TAMAGOTCHI
For kids growing up in the 90s, it was the one toy you and all your friends had to have. The idea of having a virtual playmate to feed and play with was just so much fun! The obsession with the Tamagotchi as it was known was definitely a phase I went through! I had a white and pink one, and it could be attached as a key ring with a little chain. The idea of mothering this ‘child’ from birth, and essentially seeing it grow made me feel responsible and important. I think this was its fascination for many kids out there. Continue reading “TAMAGOTCHI” »
PACIFIER/DUMMY NECKLACES
Convincing our parents to let us wear heels, practising our signature, daydreaming of marriage, lining our eyes with kohl pencil and daily checking blossoming boobs and pubes: at primary school we were absolutely obsessed with growing up. Therefore, one of the trends that hit us in the early nineties was paradoxically surprising: pacifiers.
Continue reading “PACIFIER/DUMMY NECKLACES” »
POINT HORROR BOOKS
Long before R-Patz had us coming down with a serious case of Twilight Fever, and kids actually read with their eyes and everything, a craze hit the 90’s faster than Kevin Bacon’s feet in Footloose- that phenomenon was the teenage fright fest novel series Point Horror. Continue reading “POINT HORROR BOOKS” »
GAME BOY
May 12, 2011 by adenike
Filed under ARCHIVES, FEATURED CONTENT, LIFESTYLE, TOYS
Bulky, grey, chunky and with buttons which could be seen from outer space; no I’m not talking about Saved By The Bell’s Zach Morris’ cell phone, but the best thing to come from the 80’s (apart from George Michael’s Club Tropicana speedos…) it is of course the Nintendo Game Boy. Continue reading “GAME BOY” »
LEGO
It’s said that DNA is the building block of life but I would beg to differ. When having a building block contest there really is one that trumps them all…Lego of course! Its tiny form belies its mighty power but any child (particularly one who grew up in the 80s – before advanced computer games really took over every young boy (and girls) playtime) will tell of the magical properties held in the little bricks. And plus, what other toy has a whole theme park dedicated to its cause!?!
CABBAGE PATCH KIDS
May 10, 2011 by adenike
Filed under ARCHIVES, FEATURED CONTENT, LIFESTYLE, TOYS
When you look at some kid’s TV characters/toys today, it’s astounding that children don’t run away from them screaming in fright. Take for example the terrifying cast of In The Night Garden, who look like they should be locked away in a secure unit, I wonder how many parents have to soothe their distressed offspring from nightmares about Igglepiggle, Makka Pakka and the rest.
But this love for frightening visages is not restricted to today’s tots! When I cast my mind back to my own childhood, a familiar face looms into my memory – that of the Cabbage Patch Kid. Although undoubtedly one of the most popular dolls of the 80s, there’s no denying the fact that they had faces only a mother could love. With giant puffy cheeks, woolen hair, stumpy limbs and staring eyes they didn’t look like any baby I’d ever seen! But their distinctiveness certainly didn’t stop them from doing well. Continue reading “CABBAGE PATCH KIDS” »
MR MEN AND LITTLE MISS
With today being the 76th birthday of the late children’s author Roger Hargreaves, what better way to celebrate than with an ode to the original Mr Men and Little Miss books, of which he was the creator and writer.
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LOVE CALCULATIONS AND PAPER FORTUNE-TELLERS
When we were young and the future was still wide open, our favourite past-time was to colour it in with fantasies. Scientifically supported fantasies, mind you. The one that drew most on an ability I could actually use later in life, was calculating the percentage of love or the mathematical compatibility between you and another person, preferably your love interest of that particular week. With a bit of plain old math you’d know within minutes whether it was worth chasing the boy or girl of your dreams.
For those of you who’ve never indulged in this widely respected practice, here’s how it works. Write down your name and the name of the person you fancy, then count how many times you see the letters L O V E S. You will end up with a five-digit number – one digit for each letter. Then simply add up the first and second, the second and third, the third and fourth, and the fourth and fifth. Rinse and repeat until you end up with a two-digit percentage representing the chance of romantic success.
