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Flashing and illuminated hair accessories, necklaces and belly button baubles as well as T-shirts, jackets, hats and dresses are the latest craze in fashion, making a stir in Hollywood and at the house next door.
GLOGEAR
GloGear began as a project in California-inventor Steve Ohlund's garage, and wound up around the necks of some of Hollywoods' biggest stars. Britney Spears, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Steven Tyler, Kid Rock and Brooke Shields, among others, sport the necklaces, manufactured by Yanova in New York.
Glowing stars, butterflies, dragons, teddy bears, crosses, Disney characters, hearts and other shapes hang from plastic-coated cords. Each necklace emits a brilliant red, blue, green or purple. A small, concealed battery operates the necklace, with a magnetic contact clasp equipped with both 'on' and 'off' positions. The battery lasts for about 20 to 25 hours, and is replaceable.
While certainly popular in the youth market, celebrity attraction to GloGear has snuffed out the idea that the necklaces are a just kid thing.
'It's the who's who in Hollywood that love them,' said Glenn Rudin, co- president of Yanova. 'They love the design and it's a great way any one of the stars can express themselves without saying anything.'
Rudin said the necklaces, with about 20 designs and several different colored lights from which to choose, are a step removed from social expression T-shirts. 'The charms are a way for those who wear them to express themselves in a more subtle way than screaming out 'Princess' across their chest,' he said.
And with a price tag of $8 to $10, Rudin said anyone can sport the trend of the rich and famous.
'They say, 'I can do what someone famous can do. It's only going to cost me a few dollars to do what someone who makes millions of dollars a year can do,'' he said.
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BELLY LIGHTS
Cringe at the thought of punching a hole in your belly button⢠Why not jazz up your midriff with Belly Lights, an alternative to piercing.
Produced by Beyond Mars, Belly Lights are about the size of a pencil eraser, and are equipped with two watch-size batteries, designed to last 10 to 12 hours. The batteries are hidden inside and the bauble has a twist top to turn it on and off. The accessory fits snugly to any navel by using a hypoallergenic skin adhesive and hydro-foam.
The result⢠Bright flashes of red and green twinkling from the navel.
Inventor Gary Kellmann said he came up with the idea after a friend's pearl fell from a necklace and landed in her navel. A light bulb went off, and Kellmann started to plan. After sales from belly-button adornments including flowers, little animals and characters showed promising revenue, Kellman said he added flash to spark a new interest in the accessory.
From there, Belly Lights got rave reviews from celebs like Rosie O'Donnell and Lea Thompson and NFL cheerleaders.
'Type belly lights on the Internet and it's everywhere,' Kellman said. 'I never expected it to be this big. I've been doing this for 12 years and I've never had anything like this.'
And it doesn't seem Kellman will sit back and enjoy the attention his product is receiving anytime soon: Plans are already in the works for expansion.
Beyond Mars will introduce yellow and blue Belly Lights this fall as well as flashing earrings, hair accessories, organizers and dental hygiene products through next spring.
'It's something that is fun and functional,' Kellman said. 'What I hear from a lot of parents, besides, 'Thank you,' is that now their children have an alternative. They can suggest this first to their daughters. At least that gives them a couple more years without discussions about piercing the navel.'
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If the bright colors of the season are not drawing enough attention for you, go for lights. Lots of twinkling, bright, flashing lights. On the collar. Around the hem. Through the arms. And yes, even in the bra.
From T-shirts to socks, lights are showing up in all sorts of clothing styles from the most chic evening wear to funky club wear. Spencers offers jackets with light-up Backstreet Boys and 'N Sync insignias and an array of Web sites sell T-shirts with illuminations that flicker into shapes, spell out words or activate animations.
Enlighted Designs Inc., a California-based Internet company fashions everything from casual wear to wedding attire, all equipped with lights.
Designer Janet Cooke Hansen, who custom designs all the merchandise for the company, said the increasingly popular apparel is all about gaining attention from a rather inexpensive product.
'The cost is $5 or $10 per light, plus the cost of the basic piece of clothing,' Hansen said. 'I think that a lot of more inexpensive accessories are getting popular.'
Hansen can light up just about any piece of clothing, from jazzy ties to outfits for stunt men. She uses batteries hidden away in the clothing to create the effect. Her most unusual request was a wedding gown, complete with sparkling white lights.
Her typical creations include pants, dresses, hats and purses.
'It definitely gets attention. Everybody can see you, Hansen said. 'People say, 'Who's that person⢠What's special about them that they're lit up?''
