Loopdedoo Friendship Bracelets: Embrace Your Inner Girl Scout

Summer is fully under way here at chez guru girl. And the craft-a-thon has begun. We’ve made clay animals, funky textiles, duct tape clothing and splatter art that would make Jackson Pollock proud. (It was actually Grandma who oversaw the splatter project. You know my stress-induced eye twitch? Splatter painting with the Dynamic Duo = recipe for total face twitch. A fashion "don’t" if ever there was one.)

But the runaway winner of our crafting sessions has been the friendship bracelet. Based on the amount of time the 10 year old spends hunched over the bracelet-making machine, you’d think I was running a friendship bracelet sweat shop. Completely voluntary. With lots of bathroom breaks, unlocked exits and delicious snacks.

So the environment is less sweat shoppy and more Brooklyn artisan-y. The results are Brooklyn hip too. The bracelet weaving machine -- the Loop De Doo -- makes some great looking friendship bracelets.

Here’s what’s even better: the Loop De Doo is so easy the 10 year old can operate it herself. The entire shift! I mean, crafting session. With not one “Mom, can you…” request.  Unlike the sticker making machine we once had, whose inner workings required a certificate in machinery to manipulate. I donated this damn thing on the sly. If “donate” means threw away in a fit of sticker machine fury.

But the Loop De Doo earns none of my ire and all of the 10 year old’s praise. Get one for the child laborer in your life. Available on amazon.com for around $33 and also at local toy stores. (Click this link to go to amazon.com to learn more about the Loopdedoo.)