We all know fashion trends are cyclical, and it seems like almost everything from the 90s has made a comeback. But hold up; a few gems from that glorious decade haven’t returned to the spotlight just yet. As avid 90s enthusiasts, we can’t help but wonder when these missing pieces of nostalgia will finally find their way back into our lives.
Trends come and go, and not everything from the 90s needs to make a comeback. But we can’t help but feel that the modern world would warmly embrace some of these forgotten treasures. The 90s was an epic decade that gifted us with many unforgettable trends. While some have made triumphant comebacks, a few hidden gems are still waiting to resurface!
One Redditor asked, “What’s a 90s thing that hasn’t come back in style yet?” This thread received thousands of comments, and we have listed the most interesting ones for you!
1. 90’s Pencils
A discerning Reddit user commented, “I’m sure they exist somwhere, but I haven’t seen those thermal pencils that change colors as they warm up in your hand in like, 10 years at least.”
Another replied, “Anyone remembers those stupid pencils that had all the little cap pieces, and each piece had a point on it, and when one point was gone, you would pull it out of the pencil and reinsert it at the top to push the next one down?”
Remember those cool pencils with designs all over them? We had everything from Lisa Frank patterns to superheroes, and they made writing way more fun than it should be. But now, all we’ve got are those boring, plain pencils.
2. Butterfly Hairclips
These cute little clips adorned many a hairstyle back in the day. Sure, we’ve got a ton of hair accessories now, but nothing has quite captured the delicate whimsy of butterfly clips. We are truly surprised they haven’t resurfaced alongside scrunchies and barrettes!
One said, “Those little butterfly hair clips. I’m waiting patiently.”
Someone else added, “The colourful ones, often with glitter.”
Another added, “Aww yess! When those come back, I am stocking up. Loved wearing those to catch those loose hairs at the back of the head when I have a high ponytail in.”
3. Cucumber and Melon Products
Back in the 90s, cucumber melon was the bomb diggity. You couldn’t walk into a mall without being hit by that sweet, refreshing aroma. Bath and Body Works, you know what we’re talking about! That place was a cucumber-melon paradise. Body lotions, shower gels, body sprays – you name it, they had it in cucumber melon, and we were all about it.
A Reddit user wrote, “Cucumber melon was the pumpkin spice of the 90s.”
Another person agreed to it and said, “My mom will be so happy when this comes back. She started stocking up in the early 2000s at Bath & Body Works on the cucumber melon verbena scent (I think that’s what it was? It’s been a while). She’s so disappointed that it’s looong gone and has been gone for a while. Wasn’t a bad scent by any means, but man, was it everywhere.”
4. ‘No Fear’ Logo
Back in the day, ‘No Fear’ was more than just a brand – it was a way of life. You’d see that fearless logo plastered on everything from T-shirts and hoodies to hats and stickers.
One Redditor stated, “No Fear shirts. Unless I’m wrong, I haven’t seen those in DECADES.”
Someone else replied, “I saw someone with a No Fear license plate the other day. My assumption is they were a time traveler.”
5. Monster Energy Shirts
A Reddit user wrote, “The target audience started wearing Monster Energy shirts, and the brand was never heard of again.”
Someone commented, “Interesting fact. Monster doesn’t sell t-shirts or merch, nor do they do any traditional marketing like print and commercials. 99.9% of those are made by a 3rd party and have the logo slightly changed such as a slight curve on one of the claw marks that would completely go unnoticed unless you closely compared it to the real logo.
The only people that have authentic Monster shirts either won them at an event or are a Monster employee or Monster athlete. Source: Roommate has worked in their marketing department for almost 13 years.”
You’d rock a Monster Energy tee with some ripped jeans or baggy cargo, and bam! You were the talk of the town!
6. Rolling Your Socks
Someone on Reddit said, “Rolling your socks down so they form some kind of sci-fi bubble around your ankle!”
