Did you watch the Barbie movie? :) As someone who loved the doll growing up (and I still follow her official account on Instagram!), of course I did! It was such a fun movie! My colleague and I started talking about the movie over lunch and this led to a conversation about playing with Barbies and other toys growing up, and how we felt that there was something special about playing with physical toys in childhood. :)

Since we’re talking about Barbie dolls and toys, I pulled out these snapshots I’ve been meaning to share from my visit to the MINT Museum of Toys, a vintage toy museum here in Singapore! I knew the museum was closed for a while for renovations, so I decided to check it out after they reopened. I can’t remember when they reopened, but I visited in December 2022.

If you’re interested in a Barbie related book recommendation from me, I recently finished the book “Dressing Barbie: A Celebration of the Clothes That Made America’s Favorite Doll and the Incredible Woman Behind Them” by Carol Spencer, a former fashion designer at Mattel for 35 years (she retired in 1998)! It was such an interesting insider look into the fashion design world of Barbie and very inspiring to learn about the work and passion that went into every doll. :) I love hearing other people share about their careers, especially when they’re so different from mine, and this book was such a great and easy read with tons of archival Barbie photos from the 1960s to 1990s, I loved it!

The museum has definitely been improved since the last time I was there in 2018! I’m really glad to see so much more contemporary toys now mixed in with the vintage ones and the display of the huge collection has been improved too. Personally, I also appreciated that almost every toy has an accompanying label now!

The ticket price has also upgraded though hahaha, my adult ticket cost a pricey S$25 (it used to be S$15 the last time I was here). But I bought the ticket anyway, and spent 2 hours wandering around the museum. There’s so much to see and here are some of my personal favourites. :)

Something that stood out to me about MINT Museum of Toys is that it goes beyond being a museum of toys. Its collection actually includes a very interesting selection of memorabilia related to events like Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation and other collectables and special merch – there was a whole display shelf dedicated to The Beatles! For me, I especially enjoyed looking at some of the old rare books and newspapers on display. :)

Despite the ticket price, I found it a fun way to spend an afternoon and I think MINT Museum offers something unique in Singapore’s selection of museums. Do you think this is something you’ll check out too? :)

MINT Museum of Toys
Address: 26 Seah Street, Singapore 188382

Opening Hours:
Tuesday – Sunday: 9:30AM – 6:30PM
(last admission at 5:30PM)

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