Rubber Band Jewelry book Review

Have you heard of one of the hottest toys that is sweeping the nation this year? The Rainbow Loom? Don’t worry, neither had I till just a few weeks ago. I had seen posts on Facebook and thought maybe I should look into it for my 7 yr. old, Jorden, for Christmas. But I didn’t give it another thought till a few days later I went and checked my email and there was an email from Fox Chapel Publishing asking me if I would like to review a book for Design Originals. A book on Totally Awesome Rubber Band Jewelry!

I didn’t tell my youngest it was coming as I didn’t want her bugging about when it would arrive but I made the mistake of telling my 11 yr. old, Benjamin, and 14 yr. old, Allie. It was actually Benjamin that would bug every day when he got home from school if the book had come! Finally the day came that the book did arrive in the mail and as you can tell from the picture below, it has received lots of love since. A permanent crease in the spine.


The kids of course fought over who got to look at the book first and who would get to make the first bracelet. (yes, I had bought a loom kit for them)  Jorden of course wanted to be the first one but somehow Allie managed to sneak in one first.

Allie picked out the Triple the Fun bracelet to make using one of her favorite colors, pink! Following the “What You’ll Need” list, she picked out the number of bands she would need per color substituting for the colors she wanted. She used the “Load It Up!” diagram for Chic Chevron. They also provide “Load It Up!” diagrams for alternate color schemes but you can also use any color scheme you want.



After loading up the loom comes the fun part of hooking the bracelet. This is pretty easy as long as you follow the step-by-step photos along with the written instructions provided in the book in the “Get Loopin’” section.

One thing we learned (yes, the hard way) is to load the loom in the numerical order provided by the book or you will mess up half way through your bracelet. This is especially true for the Starburst Bracelet.

Below is a handful of the different kinds of bracelets the kids have made. As I said, the book has been getting lots of love.

School Color Starburst Bracelet


Benjamin’s Bengal Fishtail Bracelet and Starburst Bracelet.


Benjamin using the book to make the Fishtail (his favorite) Bracelet.


Allie sporting a Fishtail Bracelet and a Back and Forth Bracelet.


Jorden’s arm full of bracelets that she made herself using the book.


I think we, ummmm I mean the kids have made every single bracelet from the Totally Awesome Rubber Band Jewelry book at least a few (million) times! Besides bracelets, there are also directions on how to make rings, belts, necklaces (next one on the kids list AFTER we get more rubber bands), flower charms, dangly earrings and hand/foot accessories.

Okay, I’ll admit, I have even sat down with the book and have made a few bracelets myself. What can I say?
The book is so colorful and easy to follow step by step directions
and the finished result is fun to wear!

Check out this preview of the book so you can see why
my kids were so excited to use it:

 Hope you have enjoyed this review and that I have inspired you to try out the book to make your own rubber band jewelry!

                         
     Thanks for stopping by!
                                        
                      Amber