The gum that made us cool kids with 'tattoo'

Before the ban on the sale, import and manufacture of chewing gum in Singapore took effect on Jan 3, 1992, there was a wide range of gums sold everywhere.

But the ultimate favourite among children was Marukawa bubble gum that came in wrappers with transferrable "tattoo".

All it took was a bit of water on the wrapper and slap it onto skin.

Hold it down for a while and the ink would transfer onto the skin, giving it a temporary "tattoo" that could be washed off.

The flavour of the gum was unidentifiable but sweet – not that it mattered.

Yes, we could buy something with just 10 cents in our pocket.