A novelty item or simply novelty is an object which is specifically designed to serve no practical purpose, and is sold for its uniqueness, humor, or simply as something new (hence " novelty", or newness). The term also applies to practical items with fanciful or nonfunctional additions, such as novelty

apron An apron is a garment that is worn over other clothing to cover the front of the body. The word comes from old French ''napron'' meaning a small piece of cloth, however over time "a napron" became "an apron", through a linguistics process cal ...

s, slippers, or

toilet paper Toilet paper (sometimes called toilet tissue or bathroom tissue) is a tissue paper product primarily used to clean the anus and surrounding anal region of feces after defecation, and to clean the perineal area and external genitalia of ur ...

. The term is normally applied to small objects, and is generally not used to describe larger items such as roadside attractions. Items may have an

advertising Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a product or service. Advertising aims to put a product or service in the spotlight in hopes of drawing it attention from consumers. It is typically used to promote a ...

or promotional purpose, or be a souvenir.

Usage

This term covers a range of small manufactured goods, such as collectables, gadgets and

executive toy An office toy (also known as an executive toy or a desk toy) is a novelty item typically placed on the desk of a corporate executive or other office worker. They have no work-related function, but are often intended to provide decoration or pleasu ...

s. Novelty items are generally devices that do not primarily have a practical function.

Toy A toy or plaything is an object that is used primarily to provide entertainment. Simple examples include toy blocks, board games, and dolls. Toys are often designed for use by children, although many are designed specifically for adults and pe ...

s for adults are often classed as novelties. Some products have a brief period as a novelty item when they are actually new, only to become an established, commonly used product, such as the Hula Hoop or the Frisbee. Others may have an educational element, such as a

Crookes radiometer The Crookes radiometer (also known as a light mill) consists of an airtight glass bulb containing a partial vacuum, with a set of vanes which are mounted on a spindle inside. The vanes rotate when exposed to light, with faster rotation for more i ...

Newton's cradle The Newton's cradle is a device that demonstrates the conservation of momentum and the conservation of energy with swinging spheres. When one sphere at the end is lifted and released, it strikes the stationary spheres, transmitting a force thro ...

, or

drinking bird Drinking birds, also known as insatiable birdies, dunking birds, drinky birds, water birds, dipping birds, and “Sippy Chickens” are toy heat engines that mimic the motions of a bird drinking from a water source. They are sometimes incorrect ...

Sex toys A sex toy is an object or device that is primarily used to facilitate human sexual pleasure, such as a dildo, artificial vagina or vibrator. Many popular sex toys are designed to resemble human genitals, and may be vibrating or non-vibrating ...

are often described as novelty items (varying from this definition, as they do serve a practical purpose), and some products sold in

sex shops A sex shop is a retailer that sells products related to adult sexual or erotic entertainment, such as sex toys, lingerie, pornography, and other related products. An early precursor of the modern sex shop was a chain of stores set up in th ...

may not have any practical sexual function, if operating primarily as a humorous gift, such as

sex dice Sex dice is a dice game intended to heighten the sexual atmosphere and promote foreplay. Instead of numbers, each face on the dice contains the name of a body part; the body part that faces up when the die is rolled must then be given sexual atte ...

. Some food products may be considered novelty items, especially when first introduced, such as

deep-fried Mars bar A deep-fried Mars bar (also known as a battered Mars Bar) is a Mars-brand chocolate bar covered in batter then deep fried in oil. The dish originated at a chip shop in Scotland as a novelty item. Since various mass media began reporting on the ...

History

The French mathematician and astronomer

Pierre Hérigone Pierre Hérigone (Latinized as Petrus Herigonius) (1580–1643) was a French mathematician and astronomer. Of Basque origin, Hérigone taught in Paris for most of his life. Works Only one work by Hérigone is known to exist: ''Cursus mathematicu ...

(1580–1643) describes a novelty item that was a

camera obscura A camera obscura (; ) is a darkened room with a small hole or lens at one side through which an image is projected onto a wall or table opposite the hole. ''Camera obscura'' can also refer to analogous constructions such as a box or tent in ...

in the form of a goblet. Hérigone's device was constructed so that the user could spy on others while taking a drink. Its 45-degree mirror had a stylized opening for the lens and the lid bore a magnifying lens at the top. Lenticular printing was developed in the 1940s, and is used extensively in the production of novelty items.

Paper clothing Paper clothing describes garments and accessories made from paper or paper substitutes. The earliest known paper clothing was made by Japanese craftspeople in the 10th century BCE, usually from washi paper, and called ''kamiko''. ''Kamiko'' becam ...

, which has some practical purpose, was briefly novel in the United States in the 1960s. One of the more popular novelty items in recent history was the singing

Big Mouth Billy Bass Big Mouth Billy Bass is an animatronic singing prop, representing a largemouth bass, invented by Gemmy Industries on December 16, 1998; sold beginning January 1, 1999; and popular in the early 2000s. Gemmy Industries Gemmy (IPA : ) is an Americ ...

, manufactured by

Gemmy Industries Big Mouth Billy Bass is an animatronic singing prop, representing a largemouth bass, invented by Gemmy Industries on December 16, 1998; sold beginning January 1, 1999; and popular in the early 2000s. Gemmy Industries Gemmy (IPA : ) is an Americ ...