Another responded, “Oh my God, I forgot that was a thing, brb doing it right now.”
One wrote, “My grandma was a grade-schooler in the 1930s. While watching my perfect my double-layer slouch socks during the 1980s she astonished me by describing the sock fad of her time- your SciFi bubble sock!”
Sure, we’ve got all sorts of sock styles and patterns these days, but none of them capture the same vibe as the rolled-down sock bubble.
7. Pop-Up Videos
One said, “POP UP VIDEO NEEDS TO COME BACK STAT.”
Another person added, “I can still hear the bubble sound effect.”
A user responded, “I wish I could even buy it on DVD. I loved that show so much, and I still remember a lot of the facts I learned watching it.”
Imagine watching a music video today, and suddenly, pop-up bubbles appear with hilarious facts and tidbits. It would be an instant hit, man.
8. Large Ball Chains
Someone shared, “Giant ball-bearing necklaces.”
Another person added, “A guy I went to school with had a motorcycle chain around his wrist. Thing is, he didn’t have any sort of neat latch. He just used a regular chain master link. So this dirty old piece of steel was permanently attached to his wrist. The only way to get it off was with a specialized tool and about half an hour’s work.
Come to think of it; he probably wouldn’t have been able to remove it at all. I’m sure that would have required a second set of hands to do.”
And the best part? You could customize them with epic pendants and charms. From tiny skulls and crosses to funky symbols and initials, you could personalize your chain!
9. Delia’s Catalog
This was the holy grail of fashion for us cool kids back then. If you were anyone worth your salt, you had a stash of Delia’s catalogs under your bed, ready to drool over the latest trends.
One wrote, “Delia’s catalog from the 90’s was the absolute epitome of cool back in the day.”
Another commented, “I worked there when they went out of business. At the store, we saw a Buzzfeed article saying we were going out of business. We had a conference call an hour later where they said, “DON’T WORRY GUYS WE’RE FINE BUZZFEED LIED.” The next day the liquidation company came in and had us start setting up signs. Fired everyone after liquidation and promptly opened back up online.”
10. JNCOs
Back in the day, JNCOs were the epitome of coolness. Those jeans had legs so wide you could fit a whole squad of friends in there. And you know what? We loved every inch of that baggy goodness!
One Reddit user wrote, “JNCOs and those annoying techno pants.”
Another added, “I always called them Tripp pants because that was just the brand I was familiar with. I had a couple pairs that I paid waaaay too much for, but I loved the stuff out of them. So many pockets, and the weight of them felt good, for some reason.”
11. Polly Pockets
Polly Pockets had everything from adorable houses and castles to cool beach hangouts and shopping malls. It was like collecting a whole universe of fun in your toy box. Each set was like a new adventure waiting to happen.
One wrote, “Polly Pockets! I had so many tiny dolls.”
Another person agreed to it and said, “As an adult, I played with a lot of Polly Pockets. The tiny, tiny ones with the cut little houses and then the larger ones that you could change the clothes on. I was in my 20s in the 90s, and PPs still remind me of great times playing with kids who are now adults in their 20s.”
12. Mighty Max
For those who don’t know, Mighty Max was like the ultimate pocket-sized adventure. It was this rad little playset that you could carry around with you wherever you went.
A Redditor wrote, “I miss Mighty Max.”
Someone else agreed and said, “Mighty Max was the King. I must have had about 20 of those sets, and probably logged hundreds, if not thousands, of hours into them.”
13. Discman
Someone said, “Sony Walkmans with anti-skip and bass boost.”
Another person shared similar thoughts and mentioned, “Ahhh Bass Boast. You had to make the decision to have bass or batteries that lasted longer than 1hr. I needed the bass.”
But somewhere along the way, the Discman seemed to fade away, leaving us with just memories of our beloved music companion.
14. Pogs
Someone commented, “Pogs should come back… in pog form.”
