Skip-It

Last night a few friends and I were reliving some childhood memories, recapping on all of the ridiculous toys we owned, used for a few weeks, and then left in our basements to be covered by dust. One of my favorite toys that falls into the category of being a fad was Skip-It. This plastic, 3 foot, pink object was worn over one's ankle. I remember there was a round object on the top of the plastic rod which one skipped over. This round object had a counter and the point of the game was to see how many times you could jump over the plastic rod in a row. I remember playing this game in my driveway with a few friends. The game often became monotonous and boring after it was played several days in a row, characteristics which probably explain why Skip-It is considered a fad.

Skip-It gained its popularity from enticing commercials boasting smiling children playing with the toy with all of their friends. Skip-it was popular at school, all of my friends owned one, even the boys, for it was manufactured in a blue color as well. Skip-It was cheap in price compared to most outrageous fad toys such as beanie babies and ribbon dancers. Skip-It became a fad because it was an original toy, I had seen nothing like it. Skip-It was easy to transport and could keep someone busy for many hours at a time, characteristics that make a fad toy.

Like many fads its increase in popularity was primarily due to the fact that every 6-10 year old child at the time had one. Skip-It's were often found sold out in stores and on back order.
Often times children felt as though they "needed" a Skip-It because they felt left out in their peer circle rather than actually wanting one. This idea is present in many passing fads. People don't necessarily want the product but, because many others have they feel as though they need it to fit in. Fads come and go, but the desire to always be included will never change.