No sooner had Google announced the invention of its game-changing Google Glass, a headset that enables users to take a photo, send a message and much more with a simple voice command, than a term had been coined to describe its fans: “glassholes”. Why? Because, while Google Glass might be clever technology that is sending the tech-world into a spin, with would-be users queueing up to pay $1,500 to join the elusive Glass Explorer Program, those wearing the Robocop-style specs can’t help but look a bit silly.

This is not an isolated problem. At the inaugural Global Wearable Tech Ecosystem Event held in Los Angeles in December 2013, concerns were raised about the speed of software and data protection. But biomedical engineer Marco Della Torre identified the greatest challenge to the market with a single tweet: “Build something people will want to wear 24-7 – not have to wear for the benefit of the features.” For an industry that relies on people actually putting stuff on, the wearable technology market has one fundamental flaw: most of its products are so inelegant that none but the most devoted nerds would ever wish to be seen in them.

So far. But with wearables proving big business – the market for fitness wearables alone will be worth $5 billion by 2016, according to research firm Gartner – a new wave of designers is embracing the possibilities of this potentially lucrative market. Manufacturers are making great strides to make wearable tech not just wearable, but fashionable.

Alex Kozloff, head of mobile at The Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB UK), the trade association for digital advertising, notes that wearables were a key theme at this year’s Mobile World Congress. “There's a whole range of colours on show at Sony, some embellished with crystals – it’s not just about showing one black wearable wristband. Whether you like the designs or not, the fact that Sony would devote so much valuable exhibition space to the range of styles shows the importance of getting the design element right.”