Will custom rubber bracelets go out of fashion?
In the last two years custom rubber bracelets have invaded our
life. And despite fashion gurus pronouncing them a 'passing fad'
they are still around -- and are still climbing the popularity
charts.
So what makes the custom rubber bracelets so popular? Highly
customizable and cheap: those are the two qualities that make
these rubber wristbands so popular.
The custom rubber bracelets can be custom-manufactured for any
purpose: charity, crowd control, storing medical information,
fashion... And the ordinary ones usually cost just around $1 a
piece -- yes, with all those customized messages and colors.
What are custom rubber bracelets? Well, they are simply colorful
rubber loops that can be stretched over one's palms and worn on
one's wrist. And they usually have some message stamped on them,
such as 'Come Home Soon' (that is popular with the relatives of
American servicemen) or any other message. Some big hospitals
even stamp information such as a patient's name, medication,
timings, etc on the rubber band bracelets. This allows the
hospital staff to quickly access the vital info without
referring to a file in an emergency situation.
Well, that is only one aspect of their customization ability.
They can be ordered in any color -- yellow, green, pink, black,
translucent, glow-in-the-dark... there is a color for
everything. The yellow ones are the most well-known, popularized
by ace cyclist and cancer survivor Lance Armstrong. In fact, it
was Armstrong's 'LiveStrong' custom rubber bracelets that kicked
off the trend of wearing rubber bracelets.
Then followed numerous others: there were custom rubber
bracelets for tsunami relief, to show support to American
troops, to rally students against bullying, as a tool for crowd
control, for just being trendy... Soon there was a flood of
those colorful solid rubber loops. By the way, the custom rubber
bracelets needn't be really rubber. They are also made of
silicone.
Recently there has been a flood of criticism against the custom
rubber bracelets, caused mostly by the numerous rubber
wristbands that have been popping up all around with all kinds
of silly messages. Does that mean society is getting fed up with
the custom rubber bracelets?
Not by a long shot. Custom rubber bracelets are going to be
around, whether their popularity rises or wanes. Because they
are so useful little devices, that can be put to use in a number
of situations. They may go out of fashion or come into fashion,
but they will always be around in some form or other, in some
situation or another.