Loom bands dress 'sells for £170,000' on eBay

The virtual hammer came down on the hand-crafted garment last night

Detail of the dress made entirely of loom bands (eBay/helenwright1972)

A child’s dress made entirely from loom bands has reportedly been sold at auction for £170,100.

The multi-coloured garment, traded on eBay last night, was created using the somewhat-controversial tiny loops of coloured elastic which can be linked together to create a chain mail effect.

It is not known whether the exorbitant bid for the UK-registered item is genuine.

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Loom bands, which cost less than one penny each, have become a fad on the school playground, where they are often used to create bracelets and necklaces.

But their popularity has seen them go the same way as yesteryear crazes such as yoyos and Tamagotchis, with many teachers banning them because they serve to distract students or cause arguments between pupils. Other have said loom bands flout “no jewellery” dress codes.

The winning bid listed on eBay (eBay)

However, teachers are fighting against the arguably more powerful influence of teen idols such as One Directioner Harry Styles and David Beckham, who have both been seen sporting the bands in recent weeks.

The auctioned dress, which comes in a size 4-6, was placed online a week ago with a starting price of £50. It attracted offers from suitors across the globe, with bids quickly soaring past the £100,000-mark.

The winning bid was posted five days ago.

A green and red loom band bracelet (comedy_nose/Flickr creative commons)

Loom bands were invented by Cheong Choon Ng, a Malaysian-born former seatbelt developer from Michigan, who noticed his daughters weaving elastic bands into bracelets.

The girls were impressed with his first loom made from a wooden board and pins and he soon developed a plastic version that sold out of within hours of being stocked in a local toyshop.

Additional reporting by Press Association