Nineties kids will no doubt remember pleading for a Tamagotchi or Furby when they were fresh on the shelves, but there were plenty of other toys on the market that might have slipped your mind. We’ve brought toy expert Peter Jenkinson on board for a run-down of the toys that made the ’90s, but which often slip under the radar.
Read on to see how many of these ’90s toys made their way into the present pile or came home thanks to some weekend pocket money…
Magic Nursery Dolls
According to toy expert Peter Jenkinson, these dolls sat “somewhere between looking after a doll and conducting a minor scientific experiment”. With the magic of water, you could get to know your new baby by conducting your very own gender reveal (before they were trending) or uncovering a star-shaped birthmark.
Whether you opted for a toddler, baby or a newborn there was always a surprise waiting in store. Dissolving a toddler’s robe, for example, provides a gender reveal card and a new outfit – a bit of ritualistic fun for all the family!
Through the ’90s and into the ’00s, Baby Born was the ultimate birthday gift
Baby Born
Motherhood is a hefty responsibility, even if you’re still learning how to write your own name. Breakfast, nursery rhymes and 24/7 caretaking became everyone’s problem with the introduction of Baby Born in 1991.
As Peter explains, they were “designed around caring for a realistic baby – feeding, bathing, dressing and putting her to bed. As a child you could spend hours lovingly looking after your plastic baby while simultaneously refusing to tidy your actual bedroom.” With enough accessories to turn your room “into a tiny maternity ward”, it’s no wonder the doll took over the ’90s toy market.
Monster in My Pocket
Loom bands and Pokémon cards might have filled children’s pockets in later years – together with the usual pebbles and conkers gathered from the floor – but Monster in My Pocket were the toe-stabbing pick your parent’s feared during the ’90s.
“Tiny rubber monsters based on myths and legends lived permanently in overstuffed pockets, ready for those epic lunch time battles,” Peter explains. “The rules were easy but utterly ridiculous: ‘My Griffin beats your Zombie because it’s Tuesday!'”
Puppy In My Pocket
Pocket pals were all the rage in the ’90s it seems. These canine companions were easily portable and the sort of pocket money treat that kids crazed. Begging your parents to stop by the toy shop never felt quite so high stakes.
Our toy expert explains that it was the details that made them a hit: “They were tiny and came with names and little cards, meaning you didn’t simply own a plastic dog, you’d started a collection”. They were so successful that the 2015 relaunch included bracelets you could clip the pups onto, making them even more of a hit.
Cupcake Dolls
“These dolls were associated with sweet, fruity scents and elaborate hair,” Peter explains, “and [included]different characters inspired by various flavours.” The dolls burst out of their cupcake containers, ddonning an icing hat and turning the paper case into a skirt, together with an appropriately sweet scent.
As our toy expert explains, it’s the scent that had kids coming back for more and gets adults feeling all nostalgic about their pastry-scented youth. Apparently, a strawberry smell could tell you a lot about a person in the ’90s.
Not to fear ’60s kids, the original Sindy doll is all yours! Fortunately, ’90s kids could lay claim to their own version of the hit toy, fit for the modern age. “Hasbro gave her an increasingly modern wardrobe,” our toy expert says, “with releases includingTop Model Sindy, Dreamtime Sindy, Beach Dazzle Sindy and Rainbow Sindy. She even got a mountain bike.”
Special editions added an extra layer of fun, including 1995’s Magic Eyes Sindy (no prizes for guessing the magic was movement). Peter suggests heading over to eBay sharpish if you happen to have one of these cult favourites lying around…
Street Sharks
Street-fighting sharks might seem an improbable pitch to make it out of the boardroom, but in a world where ninja turtles found meteoric success there are surely no barriers. Peter explains that everyone was shouting “Jawsome!” on ’90s playgrounds, thanks to these “muscle-bound, wise-cracking sharks that burst onto the toy scene with enormous jaws, exaggerated muscles and action features that could launch a sibling across your living room”.
While ’90s kids might have forgotten about them, Mattel was happy enough to remind us of these aquatic action heroes with a 30th anniversary release in 2024 and a new IDW Publishing comic series in 2025.
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