In case you hadn’t noticed, the nineties have officially made a comeback.
Cardigans, knee-high socks, claw clips, and cargo pants – the vibe is back, and having grown up in that decade, my feelings are mixed. Bring back the music though, and I’m in.
Here are 10 very specific things you’ll remember if you grew up in the '90s.
Feast ice-creams
Over the years my brother and I would scour petrol stations and corner stores hoping to find the classic Feast ice-cream, the iconic treat of our childhood. One might look forward to the chocolate bit at the bottom of a Drumstick cone, but there was nothing quite like the solid chocolate brick in the centre of a Feast.
Combine that with the crunchy biscuit pieces embedded into the crisp chocolate coating and you’ve got an ice cream to remember.
Collecting Hot Wheels
What '90s kid wasn’t into collectibles? Action figures, yo-yos, slap bands, and of course, Hot Wheels® (it was all about the Surf Patrol series for me). If you were lucky, you’d also have one of those cool display cases to show off your collection.
This October, your own kids will actually have the chance to see what all the fuss was about. Across South Australia and Queensland throughout October, Drakes Supermarkets will be serving up pure nostalgia by giving free collectible Hot Wheels® with every $60 shop. Not sure who this excites more, myself or my kids!
They've teamed up with Mattel® to introduce these 15 exclusive, never-before sold Hot Wheels® cars to Australia. And they're giving customers the chance also to win awesome Hot Wheels® prizes including... your height in cars.
You read that right. The child in me is already planning the cabinet to display them in.
Colour-changing clothes and accessories
Hypercolour t-shirts were all the rage in the '90s. Big and bulky, and not at all flattering (especially when tucked into clunky denim shorts and paired with socks and runners), anyone who was anyone had a shirt that changed colour with the weather.
And if t-shirts weren’t your thing, mood rings promised to show off your temperament, changing colour based on the temperature of the person wearing it. Super fun.
Wanting to date Daniel Johns (and thinking it was possible)
When Silverchair smashed into the Australian music scene, Daniel Johns was only a couple of years older than I was. While the band’s music paid homage to some of my favourites, like Pearl Jam and Nirvana, these Aussie boys seemed a bit more accessible. With plans to form my own band with my girlfriends (lol) and eventually perform at the Big Day Out (day time sets of course), meeting and dating Daniel Johns seemed an entirely realistic option.
I may or may not have made a deal with the universe to repeat Year 10 in exchange for one date.
Marbles
Break time at primary school was all about marbles, and winning enough games to claim as many of your friends’ marbles as possible. Preferably not the cat’s eyes though, they were a dime a dozen. It was all about the blood-suckers, the steelies, the clearies, and the pearlies. Even better if you had one of these rarities in Tom bowler size (the huge ones! IYKYK).
Making mixed tapes
Kids today take for granted their ability to listen to a variety of different songs by different artists whenever they want. Back in the day, we had to do it ourselves. Friday nights meant setting up our tape recorder with a fresh blank tape ready for the Top 50 to begin, so we could quickly hit record at the start of our chosen song.
To this day, when I hear Pearl Jam’s Daughter, my mind morphs the end of the song into Hip Hip Holiday by 3 The Hard Way, per my favourite mixed tape, circa 1993.
Covering your walls with magazine cut-outs
For years, I was banned from putting Blu-tac on my bedroom walls, but as with all teenagers, give an inch, and they’ll take a mile. And once that door was open, magazine-cutouts became my wallpaper. I’m talking bands, movie stars, and of course, a selection of the cute male models (all with long, blonde hair) that filled the pages of Dolly and Girlfriend magazines.
Grunge
Grunge wasn’t just about the music (although I say it remains one of the greatest music genres of all time), it was a lifestyle. It was long, messy hair, flannelette shirts and heavy boots. It was music festivals and non-conformity and a persona of deliberate indifference.
Grunge smelled like teen spirit.
Describing cool things as ‘filthy’
What’s now 'sick' was once 'filthy', or 'filth', depending on the specific level of praise you wanted to give a person or thing. I remember a friend telling my mum her table cloth was filthy, prompting Mum to chuck it in the washing machine. A bit like when I asked my kid what the stakes were when he responded 'bet' to some good news.
Tiger stripe or chunky foils
The year was 1995 and foils were the fab new way to change up the colour of your hair (step aside Sun-In). Quite unlike the foils of today, you either ended up with tiger stripes (both in colour and style) or a chunky strip at the front of each side. I went for the latter and loved myself sick.
And what-do-you-know, a version of this look did, in fact, make a comeback recently.
Collect all 15 free exclusive Hot Wheels® cars with every $60 shop at Drakes Supermarkets. But be quick! Ends 15th November or while stocks last.
T&Cs apply.
Feature Image: Booktopia/eBay/Getty.