If you are into the plain, or as some may say "natural" look for your Kindle - then great, you are already there. Many like the feel of the device only and say the texture of the device is easy enough to handle on its own. Yes, it is. Here's a look at what a "naked" Kindle (or any other device) would look like fresh out of the box.
Although I chose to live wild and skin free for a short time, I eventually succumbed to the temptation of skinning my Kindle 2. As I tend to over analyze and research everything to death and then still unsure find a short-cut - I decided to order a skin for my Blackberry first - that way, if it was a huge mistake it wouldn't be a total wash (since I'll be replacing the Crackberry soon anyway - T-Mobile sucks BTW). I ordered a checkered-flag skin (one of their pre-designed skins) from DecalGirl (see Wild Accessories link). It was fairly inexpensive ($6.99), easy to order and received quickly - and the best part-way easy to apply!!!
Although I chose to live wild and skin free for a short time, I eventually succumbed to the temptation of skinning my Kindle 2. As I tend to over analyze and research everything to death and then still unsure find a short-cut - I decided to order a skin for my Blackberry first - that way, if it was a huge mistake it wouldn't be a total wash (since I'll be replacing the Crackberry soon anyway - T-Mobile sucks BTW). I ordered a checkered-flag skin (one of their pre-designed skins) from DecalGirl (see Wild Accessories link). It was fairly inexpensive ($6.99), easy to order and received quickly - and the best part-way easy to apply!!! OK, so now I was convinced the skin thing was a good idea and decided to spread my wings and attempt a custom skin for my Kindle 2. I chose to go with a different company, mostly for comparison although I wasn't aware (at the time) that DecalGirl also allowed custom orders. I found that MyTego was highly recommended amongst Kindle people and after finding a suitable image designed a custom skin online. I love Asian-themes and found a soft Ginkgo leaf fabric image via a Google search that I thought would look lovely. MyTego (see Wild Accessories link) makes it sooooooo easy to design your skin - front and back independently. Here's the front & back of my fist Kindle 2 skin:
It does take a tiny bit of PC savvy to design this online, but again MyTego makes it simple as can be. The custom skin was more expensive ($24.99), but much larger and detailed than the small cell phone one, but there were discounts available making it much more reasonable. It did take a bit longer to receive (I was so anxious for this skin to arrive) and was pleasantly surprised when it did - how exact it was to the image! This skin was a little more trying to install, but still a piece of cake as long as you follow the directions. One of the nice things about this skin is that the side buttons are covered (they receive constant use and need added protection, IMO) as well as the keyboard (minus the keys).
Something I noticed - not sure if others have as well - is that when the darker, colored skin is on the Kindle it seems to add just a bit of contrast, making the text a wee bit easier on the eyes. With this in mind...and the fact that I saw so many other, really detailed skins fellow KindleBoard (see Wild Links) forum members had I decided I would try to design a completely custom skin. I wanted something darker, less wispy-pastel. I had found a truly beautiful fabric online that I had decided to purchase for a possible Kindle travel bag (see future Borsa Bella post) and copied it. I couldn't get the image to come out as well as I liked and so waited until I could scan the actual fabric itself (I know - sounds muy technical, doesn't it??). With a much better image, and the aid of a very nice forum friend, we used a template provided by DecalGirl (Yup, that company again) and designed a new skin. I had to submit the potential design to the company and receive an okay before ordering it - which took almost no time (I mean maybe a few hours - they're that quick!!). The skins was a bit pricey ($27), but with discounts it wasn't so bad - and so worth it! Anyway, here is what I received after all was done and dusted. Isn't it awesome???
As you can see, the beautiful skin covers almost the entire front (and back - no pic) of my Kindle 2. It covers the side buttons and also the main keyboard. This skin was a tiny more tedious to install, but well worth it in the end. The red cover (behind the Kindle) is an M-Edge leather Prodigy which will be discussed in a future post. All in all, I think the idea of skinning your Kindle (or any device) is a great idea. It not only acts as an accessory to the device, but also protects it from dirt, smudges, fingerprints, dust, etc. However, it is not waterproof, self-heating and willnot hum you a tune......although your Kindle can do that!!
I hope this gives a little insight into the world of skins!
