THE 80’S STICKER PHENOMENON
There were lots of cool things to get into as a kid in the 80s. Toys, cartoons, movies, music, snacks and sports. The list goes on and on. Where could you find all of these awesome properties in one place you ask?? STICKERS!! Lots and lots of stickers!! And, the places where you could store these collections were also endless. Albums, books, bed frames, lockers, Trapper Keepers! In this article I want to share with you all 3 or 4 different kinds of stickers which I liked the best! Sit back, relax and hopefully some of the stickers that are featured here will stir up some memories. I hope you enjoy it! – KEN
PUFFY STICKERS
From your favorite cartoons and TV shows, to your favorite video games and snacks, these puffed up versions of stickers were always exciting to find in your local department store. Here in Southeast Wisconsin, we had stores like Shopko, Zayre, and KMart to just name a few. Hunting for stickers was just as exciting as finding a toy in my opinion!
SCRATCH AND SNIFF
In the world of 80s scratch and sniff stickers, Trend and Mello Smello were the kings in my opinion! I can remember going into the local Piggly Wiggly grocery store and seeing the abundance of vending machines in entrance/exit. You had your gumball machines, little trinkets, football helmets, and there they were! One of the machines had the little plastic bubbles, with about 2 or 3 scratch and sniff Trend stickers inside! I used to stick them across the wooden frame of the headboard on my bed. I can still smell that Cola sticker to this day.
HOLOGRAPHIC STICKERS
To me there was only one true king in the world of 80 holographic stickers. These stickers came by way of the company Colorforms and were called Lazer Blazers! These stickers generally came on a sheet and had 4 individual stickers. According to the back of the packaging the best way to view Lazer Blazers was to get a clear overhead source of light such as the sun or a spotlight. Experimenting with different light sources and positions was the best way obtain exciting images. The property licenses that Lazer Blazers had seemed to be endless. Some examples were Masters of the Universe, Gremlins, Barbie, Dungeons&Dragons, Michael Jackson and many more! There was even a Lazer Blazer Collector Album to store all of your stickers safely. Just looking at the awesome artwork on the packaging will take you back to your childhood!
STICKER ALBUMS
Finally, to round out the article, one of my favorite activities to do as a kid, was to collect and try to complete sticker albums. Two of the top players in the sticker album business was Panini and Topps. Panini was more in the way of pop culture, and Topps of course for sports. It was always fun to go into the store and buy a few packs of stickers to try and reach that journey of completing the whole book! It was also a pretty cheap hobby. 25 cents for a book! Count me in!
