Loom Bands: The Crafty Craze Keeping Kids Off Computers

In the twenty-first century it is typical to see a preteen’s head bent in concentration as they pore over the latest app or video game…or maybe not. A new ‘toy’ has been selling like crazy and preoccupying kids for hours: Loom Bands.

Loom Bands are small, multi-coloured elastic bands which can be stretched and manipulated to form pretty bracelets. One industrious crafter even made a Loom Band dress, which is selling for over £153,900 on eBay. 126 users have bid in the hope of owning the item.

While the intricate creations can sell for big bucks, the bands themselves are relatively inexpensive. Packets of bands cost around £2.50, and have been flying off toy-shop shelves worldwide. Over three million Rainbow Looms – the tool used to make the bracelets – have been sold so far.

The bracelets are not just popular with kids. Retired footballer David Beckham and Kate Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge, have both been spotted wearing the colourful creations. 

Yet, the cheap, fun and popular hobby is not without its perils. Seven-year-old Kyle Lawrence of Cleethorpes has been left blind in one eye after his older brother accidentally pinged a band in his direction. After the mishap Kyle was violently ill and suffered a blood clot. The bands also pose a danger to circulation. A GP from Bristol has shared a picture of a child whose fingers turned blue after he wrapped loom bands around them before going to sleep.

Noting Loom Bands’ health dangers many primary schools have banned children from bringing the kits to class and wearing the bracelets. Loom Bands are also said to be having repercussions on social relationships, as schoolchildren argue and fall out when making and trading the jewellery.

Not all schools have imposed a ban on the bands. Some institutions have noted that making the bracelets teaches children about the importance of industry and enterprised, and have encouraged them to sell their carefully-crafted trinkets at school fetes. Money raised can be donated to charity or used to buy more bands.

Overall, I believe we should see the craze as a positive thing. In 2014, the majority of children’s ‘games’ are computerised, and children as young as two have their own Apple products. 36 percent of children get the majority of their entertainment from the screen compared to just eight percent twenty years ago, a survey by Co-operative Childcare reveals. Arguably, any activity that minimizes the time kids spend goggle-eyed should be welcomed.

Making bracelets is a fun activity which keeps children off computers and teaches them that they can make beautiful things if they work hard. As long as kids are closely supervised and taught to trade with each other fairly the practice should be allowed to continue. Toy fads only stick around for a short while, anyway…in a few weeks time Loom Bands will probably be as outdated as Alien Babies and Pogs.