Being a child in the 80s and 90s was an experience. Lisa Frank binders. Running home to watch your favorite shows because DVR and streaming didn’t exist. Commercials. Playing with friends without the internet tempting you away from playing make-believe.
That’s what I wanted to channel with this line of designs. They are a mix of Fresh Prince + Saved by the Bell + Lisa Frank, and they are the embodiment of my childhood aesthetic.
The Memphis Design of the 80s and early 90s
I went down a rabbit hole of design history with this one. What started off as googling “90s geometric design” ended with me learning that this is called “Memphis Design” or the “Memphis Pattern.”
Associated with Italian design group The Memphis Group, the loud, bold, and vibrant style was meant to counter the minimalism that had been popular at the time. How did a group of Italian designers come to name themselves The Memphis Group? The name was inspired by a Bob Dylan song that was playing on repeat during their first meeting: “Stuck inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again.” Here’s the song if you’re curious:
Isn’t that wild? And now you know random 80s trivia (and I also learned that this is more of an 80s design even though I was looking for a 90s aesthetic, but I’m going to put it all into my childhood anyway since I was born in 1986).
The fonts and colors for these were inspired by Saved by the Bell and Fresh Prince. If I had any skill with animating, I would make them wiggle like the letters did on those shows!
The Iconic 90s Rainbow and Script
Now this is definitely 90s. Handwritten. Rainbow. Alllll the back to school memories.
All of these designs are available on Teepublic!
And, if you’re looking at the stickers… HOLOGRAPHIC.
These holographic stickers are only available on Etsy though.
You can’t do 90s without holographic.
Take me back to the Trapper Keeper days. I want to stick these all over my binder, please.
This One is Super Subtle…
I think you have to look for it with this one. Like, squint your eyes and really look for it.
Here’s the Etsy link to the sticker!
I kept the same vibrant colors that I used in the “Reading is Magic” Rainbow Script set (I’m pretty sure this is the color palette of Gen X and Millennial joy), and did a twist on the old MTV Logo.
Don’t forget to check out my Redbubble, Teepublic, and Society6 to see these designs on more than just stickers!
Do you see it? This one may be my favorite of all of them. The colors make me so happy!
This whole set brought me so much joy. And in case you’re new here and you’re wondering: yes, I drew these all myself! These are digitally hand-drawn on my iPad through the Procreate app.
Artists, I highly recommend revisiting the styles of your childhood if you’re looking for a little serotonin boost!
NLD x Swapna 