A Gallery of Ridiculous Lisa Frank Designs to Take You Back

ByPaul Posted on

I’m unclear as to why I’m posting this, but I’ve had the urge to make a Lisa Frank gallery for some time now. It’s nostalgia inducing, not cause I owned any products, but because in every elementary school class I had every girl had piles of this stuff which was so bright it apparently seared its way into my permanent memory files.

Sure elementary school girls now don’t like rainbow colored lover penguins as much as they used to, as kids are growing up faster and faster these days, but these pictures remind me of a simpler time. Although the designs are anything but simple as they take the word “taste” and beat it to death with a box of neon magic markers.

Check out the full gallery below, and ladies (or guys I guess) call out which of these designs you owned. 

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I think I'm a part of the first generation of journalists to skip print media entirely, and I've learned a lot these last few years at Forbes. My work has appeared on TVOvermind, IGN, and most importantly, a segment on The Colbert Report at one point.

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16 Comments

  5. I think my eyes are bleeding… Yes, yes they are!

    In all seriousness, my eyes are stinging a bit after scrolling through the many horrifically colorful folders, notebooks, journals, etc… I actually do remember seeing some of those when I was much, much younger. Strange what the mind can recall after seeing something for the first time in 15-20 years. The girls may have had their fair share of neon bright novelties, but I certainly remember having a number of Jurassic Park trapper keepers and whatnot, as well. That being said, I think even I had a few things that I might hit myself for having owned, even if Jurassic Park was way cooler!!! lol

  6. Best. Flashback. Ever.
    Now to find some eyedrops.

    Whenever I would get a good report card (back in the 90’s) my mom would take me to Target and let me pick some Lisa Frank shit out.

    Damn when I came to school with those rainbow ABC stickers… Man, how many times can you spell out I Love JTT on your Trapper Keeper..

  7. Wow, I’m totally recognizing a few of the designs up there as being on things I owned. The brightness, it burns!

    The sad part is this stuff was all the rage in 6th grade (way back in 94 yo!) yet girls of the same age today wouldn’t be caught dead with it. Damn young whipper-snappers trying to act all grown up.

    Also damn you cause I had to Google Lisa Frank and her official website is burning my retinas!

  10. if it had unicorns on it… i had it. scarily enough, I think up until a year ago, I still had some lisa frank folders that were holding old school stuff in a box I hadn’t opened since middle school. (to put that in context, i’m 4 years out of college now).

  11. Here’s the thing peeps, girls these days WOULD be caught dead with this stuff because at least half of these designs are relatively new. Lisa Frank is still an operating business and anything with a web address on the back can’t be that old. They never would have designed those ugly-ass Bratz-esque, big-headed girls back in the day.
    That being said I still LOVE Lisa Frank and thanks for the post. 😀

  12. WOW. I forgot about Lisa Frank until someone mentioned her art work on a youtube video for the cartoon band Dethklock. Their tv show is called Metalocalypse, it is very ‘metal’ if you know what i mean. BUT one of the characters Toki has this style of artwork with candy skulls and cutesy stuff when ever he sings a song.
    Point being im stoked i found Lisa Frank. and im 34 =P

  14. Stephanie: I was thinking the same thing. Then I remembered, I have seen this big head Bratz style designs while shopping for school supplies for my kid sister who is 20 yrs younger than myself. I was very surprised to see Lisa was still making this stuff.

    I had a binder or Trapper Keeper with the golden retriever pups. I remember all of the girls in my elementary school had this stuff. The strangest one that bothered me even as a child, was the folder showing a bride cat with a groom dog.

    Thanks for the memories!

  15. I loved Lisa Frank growing up and still love it. I have been out of high school for 3 years. I still have a whole bunch of folders and binders and coloring books. I even still buy a folder every now and again. All the bright colors make me smile in a time that I want to cry all the time.

  16. My favorites were the ballerina bunnies and CLEOCATRA! Man I was so cool in grade school. XD Lisa Frank is very unique, I haven’t seen any copy-cat products. Maybe no one is brave enough to ride the trippy train?

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