AKRON, Ohio — Laura Leonti and Elisa Pizzino have been friends for nearly two decades.

Now, the pair are not only just friends — they are also business partners. 

Their new business is called "Chain it On." 

They've invented a chain that hooks onto your facemask, so you can wear it like a necklace. 

Leonti explains that the idea come from a problem almost everyone has had during the pandemic.

"Sometimes we would be going into a store, and you get ready to go into a store and you say, ‘Oh, gosh I forgot my mask in the car or I forgot my mask at home," Leonti said. 

The mask chains also help prevent people from having to set their masks down on potentially unsanitary surfaces, like when going out to eat.

"Chain it On is a mask chain basically to hold your mask on," Leonti explained. "You never forget it and it's easily found and you don’t have to lay it on a surface that is unsanitary.” 

The patent-pending chains come in different colors and styles. 

When the pandemic is over, they can still be worn as necklaces. 

"We thought we didn’t want someone to purchase something that suddenly they didn’t have anything to do with it," Leonti said. "So by taking the little lobster clamps that you clip on the ear pieces to the mask, and clip those together, you have a necklace.” 

They plan to start selling additional charms on their website that can be added to the chains in the near future.