 in) |
| Y | 6 mm (0.24 in) |
| Z | 4.5 mm (0.18 in) |
| Strap length | 70/115 mm (2.76 in / 4.53 in) |
Why these choices
Center-notched is the correct pattern here. The notch is cut into the middle of the strap end, leaving shoulders either side, so the leather tucks under the Highlife's end covers while the shoulders carry the width across to the case. Corner-notched — the pattern you see on a Cartier Santos — takes the material out of the two corners instead, and it would be the wrong shape for this watch entirely. Getting that choice right is most of the job.
The measurements came from the customer, and they were specific about what mattered: keep the lug end “thin enough to slide under the metal covers without bunching.” That is a thickness instruction as much as a shape one, and it is why we cut this end thin rather than padding it. A notch that is dimensionally perfect but 1 mm too thick still will not seat. We build to the numbers you send, so a jeweller-measured X, Y and Z is worth the trip.
Green Buttero is a vegetable-tanned leather from the Walpier tannery in Tuscany — dense, firm, and it takes a patina rather than wearing out. On a watch this architectural, a flat green with no ornament lets the case do the talking.
★★★★★
“This was a good way for me to start using my 30 year old watch, but the rubber band deteriorated years ago. The watch maker stopped making bands for it and finding your company that would make a custom band was great.”
Ivan H. · Verified purchase · Custom center-notched strap
Questions we get about this build
How do I measure X, Y and Z for a notched strap for the Frédérique Constant Highlife? X is the full width across the strap end, Y is the width of the notch, Z is how deep it cuts in. Measure with calipers, or have a jeweller do it — the strap is cut to your numbers, so an error of a millimetre is an error we will faithfully reproduce.
Will a stock 22 mm strap work if I just force it? No. The end covers are shaped to the case, not to a flat strap end. That is the whole reason this pattern exists.
Cut to your measurements at our bench — allow 2–3 weeks to delivery. Start with the center-notched strap builder, see every fit we cut in the notched strap collection, or browse all custom leather watch straps.