Free Gift Transfers with Breakfast Cereals

Page Thirty of Fifty-one pages

Vita-Brits & Rice Crispies Sport Billy, 1982

Vita-Brits & Rice Crispies are Australian breakfast cereals (so for those of you who think I've misspelt "Krispies" — sorry to disappoint you).

It's hard to see what's going on here; there are two identical transfers in each pack, but they seem to be without backing tissues, & they're oddly transparent. Are they even Letraset (which is to say, Action Transfer Products)? It might be hard to think of another explanation, & yet…

Perhaps the fact they're a pair, back-to-back, implies that they form a loop, designed to slip over something — & not transfers at all. But what would they fit?

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Anyway, here they are, on the off-chance they might fit within our purview. Answers on a postcard, please!

(Message or email equally acceptable. Terms & conditions apply. Transfers may rub down as well as on.)

UPDATE: let's start again, shall we?

Sport Billy (& Sport Lilly) Shrinkles from Weeties, Vita-Brits & Rice Crispies, &… Eggs (1982)

Mary Severinghaus: "Earrings?"

Robert Welk: "I've got more info on this one, will post it here soon."

Action Transfers: "— EXCITEMENT!"

Robert Welk: "This is a confusing set. On the box it says 8 from Weeties and 8 from Vita-Brits, but on the Shrinkie packet it says 10 from Weeties and 10 from Vita-Brits and 5 from eggs, so 25 in total. I have 7 from Weeties, 8 from Vita-Brits and 4 from eggs, and to add to that the egg ones come in two sizes."

Robert Welk: "The ones with the blue writing on the cello packet came with eggs."

Action Transfers: "Wow. Well, that clears that up! I think this has to be put up for the 'Great Bad Ideas of History Hall of Fame'. Ironically, although they're clearly not transfers, they could just about still be by Letraset, who owned a shrinkies trademark… I'll go & remind myself which one… (meanwhile — thanks a million for sorting this, Robert!)"

Action Transfers: "UPDATE: Letraset's trademark was "Shrinkies", not "Shrinkles". Well… it was a long-shot!"

Robert Welk: "Glad to help. 👍"

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Original photo courtesy of Robert Welk

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Original photo courtesy of Robert Welk

For those of you unfamiliar with the terms, "Shrinkies", "Shrinkles", or "Shrinky-Dinks" were pieces of plastic that shrivelled-up when heated. They were designed to cash in on the observation that kids liked to put their crisp packets in the oven to shrink them. Honestly — you had to be there…

I believe that crisp packets will still shrink if placed in an oven at a very low heat, in case you'd like to try this for yourself — but I do not recommend it. Goodness knows what noxious chemicals might be released…!

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Picture Credit: The SPLAT Scan Archives — Robert Welk