Before I start, I’d
just like to apologise for the lack of posts since I started my blog. Recently
I have been quite busy with schoolwork, but would love to post more- there will
be lots to come!
During the month of June last year, a new frenzy hit the toy
market: kits that allowed the user to assemble a bunch of rings of rubber into
bracelets sparked an interest in children, leaving them eagerly anticipating
the purchases made towards using different colours, opacities and even textures
of the bands. They were simply everywhere- I saw them taking over shops,
schools and the media. What was it about these rubber bands that thousands
appeared to be so interested in? I thought I would have a go myself, quite
intrigued by this creation, and share my experience with you… Hopefully, I will
be able to help you decide on whether you all would like to purchase the
product too, and perhaps inspire you on which bracelets are wanted to be made.
Although the original ‘Rainbow Loom’ product invented by a
man named Cheong Choon Ng is the most popular buy, I have found that there are
a lot of cheaper options available by different companies in a variety of
stores, all functioning in basically the same way. I picked up a pink plastic
loom from Buyology, costing only £3! Personally, I found this a very excellent
price, as it also came with 300 bands in 10 different colours, two hooks and 30
S-clips, even though I suppose the negative aspect would be the fact that it
isn’t a genuine ‘Rainbow Loom’. Two other packs of 100 bands were bought as
well; one contained black and white rings of rubber, whilst the other was made
up of metallic- looking bands that shone.
Before I jumped into the making process, I analysed the content
of the product itself further. As you can see in the above photograph of my
current entire collection, there are 39 pins on the ‘loom board’, where I
assume all of the weaving together of the jewellery takes place. The solid, or
opaque, bands that originally accompanied the board came in 13 bright colours:
red, orange, dark yellow, light yellow, light green, dark green, light blue,
dark blue, dark purple, violet and pink.
The pack of metallic bands, on the other hand, contained a
range of 9 colours, these being: dark red, light red, yellow, light green,
light blue, dark blue, purple, silver and gold (these final two I found
especially interesting and thought that they could easily spice up a bracelet
in a more sophisticated way!). In the photo, I tried to capture the difference
between the shiny and matte bands; they are of course more noticeable when they
catch the light, but overall I think they are an admirable extension of the toy
kit. The band on the left is solid, and on the right is the metallic one. The
only problem I have discovered concerning the bands themselves is the fact that
some of the rubber rings differ quite greatly in size.
For example, these are two that show quite a large
difference… However, I don’t think this is too much of an issue, as once again,
they were offered for a very good price and this manufacturing error hasn’t occurred
too often. Some of the colours used appear to fade over time too, the whites
being especially noticeable as they yellow slightly, but, again, I don’t feel
that this is a real problem.
Another important piece of the kit would be ‘S-clips’. These
small, transparent components are used to fasten the bracelets together once
you have created a chain of the linked bands in whichever design you like. I’ll
probably find myself losing a bunch of these little guys, so it’s good they are
plentiful! The hooks in the shop appeared to have been paired with the colour
of the boards being random, so there are a large range of colour combinations
to choose from.
The first design I aimed to start with was the most simple
bracelet: a ‘single’. This super easy bracelet only used around 20 bands, and
was made by placing the bands in a straight line across the loom with the pins
facing away from you. Once the appropriate length has been reached, the board has
to be rotated 180°, so the gap in-between the pins is facing the front. This is
where the hooks come in handy! I have found that this part can be done without
the use of them, but I’m assuming that when more complicated bracelets want to
be created, it would definitely be a good idea to manoeuvre them in the making
process. Each band has to be hooked on to the next, so you end up with a simple
chain that can be linked together. I chose to alternate between two colours,
but of course you can place them on the board however you wish!
The next design I was able to move
on to is named the ‘fishtail’. It is constructed in a slightly different way to
many of the other structures, as only two pins are needed, rather than most of
the board being used. You can also make this using just your fingers, as making
it simply consists of hooking bands over the pins and into the middle- there
should always be at least two of them on the pegs.
The kit I had purchased unfortunately did not contain any
other instructions on different designs of bracelet of further complexities- I
feel that it could have been nice to see some more design ideas and
inspiration, but as the product was sold for such a cheap price, I’m very
impressed with the overall content! Using some designs from YouTube, a useful
social media platform that contains free videos that are uploaded constantly
across the globe including a variety of subjects, I was able to find lots of
tutorials on making more complicated bracelets. Many channels have dedicated a
lot of their videos to providing these ‘how-tos’, such as ‘Jasmine Starler’,
‘Loves2Loom’ and ‘SaraBeautyCorner’, who have all grown popularity with
collectively over 850,000 subscribers! From left to right, the bracelets I made
are called: ‘French braid’, ‘ladder’, ‘tidal wave’, ‘zippy chain’, ‘raindrop’, ‘shoelace’,
‘infinity’, ‘upsy daisy twisty wisty’, ‘fishtail’ and ‘single’.
These bracelets were even harder to make, with the bands
sometimes snapping, requiring me to start the bracelets from scratch again. If
this happens, try not to get too frustrated- if you’re careful, you can still
achieve some brilliant designs and should be happy with the outcomes. Push
through with persistence and patience! From left to right, these bracelet
designs are called: ‘Butterfly blossom’, ‘flower power’, ‘triple single’, ‘confetti
criss-cross’, ‘spirilla’, ‘bow’, ‘triple fishtail’, ‘woolly knot’ and ‘starburst’.
To conclude, I think it’s safe to say that I have joined the
buzz of ‘loom-band-lovers’ and can see how so many are satisfied with making
these accessories. It is a very fun, creative and sometimes challenging process
in my opinion! The generally low pricing was an added bonus of this enjoyable
pastime. In the future, I would like to advance into possibly making other accessories,
like rings, charms and key-rings, for example, which range in difficulty
levels.
I hope I helped- thank you so much for reading! I can’t wait
to try more designs soon!
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