DAKOTA DURAN
Trinkets, or small collectible ornaments, have become popular among USF students. For some collectors, the thrill is in the mystery of the blind box. These come from brands like Sonny Angels, Smiskis, Mofusands and Labubus. Other trinket lovers simply enjoy holding onto pieces from their travels or experiences.
Across the board, trinket-loving students report a whimsical joy in carrying a tiny item that holds deep meaning.
“There’s something about blind boxes where it’s addicting in a way,” said senior media studies major Ella Brohm. “It’s kind of like gambling if you think about it, I think [blind boxes] are supposed to naturally draw you in,” she said.
Brohm has been collecting trinkets since she was a child. She used to collect Shopkins: tiny, squishy personified food figures. Shopkins were the best selling toy in the United States in 2015. She discovered Sonny Angels, a naked baby boy figurine that resembles the Japanese Kewpie Mayo character, in 2017. “I found out about Sonny Angels pretty much before the hype,” Brohm said. “There’s this one store in my hometown that’s a trinket store, and they sold them. I thought, ‘Oh what is this? This is cool.’”
Brohm has a pegboard in her room dedicated to all of her finds. The top shelf displays a blueish gray bunny candle, a plush Sanrio Character, a pop-it fidget toy and a “Hello” album CD decorated with heart stickers. The rest of the board is full of art pieces by Yoshitomo Nara, Calico Critters, pictures of her favorite K-pop stars and Sanrio keychains. “Consumerism, they got me,” she said.
Other students use trinkets to decorate their belongings. Jasper Wu, a senior nursing major, has Smiskis – green, glow-in-the-dark figurines with different faces on them – placed on his phone and laptop. “It’s a statement piece,” he said. “I refer to them as my children.”
Wu also decorates his dorm with Smiskis. “They’re useful. I can go to the bathroom in the middle of the night, and I don’t need to turn on the light because they’re glowing,” he said. Around 30 figures illuminate the dorm, each one with a different face and posture. “A lot of them were gifted, so I didn’t use my own money. But I went to Japan this summer, so I bought a lot there,” said Wu.
Mofusands, personified cat figurines, and Labubus, furry plush dolls that look like monsters, can be spotted dangling on backpacks or stuck to phone cases all over campus. Ngoc Tran, junior international business major, has both. “My cousin likes Labubus a lot, so I got her a set for her birthday, and then she gave one of them to me,” she said. Tran carries a gray Labubu, which she got in Vietnam, with squinted eyes and a mischievous smile, on her backpack, and has a lobster themed Mofusand on her phone. “I already decorated all of my other items, so why not these too?” she said.
While Mofusands and Labubus have gained recent popularity, Smiskis and Sonny Angels have been popular for years, especially in San Francisco. Kinokuniya, a Japanese bookstore located in Japantown, is a notable place to shop for them.
“I started working here a year ago, but the store has been selling them since around 2022 I believe, especially because that’s when they got more popular on TikTok,” said Haruka Hanlon, Kinokuniya clerk. “The popularity is what made us increase our price,” she said. Their storefront window displays an array of Sonny Angels, each shelf showing a doll from a different collection, with a “sold out” sign emblazoned across the window.
“It’s been awhile since I’ve been inside Kinokuniya because I know the price of Sonny’s and Smiskis went up. The last time I went they were roughly $11 to $12,” said Laura Stevenson, a senior media studies major. “I think collecting trinkets has become such a popular activity that stores are starting to recognize the increase in demand, which results in price markup,” Stevenson said.
Smiskis are still available at Kinokuniya, though less accessible now. “We started selling them over the counter because people began to steal them, so they have to ask for them now,” Hanlon said.
While some students enjoy rolling the dice on blind boxes, others enjoy collecting trinkets to remind themselves of fond memories, embrace their personalities or show off a gift from a loved one.
Tamara Perera, sophomore chemistry major, uses her trinkets as keychains. “I feel like when I’m walking around, people can know more about me, even though I don’t know them,” she said. Perera gets her ornaments from bookstores, events or as a souvenir when she visits a new country. “I have an Ice Bear, because I watched that cartoon when I was younger. The birdie is because my favorite sport is badminton and then a ‘T’ because my name starts with ‘T,’” Perera said. “I feel like I have a really outgoing personality with lots of hobbies, and I feel like putting that on my bag showcases that.”
USF students love knick knacks, and so does social media. Online creators post “unboxing hauls,” showing which new trinket they’re adding to their collection and where to find them. On Pinterest, boards showcase trinkets on rooms, bags and electronics. Content creator Millie Liao shows off her trinkets in her YouTube vlogs, showing her 228 thousand subscribers how she places them in her Yale University dorm room or on a vintage bag.
In an interview with the Foghorn she said, “I just love trinkets because they are like tiny little capsules of memories. It’s a way to add personal touches to your life, and each individual little trinket I collect has its own memory, place, and time in my life that I begin to associate it with.”
On her bubblegum pink Prada bag, Liao carries a Monchhichi, a stuffed monkey toy with a hot pink satin bow and bib, which was gifted to her by her friends on her birthday her freshman year of college. The Monchhichi is accompanied by a little lucky cat charm from Liao’s summer trip to Japan and three stackable clay turtles, a gift from her grandma. The turtles represent the culture and connection between three generations of women in her family.
“They can be silly, they can be deep and meaningful, but all of them are undeniably me,” she said.
Editor-in-Chief: Jordan Premmer, Chief Copy Editor: Sophia McCrackin, Managing Editor: Jordan DelFiugo, Opinion Editor: Dakota Duran, Scene Editor: Elina Graham