. It is estimated that over 20 million original pieces were sold in 12 months during 2000 and 2001. Novelty items based on mathematical objects, such as Klein bottles and

Penrose triangle The Penrose triangle, also known as the Penrose tribar, the impossible tribar, or the impossible triangle, is a triangular impossible object, an optical illusion consisting of an object which can be depicted in a perspective drawing, but cannot ...

s, have been manufactured. Models of

Möbius strip In mathematics, a Möbius strip, Möbius band, or Möbius loop is a surface that can be formed by attaching the ends of a strip of paper together with a half-twist. As a mathematical object, it was discovered by Johann Benedict Listing and Aug ...

s are sometimes made in place of regular bands, such as rings.

List of novelty items

* Bobblehead *

Bubble pipe A bubble pipe is a toy shaped like a tobacco pipe, intended to be used for blowing soap bubbles. Design Bubble pipes are one of the original bubble toys, Most bubble pipes are made of plastic and therefore cannot be used for actual tobacco sm ...

* BunaB *

Chattering teeth Chattering teeth is a bodily function in animals that occurs primarily in response to cold; the jaw muscles begin to shiver leading teeth to crash together. It may also occur as a result of bruxism where emotional stress causes the jaw movements. C ...

Cheesehead Cheesehead is a nickname in the United States for a person from Wisconsin or for a fan of the Green Bay Packers NFL football franchise. Current usage Wisconsin is associated with cheese because the state historically produced more dairy product ...

Chinese finger trap A Chinese finger trap (also known as a Chinese finger puzzle, Chinese thumb cuff, Chinese handcuffs, and similar variants) is a gag toy used to play a practical joke on unsuspecting children and adults. The finger trap is a simple puzzle that ...

Deely bobber A deely bobber (also deeley bobber, or deeley bopper) is a novelty item of headgear comprising a headband to which are affixed two springy protrusions resembling the antennae of insects. These "antennae" may be topped with simple plastic shapes ...

Drinking bird Drinking birds, also known as insatiable birdies, dunking birds, drinky birds, water birds, dipping birds, and “Sippy Chickens” are toy heat engines that mimic the motions of a bird drinking from a water source. They are sometimes incorrect ...

* Dehydrated water * Expandable water toy * Garden gnome * Groucho glasses *

Horse head mask The horse head mask is a latex mask representing a horse head originally manufactured by novelty purveyor Archie McPhee, and now widely available from other manufacturers. It covers the entire head and is typically part of a Halloween costume ...

* Joy buzzer * Kit-Cat Klock *

Lava lamp A lava lamp is a decorative lamp, invented in 1963 by British entrepreneur Edward Craven Walker, the founder of the lighting company Mathmos. It consists of a bolus of a special coloured wax mixture inside a glass vessel, the remainder of whi ...

Magic 8-Ball The Magic 8 Ball is a plastic sphere, made to look like an oversized , that is used for fortune-telling or seeking advice. It was invented in 1946 by Albert C. Carter and Abe Bookman and is currently manufactured by Mattel. The user asks a yes– ...

Mexican jumping bean Mexican jumping beans (also known as ' in Spanish) are seed pods that have been inhabited by the larva of a small moth ('' Cydia saltitans'') and are native to Mexico. The "bean" is usually tan to brown. They are from the shrub '' Sebastiania p ...

* New Year's glasses *

* Novelty lighter * Pet Rock * Plasma globe *

Plastic flamingo Pink plastic flamingos are a common lawn ornament in the United States made of plastic. History Union Products The American artist Don Featherstone designed the pink lawn flamingo in 1957, naming the first Diego. His lawn flamingo, mass-produc ...

* Propeller beanie * Radio hat, while a practical item, was a novelty when it first appeared *

Silly Putty Silly Putty is a toy based on silicone polymers that have unusual physical properties. It bounces, but it breaks when given a sharp blow, and it can also flow like a liquid. It contains a viscoelastic liquid silicone, a type of non-Newtonian fl ...

* Slime * Slinky * Snow globe * Squirmle *

Talking clock A talking clock (also called a speaking clock and an auditory clock) is a timekeeping device that presents the time as sounds. It may present the time solely as sounds, such as a phone-based time service (see "Speaking clock") or a clock for the vi ...

* Toffee hammer * Trammel of Archimedes * Umbrella hat *

Useless machine A useless machine or useless box is a device which has a function but its direct purpose is deliberately unknown. The best-known useless machines are those inspired by Marvin Minsky's design, in which the device's sole function is to switch itsel ...

* Viking helmets *

Whoopee cushion A whoopee (or whoopie) cushion is a practical joke device involving flatulence humour, which produces a noise resembling human flatulence. It has also been referred to as a farting bag, pooting cushion, windy blaster and Razzberry Cushion. Hist ...

X-Ray specs X-ray specs or X-ray glasses are an American novelty item, purported to allow users to see through or into solid objects. In reality, the spectacles merely create an optical illusion; no X-rays are involved. The current paper version is sold und ...

Usage

History

List of novelty items

See also

Further reading