Paileontology:
A history of the lunchbox
Lunchbox
Redux
Despite
the "death" of quality, they're slowly coming back. Thermos
slipped a few metal boxes into their lunch lines last season, and if
you take a look around department stores and gift shops, you might just
find some neo-nostalgia metal boxes by little-known names like the candy-filled,
made-in-China boxes of American Specialty Confections: Some are reissues
of classic designs of the past, others are new but with a retro look.
The other
thing is that some of the new aren't so bad. Although too many are still
just a standardized plastic box with a sticker slapped on it, some of
the Thermos fabric soft-sides like Winnie the Pooh are colorful and
fun. Or their whimsically-shaped Barbie Dream house. While the metal
boxes still seem aimed squarely at aging Baby Boomers, could it be that
the lunchbox as a form of popular art will rise again among elementary
school trendsetters?