Cell Phone Charms Make Phone as Unique as Its Owner
Cell phone charms are the most rapidly spreading craze. These trinkets have a miniature lanyard loop attached to them. Recent-model cell phones have two small holes on either the top or side to which the lanyard attaches. These holes were originally intended for folks to attach their phones to their full-size lanyards that hold keycards for the workplace. Once that was labeled officially dorky, the charm craze began, and is all the rage in tech-crazed areas like Japan and Taiwan. The choices in charmwear are almost endless. The ultimate site for cell phone charm shopping is Strapya, which offers a spectacular array of choices, including charms that glow in the dark, spell out the owner’s name or hold photos. No need to limit oneself to metal finishes either with new choices of miniature stuffed animals, water-filled acrylics, and Swarovski crystal. Worry warts can choose the “blood type” charm, in case of emergencies. While there are several choices in birthstone charms, you can grow your own tiny plant with your birthstone with a Marimo charm.
A slightly more practical choice is the screen sticker – a sheer square of plastic with faint images of favorite characters or motifs. These protect your LCD screen while still allowing you to read the display. Fashionistas got a hold of the sticker concept and developed coordinating stick-on gems for the phone case, for customizing without removing the faceplate.
While technology purists may sniff at the concept of pimping one’s phone, charms are making their way slowly to the American mainstream, with designer names such as Coach, Judith Jack and Prada adopting the idea. I have to admit that the idea is cute, but not practical enough for me to shell out five or more dollars per charm. I’m holding out for attachable lip glosses.
