You wear your headphones everyday whether it’s on the way to class, at the gym, or commuting to co-op on the T. You also spend time everyday picking out a cute outfit and accessories to match. However, what if you could combine both of those things?
That’s exactly what Aiyanna Greene, Anthropology major at Amherst College did. She wanted to make generic headphones beautiful and unique so she designed Alkimees, earphones that double as a necklace with interchangeable pendants, so you can constantly switch up your look. When thinking of the perfect design for Alkimees, Greene says, “I was inspired by a necklace that I imagined Cleopatra wearing.”
Since Greene didn’t have enough money to hire a company to design Alkimees, she worked hard to make the first prototype herself. This took more than a few tries and a lot of perseverance, as Greene wanted her vision to come to life and be perfect. However, with her hard work ethic and creativity, the first prototype of Alkimees was created in just two days, and Greene is now using that prototype to test out demand from her target market.
Greene says the show Shark Tank inspired her entrepreneurial drive. She wants to begin manufacturing Alkimees and get utility and design patents for her product. “It’s no secret that earphones aren’t being designed with the needs of style-conscious people in mind,” says Greene. “As a product that completely blurs the line between fashion and function, it’s my hope that Alkimees will become to earphones what the Pandora bracelet is to jewelry.”
Besides being stylish, Alkimees can also be worn as a regular necklace when you’re not listening to music, so you get a multi-functional item for the price of one. Another perk is that since Alkimees are encased in hollow snake chains, they won’t tangle up in your bag like most headphones do.
If you’re interested in getting your hands on a pair of the world’s first necklace-inspired earphones, check out the Kickstarter campaign for Alkimees, which launches this week. Greene’s campaign goal is to raise enough money to complete the first production run of her product. As an “Early Bird” backer, you can get a pair of Alkimees and two interchangeable pendants for only $40 as a return on your investment before anyone else.