Kate Middleton can make clothing sell out simply by stepping out in a dress or blouse. Many of the items that she chooses to wear are surprisingly affordable, but you won’t find a trend that is as pocketbook–friendly as the bracelet that she was recently spotted wearing.
According to MailOnline, Kate is just one of the many celebs who have stepped out rocking rainbow loom bracelets. These colorful bracelets made out of tiny rubber bands have been popular with children since last year, but now adults are starting to rock the easy–to–make bands. The Duchess of Cambridge was photographed wearing one during her Royal Tour of New Zealand. However, she didn’t make it herself – it was given to her by a young fan.
Luckily for Kate Middleton, she was gifted with a non–neon bracelet that was easy to color coordinate with one of her outfits. She paired her red, white, and blue band with a red peplum jacket and matching skirt. Prince William has also been spotted wearing a rainbow loom band, as have the Duchess of Cornwall and David Beckham.
Because children make so many of these colorful bracelets, it’s not shocking that they’re popping up on the arms of parents who feel pressured to show off their kids’ creations. It’s also a great trend for fans of color coordination because it’s so easy to create custom color combos to match any outfit, and the bracelets are fun to make. There are many reasons to love them, but MailOnline hints that Rainbow Loom sales have recently increased mainly because of “the Kate effect.”
Rainbow Loom bands aren’t the only colorful bracelets that have become huge fashion trends. Here’s a quick rundown of some wrist–wear fads that you might remember:
Jelly bracelets – During the 80s, girls covered their arms with these neon–colored pieces of rubber.
Plastic charm bracelets – Girls of the 80s also loved rocking these plastic pink chains covered with jingly charms that included mini toilets, hairdryers, soda bottles, and toothbrushes.
Friendship bracelets – These woven pieces of jewelry were the Rainbow Loom bracelets of the 70s.
Slap bracelets – Remember when these “dangerous” bands got banned from schools?
Kandi bracelets – These colorful pony bead bracelets became popular with ravers during the 90s.
Power bead bracelets – These shiny bead bracelets made from semi–precious stones were a big New Age fad during the 90s. Different stones had different meanings, and some believed that the beads actually had healing powers or therapeutic properties.
Silly Bandz – These shaped rubber bands are like the next evolution of jelly bracelets.
Message bracelets – The 90s had woven “W.W.J.D.?” bracelets and the aughts saw the rise of multi–colored rubber wrist bands that represented different causes. These included the yellow Livestrong bracelet and the pink breast cancer awareness bracelet.
