The Silicone Wrist Wear Investigation

We see them everywhere. Different people often wear more than one. Each represents a different meaning. Often, they have debossed words that mean something different depending on the person wearing it. It’s a phenomenon that needs not any expensive means to provide for its existence. As inexpensive as it seems, the messages they’ve sent out are deafening in loudness. They are the silicone wristbands.

These wristbands took the world by storm in the late 90s and early 2000. According to sources, the wristband was aimed at professional basketball players to wear as their on-court jewelry since silver was not allowed while playing. The wristband was very positively received by the basketball community that almost all players wore at least one wristband.

The way that the wristband was marketed made it very easy for the common people to catch on. Being in the eyes of the public, like celebrities, fans of these players immediately imitated their idols by wearing these silicone wristbands. Since the wristbands were debossed with any word that they liked, the people were able to stand out and have a voice because of this personalization method.

The usual question is about the choice of rubber used for the bracelets. The silicone bracelets were originally made of ordinary rubber but proved to be very brittle. With the combination of heat and sweat, the rubber easily breaks. To correct this problem, companies used silicone for its known strength to withstand heat, acids from sweat and can withstand good amount of stress.

These silicone rubber wristbands are made by filling a mold of silicone that has been made without air bubbles in them to maximize their strength. The mold includes the personalized message for the wristband so there is one mold for each specific kind of bracelet. They are poured into the mold until the liquid silicone hardens and turns solid. The properties of silicone make it very flexible but not prone to breakage.

@Something that started from a very simple plan to a worldwide success, the silicone wristbands literally embedded their names in the history books as a fine mixture of fashion and a form of awareness. Even after years since its inception, these wristbands still carry the same meaning that it did the first time people wore it.