Another replied, “Opened this thread to say pogs! My brother and I had binders full of pogs in those special sleeves! Also, collecting stickers. Who else traded those glittery cat head stickers?”
We can already imagine the epic pogs tournaments that could be happening right now!
15. Big Dog Clothes
One user said, “As a child in the late 90’s received many Big Dog t-shirts from grandma.”
Someone else added, “I had a co-worker who had seen somebody wearing a “Big Dogs Don’t Fetch” shirt, and he wouldn’t stop talking about it for weeks (months?). When a few of us went to Vegas later, we bought this shirt for him as a souvenir, and when we gave it to him, he cried. He literally cried.”
Sure, we’ve got a ton of trendy brands out there, but none of them capture the same spirit as those Big Dog tees from the 90s.
16. Moon Shoes
Someone said, “Moon Shoes. Those need a reboot.”
It was like having your very own trampoline attached to your shoes – talk about a childhood dream come to life!
Another responded, “No, no child should have to deal with the disappointment of those plastic monstrosities ever again.”
Another person pitched in to say, “When I was a kid, I asked for those things every Christmas because I was very jealous of all my friends who had trampolines and got to experience the joy of jumping every day. It didn’t help that there was that one episode of Arthur with moon shoes where he actually manages something like a 6-foot vertical in those bad boys; obviously, I thought the portrayal of those was a little unrealistic, but still, I EXPECTED SOMETHING THAT WOULD SIMULATE A TRAMPOLINE.
So after 3 or 4 Christmases of asking for these things I finally got them, and was prepared to jump for joy as soon as I got them on. But when I put them on, THEY WERE LIKE TRYING TO WALK ON A MATTRESS!”
17. Overalls Fashion
A Reddit user commented, “Overalls with one strap unhooked. What the heck were we all thinking back then?”
Someone commented, “I stopped wearing overalls with only one strap hooked when some jerk on the school bus took the free one and tied it around the pole underneath my seat.”
Overalls with one strap unhooked from the 90s are the missing link in today’s fashion scene.
18. Rock Music
Back in the day, rock music was on fire. We had bands like Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and Soundgarden blasting through our CD players. The music was raw, rebellious, and full of emotion.
Someone said, “Rock music being the most popular genre.”
Another replied, “It didn’t matter where you specifically grew up, the rock music was the popular genre.”
A Redditor wrote, “Pop music has always been “popular” but rock music and all its sub genres (metal, classic, alternative) in the 90s was worldwide.”
19. Hyper-Color Shirts
Remember those tees and sweatshirts that changed color with body heat? If you had one, you were basically the coolest kid on the block.
Someone commented, “I mentioned this recently – my friends and I were trying to explain Hypercolor shirts to a younger friend, and she was so grossed out by the thought of a shirt changing color to highlight your sweatiest parts.”
Another responded, “Yeah, but this probably didn’t occur to people at the time until they’d actually bought them and worn them a bit…
This might explain why (from what I remember), the Hypercolor fad only lasted around five minutes. Also the fact that the effect- as The Adriator already noted- was very easily damaged by washing, which is what put me off the idea.
FWIW, a few years back I had what was supposed to be an absolutely plain, mid-blue t-shirt from Next. After I’d had it for quite a while and it was starting to fade, I noticed it would develop areas of pink (that would later disappear), typically where I was hot. It’s not clear whether that was actual heat sensitivity or a pH-type reaction to my sweat, though.”
20. Slap Bracelets
Slap bracelets came in all sorts of wicked patterns and prints. From neon colors and funky animal prints to shiny holographic ones, there was a slap bracelet for every mood and outfit!
A discerning Reddit user commented, “I have a Phantom Menace slap bracelet in my junk drawer. Which is kind of funny since they were popular in 1991, and I remember us looking at it as being nostalgic and retro in 1999.”
Another replied, “Because what could go wrong when a 12-year-old repeatedly hurls sharp metal at their wrist!”
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