Toymaker Spotlight: Corolle

When we decided to pick up the Corolle line of dolls, I was not particularly excited. This was not because I didn't like the brand, but because I am a guy and don't get excited about dolls. But as a father of a little girl, I get to meet a lot of dolls and other little friends. As I spent some time checking out the Corolle catalogue and actually seeing the dolls in person (that sounds weird), I was able to see how amazingly well crafted they are. If you have a little girl, she will find an excellent toy and friend in a Corolle doll.

-Brian

Here is a little bit more about Corolle from their website:

Corolle is located in the Loire Valley , the storybook region of France that is famous for its scenic beauty and magnificent chateaux.

The Corolle design team aims to create dolls that look and feel as real as possible with faces that are often inspired by real children.And just as you would find in a haute couture fashion house, Corolle’s design studio is where a staff of professionals works to develop the Corolle look, sketching their designs and choosing the fabrics that will make them come to life.

Since its founding in 1979, Corolle has won more than 30 international awards for design and play excellence, including two DOTY awards (Doll of the Year) as well as awards from the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio, Dr. Toy and National Parenting Publications (NAPPA), among others.

Today, Corolle dolls are sold in more than 29 countries around the world.

Rubik's Cube Toy by Winning Moves

If you are a child of the 80's, like myself, you will remember the Rubik's cube. Love it or hate it, it was and is an icon of puzzle toys. I will have to admit that I cannot recall ever solving the cube. I did take one apart with a screwdriver and reassemble it, but I don't think that counts. My brother did solve it. He bought the book that shows you how. I think I may still have that book. I digress.

The Rubik's cube is still one of the world's most popular and recognizable puzzle toys, and for good reason. It is small enough that you can take it with you almost anywhere. It is only one piece, so you can play with it anywhere as well, and not have to worry about missing parts or losing parts. It has tremendous replay value for a person who loves to solve puzzles. Even if you have figured out how to solve it, you can keep practicing and working at it and finding shortcuts to increase your speed.

My nephew acquired a Rubik's cube recently and, of course, figured out how to solve it. My boys spent some time with him and became enamored with the puzzle. Now we have the 4X4 cube in our store, which is just a bit more complex. We got it for my nephew for his birthday. He loved it and solved it frighteningly fast. It was fun to watch all the cousins at a recent family gathering all trying to solve the various Rubik's cubes around the room. Maybe I will pick one up and try to solve it myself. You can do the same at Town Square Toys.

-Brian

Rush Hour Toy by ThinkFun

I love this game. You have to maneuver your car out of the traffic gridlock. There is only one exit. You can't pick your car up, but must slide it back and forth only. Similarly, you can only slide other cars and trucks out of the way, you can't just remove them. (Many times, on the way home from the office, I wish I could just remove some cars and trucks!) Anyway....

It sounds easy, but it can be mind crunching and complicated. The game has cards which conveniently hide in a little drawer and tell you how to set up the board. Then, you have to figure out and plan your escape. There are dozens of puzzles and varying levels of difficulty.

The best part for me is watching my kids figure out the puzzles. I can almost see the gears turning inside their heads as they try and try again to figure out the solution. I think that this game does a fabulous job of stretching their logical and spatial skills. You should definitely try it out.

-Brian

Shape and Color Sorter Toy by Lauri Toys

My 4 year old daughter loves to draw. However, occasionally she tears herself away from the coloring books and crayons to do something else. We got her the Lauri Toys Shape and Color sorter and she has had alot of fun with it. When she was a little younger, she used to make piles of the different colors: red, yellow, green and blue. She would them switch it up and make piles of the different shapes: heart, stars, squares and triangles. This toy has small pegs that the child can stack their sorted piles onto. The sorter builds color recognition, sorting skills, shape identification and develops hand eye coordination. She loved to mix and match the shapes to make multi colored stacks and create her own combinations. If you are a fan of toys made in the USA, Lauri manufacturers about 99% of their items in Smethport, PA.

