Can a neck scarf work as a DIY sunglasses chain?

The bandana is an accessory that, quite honestly, takes up way more of my brain space than you’d expect. You might also refer to it a neck scarf or neckerchief. Whatever you call it, I think we can all agree that it’s a square piece of fabric that tends to be worn around the neck.

So, what do I find so fascinating about bandanas? The fact that I’m forever stumbling across new ways to repurpose them. I’ve knotted bandanas into bags, used them as a budget-friendly upgrade for worn-out handles and recommended them as a cool way to inject colour into your outfit.

And that’s just the tip of this multifunctional iceberg. In fact, Pinterest recently brought yet another bandana talent into my beautifully created home feed.

A bandana sunglasses chain: yay or nay?

I thought it was a nice idea at first. So nice that I started picturing myself gallivanting through the summer with my decorative, knotted sunglasses chain on at all times. This despite not even owning a regular glasses chain. In fact, I’ve always found them unnecessary. Bandana ones, on the other hand…

However, no sooner than I’d delightedly joined my sunglasses and neck scarf, I realised the knots would probably turn into a bug bear. Sadly, that’s exactly what happens. When my glasses are simply dangling down around my neck, they make a pretty (and yes, even practical) combination with my bandana. As soon as I put them on my face, however, the fun comes to an abrupt end. The scarf is much too voluminous, and irritates my face. The knots rustle annoyingly in front of my ears, while the ends poke out or get caught in my hair. Positioning the knots further up the legs isn’t a solution either. They just block my view – and the wide strip of fabric covers even more of my face.

My verdict

Of course, I could untie the bandana knots each time I put on my sunglasses, then retie them afterwards. But that seems like too much effort for too little reward. Where would I put the bandana until it’s time to retie it, anyway? With this in mind, the homemade sunglasses chain is a nice idea in theory, but ill-advised in practice. I’ll be going back to wearing my sunglasses on my face, on top of my head or on my collar. Or I might just give a traditional glasses chain a go. A pretty homemade one, of course.

After all, my bandana has enough on its plate already.