time machine to the 90s

If you follow me on instagram you might have seen my sneak peek of this product, along with the caption "coming next week" ... a whopping 17 weeks ago. eek!

Well they are finally available, for real this time. Right here.

I've (obviously) been working on this for a quite a while and I'm so excited! I wanted to create a product that would feel like an actual time machine -- not just an item but an experience. When you first open the package, you'll see a link to a 90s playlist to listen to while you start looking through your time machine. The kit includes all of the sights, sounds, tastes and even smells needed to transport you back to your childhood.

I don't want to give much away since I think it would ruin the initial experience of reliving things that have been absent in your life for the last 20 years (or if you're an 00s kid with an affection for the 90s, experiencing these things for the very first time!) But suffice to say, there's candy and a boy band poster in every single box. The rest is like a mystery airhead candy -- you'll just have to open the package to find out what's inside! ;)

I miss the 90's.

I miss the 90's. Like, a lot.

I always do, but every once in a while that ache for days gone by seems to overwhelm me to the point where I feel genuinely upset that I can't go back. I'm going through one of those phases right now. Part of it is about being a kid... having a relatively carefree existence and having none of the problems that come with adolescence or adulthood. I look at the face in this photo and think "Oh gosh, young Kate. Enjoy your life now because in 2-3 years you'll have acne and periods and bras and unrequited crushes and terrible, terrible hair."

But it's also THE NINETIES. The decade itself. I am so incredibly happy to have been born just in time to have had a childhood completely devoid of anything related to the internet. Don't get me wrong, I do like the world wide web. I met most of my closest friends online, google searches have saved the day more times than I can count, and I make my living on etsy.

But I miss doing things without feeling that urgent need to share online. I miss waking up and NOT immediately checking my emails. Going a whole day without looking at my iphone or uploading something to instagram, or updating my facebook page. I long for a time in which none of my time was devoted to online sharing.

I miss the simplicity of early 90's technology... MS Paint and The Oregon Trail! And WordArt! I miss VHS tapes! I miss the video stores like Blockbuster and Hollywood Video. Going there always felt like such a treat, and the whole place would smell like popcorn. I miss the ads for movies coming soon to home video in 1993.

I miss scrunchies, peace signs, smiley faces, yin-yangs and daisies. POGS!! Remember Pogs?! I miss the mail order ads in magazines like Teen Beat. I always wanted glow in the dark lipstick but never got up the courage to ask my parents to let me buy it.

I miss jean jackets and tye dye. I miss Drew Barrymore with light hair and dark lipstick. I wanted to look like that so badly. I miss the commercials on tv that STILL are more cool and cutting edge than things that try to seem cool and cutting edge today. I miss the macarena.

I even miss school. Not middle school or high school (Dear God NO) but elementary school, where everything I learned still comes in handy to this day, where learning was fun and my teachers were all super friendly (if Mrs. Copeland is somehow reading this, you were my favorite!!) I miss the book fairs (obviously), recess, school trips and lunch. Airheads, pop tarts, dunkaroos, fruit roll ups, gushers and capri sun!

Thank goodness for modern technology, though. Oh, how terrible life would be if I couldn't watch old back to school commercials on youtube or Aaahh! Real Monsters on netflix instant. The internet allows nostalgia to thrive, so for that above all else, I love the world wide web.