Steph

Rubik's Twist

I think this toy is a great enjoyable way to pass time. My family decided we were going on a trip and me and my brother wanted something to do in the car. My brother saw this toy and bought it with his money. Now we are playing with it like crazy. It is so cool to make creations like ball, cat, cobra, triangle, rooster, wolf, terrier, and more (these creations are way harder than you think). My brother and I made the ball in less than 21 seconds each after five days! My dad says he had lots of fun with it when he was little and now we have a great time with it too. This toy is fun and enjoyable for all ages! Hope you have fun making new creations.

-Micah, age 11

Etch a Sketch a Trip Down Memory Lane

Ah, the classic of classics: the wonderful, magical Etch a Sketch. How many hours did I wile away as a child, trying to make the perfect square, or the straightest diagonal line? How many times did I get confused going left or right or up or down? Did I ever make anything truly resembling a circle?
There was just something cool and mysterious about the Etch a Sketch. All of its wonderment was contained in an elegantly simple device. Two knobs and you could, theoretically, create a masterpiece. (I never did.) But I always enjoyed drawing and erasing and drawing again. And, trying to understand what made it work!
Well, if you want to ruin the mystery, you can get some amazing information about the Etch a Sketch, how it works and when it was invented, by checking out this Wikipedia article, here.
You can also go here to check out some amazing Etch a Sketch art, yes I said art.
When you are done with that, come to Town Square Toys and then get yourself your very own classic of classics. You can even pick up a pocket size version if you want to.
-Brian

Octopus A Plenty

Earlier in the blog, Steph mentioned that we went to Sea World. Even earlier in the blog, I talked about the Giant Pacific Octopus. Well, worlds did indeed collide. While at Sea World, the family and I saw a Giant Pacific Octopus, for real, in the aquarium. It was totally cool. I am a big fan of octopi. If you are a big fan, check out the octopi we have at Town Square Toys. I hope you find something that you like!

-Brian

Let the chores begin!!!

I hate to clean house. I don't like to use the word hate often but when it comes to cleaning house, I can honestly say I hate it. However, my children have not developed such a hate. I think the difference is I require some daily chores and my mom never did. Had I been taught to do a little everyday, maybe it wouldn't be such a drag now. If you have ever seen a 3 year old try to use an adult sized broom, then you know - having the right tools makes all the difference. There are many good child sized cleaning items on the market, but I think Schylling makes some of the best. They are good quality and have great prices. For under $20, your child could be sweeping, mopping and dusting. For an additional $23, they can also iron on a child's sized ironing board with a metal iron. (Don't worry, the iron doesn't really heat up.) The price is great and they really can work with these tools. Why not start them early and instill a love for cleanliness while they are young and eager to learn?

-Steph

Say "Good Day" to "Goodnight Moon"

If you have never read the story, "Goodnight Moon," you need to as soon as you can. It is such a cute, sweet, short story. We have read it to all of our kids; it is a great bedtime story. I remember having two copies around. We had the paperback version and the smaller, board book. Each had the same story in it. It was good to have two copies. The worst thing that could happen would be to not find it when you were looking for it! Those with small children know what I mean.

Anyway, at Town Square Toys, we not only have the books, but we have other Goodnight Moon items, such as:

The Goodnight Moon Plush Bunny by Crocodile Creek
The Goodnight Moon Boardgame by Briar Patch
The Goodnight Moon Mini Cube Puzzle by Mudpuppy
The Goodnight Moon 1 2 3 Counting Board Book

and much more!

I feel the need to mention the Goodnight Moon Glow Jumbo Floor Puzzle, also by Briar Patch, because it glows in the dark and I love glow in the dark stuff.

For some interesting insights and information on the book, you can also check out this Wikipedia article.

