My New Collection- Scents of my Childhood

[Wee67]

No. Not really.

But I was wondering about which scents take me back to my childhood. Which scents would take you back? And IF I were to start a collection of 70s smells, what would you suggest for the collection?

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[Werewolf]

Strawberry Shortcake dolls.

[Mikey]

Back in the day (early-mid 70's) had a (scratch-and sniff) Book

A few of the stories were Song of the South, The Piped Piper, Pinocchio +--- among others

One of the scratch-and-sniff's was a "custard pie"

Have no idea what that was but to this day, I would eat that without question

For toy smell it would have to be Action Jackson

My older sis and mom took me for a ride to Staten Island … Think they were looking at cemeteries (don't ask me why)…

Had a CRAZY bad headache so they stopped at a local Tchotchke stop and bought me an Action Jackson to sooth my headache ---instead, the smell of plastic made it even worse.

To this day, I HATE ACTION JACKSON

[Makernaut]

The mixed smells of bubble gum, cardboard, ink, and wax paper when I bought a pack of baseball or football cards. Sniffing the cards was always so satisfying.

[thunderbolt]

The driving by Burger King smell.

[Wee67]

Back in the day (early-mid 70's) had a (scratch-and sniff) Book

Those 70s scratch n sniffs had very particular versions of each smell. It wasn't quite root beer, but it was definitely root beer-adjacent.

The mixed smells of bubble gum, cardboard, ink, and wax paper when I bought a pack of baseball or football cards. Sniffing the cards was always so satisfying.

That's a good one! I can specifically remember that unique combination.

[Bruce Banner]

The scent of the gum from a newly opened wax pack of trading cards.

The scent of a new Star wars figure freshly removed from the bubble & card.

Those fruit-scented novelty erasers & pencil-toppers that came in a variety of shapes and sizes.

The newsprint smell of a Warren or Marvel magazine.

[Duncan]

I was thinking pencil grips, scented markers, and mimeographs. Then there was the scratch & sniff Xmas book...I remember a strong pine scent, and maybe chocolate.

Thinking about it more, my sense of smell was probably lacking back then due to second-hand smoke. Most of the smells that I remember are pretty strong, rather than subtle. I noticed about 20 years ago, when the public smoking bans became more popular, that I was suddenly smelling a lot more scents. I recently bought candles & incense for the man-cave, and I like em. This is cool. But it also drives the wife crazy...I'll catch a whiff of something odd and walk around trying to ID it. We flipped the heat on 2 weeks ago, and the scent of dust burning off of the furnace (think, hotel room electric heater smell) hit me as soon as I walked upstairs. It dissipated quickly, but I still had to quiz the wife.

[Wee67]

Thinking about it more, my sense of smell was probably lacking back then due to second-hand smoke. Most of the smells that I remember are pretty strong, rather than subtle.

That's very interesting. I wonder how many of us were affected by second-hand smoke. I also had a diminished sense of smell, but not from cigarette smoke. I had a sinus infection at a young age and i think it affected my sense of smell, along with my ability to truly enjoy pizza buns in the elementary school cafeteria. (I had to learn not to say "I don't smell too well") That said, I clearly

[Earth 2 Chris]

The smell of hot asphalt in the parking lot of Eastside Pharmacy, up the street from my house, where I bought nearly all my comics and rack toys.

[palitoy]

There was a weird beer store in Niagara Falls, NY that smelled exactly like the variety store I bought comics from in the mid-70s. I would occasionally walk in there to buy bottled water just to hit that nostalgia button.

[Mikey]

Brand new Denim jeans smell

Nothing like it and will stay with you until they are washed at least twice

Today that smell is absent

Maybe they changed the dyes to be nontoxic

[Wee67]

Brand new Denim jeans smell

Nothing like it and will stay with you until they are washed at least twice

Today that smell is absent

Maybe they changed the dyes to be nontoxic

It's not my 70s childhood, but as a teenage Gap employee at the Oxford Valley Mall in Langhorne (you ever make it that far south, Mikey?), I remember the distinct smell of the new clothes. They were delivered in these big classic crates with interlocking lids. As soon as you opened the lids, it released a combination of chemicals and cloth smell that will always be with me. The unwashed jeans did have a particular smell. For some time, the move had been to pre-washed jeans, so most of our inventory included those. In fact, the unwashed cost $5-10 less.

[Makernaut]

There was a weird beer store in Niagara Falls, NY that smelled exactly like the variety store I bought comics from in the mid-70s. I would occasionally walk in there to buy bottled water just to hit that nostalgia button.

There was a "variety store" smell for sure. I remember TG&Ys and Ben Franklin Stores having a distinct smell to them and occasionally I catch something close enough in a store to make me remember that. The drug store I went into a lot as a kid is still open and still has a soda fountain and lunch counter (the comics are long gone, though). It still has a similar smell to what I remember in the early 80s. It's still as well-kept as it was then, but it has the same pleasant-ish mix of smells.

[palitoy]

Good point, my local SS Kresge and CO, thanks to it's lunch counter had a smell unlike no other, combine that with rubber mask smell? Paradise.