Now, these were binding percentages: if the result was anywhere below 50 percent, you might as well break up immediately as you’d be doomed to fail anyway. Fortunately, pre-teen girls are both helpless romantics and conniving little monsters. We were not going to let cold, hard science steal our dreams and soon found ways to manipulate the results. You could either add last names or leave them out, or include or exclude the letters L O V E S when it came to counting, and simply pick your favourite result. For example, I’ve just calculated the compatibility percentage for the man who recently asked me to marry him (unfortunately, I said yes before even thinking of checking whether science agreed) and the four trustworthy percentages my little research resulted in were 26, 42, 68 and 94 – you can guess which one I’m sticking with for now.
However much fun math is, the absolute favourite fortune-telling technique was the chatterbox, or cootie-catcher. In these days of Xboxes, iPads, the Internet and trashy-but-addictive reality TV shows, it’s almost unimaginable that once-upon-a-time young girls could actually enjoy themselves for hours with just one silly sheet of paper. Even though we probably should have cared more about our professional futures, recycling and the ozone layer, all our hormone-ridden brains wanted to know was when and whom we would marry, how many kids we’d have and what their names would be.
Moreover, it seemed of vital importance to avoid getting imaginarily hitched to the class nerd or have children named Silly ans Billy. After all, one’s ‘destiny’ was dependent upon the number of switches and the choice of arbitrary colours. We would spend hours giggling producing them, and all breaks were filled with hysterical pre-teen laughter. It didn’t really matter what the results were, any outcome was hilarious. Perhaps we were simply craving the nosy, slightly worried looks the boys threw us while we let faith decide on their destiny. How about that for feminism?
By the time we expanded our spouse search beyond the playground and decorated our bedroom walls with posters of the heartthrobs-du-moment, they too were included in the chatterbox. One lucky morning, destiny told me I would marry Leonardo DiCaprio after he’d asked me at to the local supermarket and I would give birth to twins named Ann and Rose. I decided then and there that I would just omit the supermarket bit when I would retell the story to the 27 grandchildren me and Leo would have, according to the chatterbox.
If only we could trust a simple piece of origami or adding up some numbers when it comes to today’s bigger life questions. What job shall I look for? Where should I live? Should I buy these shoes and eat noodles all month? I’ve already nicked a sheet of paper from the office printer, and am folding my future as we speak. Anyone want to marry both Ant and Dec?
By Janneke de Jong
‘GOOD LUCK’ TROLLS
Bright hair, fancy dress and a happy go lucky attitude; no we’re not talking about Katy Perry’s latest video, but the wild and wonderful world of ‘Good luck’ Trolls.
With their constant smiling faces and bright eyes filled with wisdom, they pretty much dragged Barbie down in the dirt and kicked Ken’s ass in terms of coolness; or perhaps that was just in my eyes.
Even though these adorable dolls originate back in 1959 (the handiwork of a Danish fisherman, too poor to buy his daughter a gift, instead carving for her a little troll from wood), and became a phenomenon in the 60s, they enjoyed a huge resurgence in popularity in the 90s, and most of today’s fans first discovered them in this era. Continue reading “‘GOOD LUCK’ TROLLS” »
KERI CHANNELS ‘OLD SCHOOL MADONNA’
April 6, 2011 by adenike
Filed under ARCHIVES, FASHION, LIFESTYLE, OLD SCHOOL IN THE NEWS
I spotted singer Keri Hilson chanelling ’80s Madonna’ at the 14th Annual Beautiful People Party recently.
The event, hosted by Paper Magazine and Guess, saw Ms Hilson wearing her underwear (bra) as outer wear, stone-washed denim and darkened roots with her golden blonde do.
And I thought it was only Lady Gaga doing impressions of Madge these days! Continue reading “KERI CHANNELS ‘OLD SCHOOL MADONNA’” »
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