-Brian

Reach for the Stars and Then Take a Bath

The Star Crayon by Alex Toys is a pretty cool toy. It is a plastic star, with 6 different colored crayons built into the tips. Our daughter has one that she uses regularly during bathtime. She makes the most beautiful and colorful pictures you can imagine. (Of course, I may be biased.) The drawings easily wash down the drain whenever bath time is over. But, if you are like us, we tend to leave the art up for extended periods of time.

Now, earlier this year, we had a princess party at our house. All of the princesses had lovely parting gifts to take home with them. Amongst the gifts, was a Star Crayon. They are perfectly sized for gift bags and baskets. If you are having a party in the near future, for boys or for girls, be sure to grab some of these. They would be a wonderful and colorful addition, to be sure!

You can always count on quality when you purchase any toy by Alex. We love carrying their line of toys here at Town Square Toys. Try them out; you won't be disappointed.

-Brian

Oball Mania

A soft ball full of holes that is easy to catch, safe to throw and comes in wild colors, it's Oball! These balls are so cool. Often, in Texas, it's too hot to go outside and play. My kids have a playroom and the cool thing about Oballs is that they are safe to use inside too. Little hands find them easy to throw and catch - because of the handy holes throughout. Big hands find them fun because you can get some speed on them but they won't hurt anyone you throw them at. They are perfect for playing catch, indoor basketball or just a friendly game of catch and pass. They are great for working on gross motor skills and coordination.

They come in 4 inch, 4.5 inch, 6 inch and 7.5 inch sizes. There are regular oballs as well as jellies which have a cool jelly finish, like those shoes from the 80's. There is also a football and a recent addition is rattles.

Blood and Guts

I am not a fan of battle. First of all, I’m a girl. Secondly, it is scary. Thirdly, I’m a girl! I would rather everyone just get along and be happy with one another. However, I am a grown up and I realize that it’s not that easy and battle has occurred and will continue to occur. I also have a husband and 2 boys who have fighting in their DNA. I know that it’s on the boy gene. I’ve read Bringing Up Boys! So, if they are going to fight – we might as well give them accurate toys! I am a home school mom too and anytime we can throw a little history into the mix, we should.

I have not found any knights better than Schleich. They are hand painted models that are 1:20 in scale. They have knights with different colors so that one boy can be the fleur knights and one can be the lion knights. The horses coordinate in color as well. You could also go with crusader versus black knights. These could be introduced right along with a history unit on medieval times and battle techniques. There are other battle machines like battering rams, catapults and quintain. My kids have a huge bucket of Schleich knights and horses and they love setting up elaborate battles. And, since it’s done in miniature form, this cuts down on the plastic sword and light saber fighting in real life…so it’s a win win!

Style Me Pretty Baby Doll by Madame Alexander

My little girl is SO into doing hair. I love the Style Me Pretty dolls by Madame Alexander. This baby doll allows her to do hair anytime, without risking her own hair in the process. Even though my girl is a blonde, she prefers the brunette doll. There are alot of brunnettes in the family, so maybe that's why. This doll comes with georgeous brown eyes that open and close, beautiful long brown hair and many accessories. There is a comb, a brush, a bow, a clip and several pony tail holders. She also has on a cute pink outfit with a pink kitty complete with a crown. This baby doll is durable and has a soft body. She has pretty pink bows in her pig tails (also a favorite style for my daughter). My little girl connects with the doll because she has the same hairstyle, same eye color and same accessories as she does. This is a great doll for a little girl who has outgrown her baby dolls but isn't quite old enough for Barbies or Only Hearts Club dolls. She is perfect for pretend play which is so popular around age 4-5 years. She is also small enough to be carried around everywhere if your little one gets REALLY attached. Madame Alexander has been making incredible collectible dolls for years and years and their branch out into play dolls has been very successful. They are proving to be a versatile manufacturer who really gets dolls. There is a big difference between a collectible doll and a play doll and some manufacturers would have trouble making the switch. Madame has done it well. I hope the Sweet Baby Nursery line grows, we love them!!!