Rubber Made

The latest in wrist adornment is...rubber bands. But these aren't your everyday office supplies. Wordstretch bracelets, which retail for about $1.50, are multicolored bands inscribed with witticisms like ''I flunked gym'' or ''What would Scooby do?'' Creator Ave Green, 36, a former actress based in St. Paul, was inspired in part to create the bouncy bracelets after seeing NBA stars like Kevin Garnett wearing rubber bands during games. ''I [thought], What a great [way] to communicate,'' says Green, who now counts Minnesota guv Jesse Ventura, Giorgio Armani, and Janet Jackson (by way of Twin Cities producer Jimmy Jam) as fans. ''It's like the anti-jewelry,'' offers Green, who also makes rubberized rings. And they go nicely with paper-clip earrings.