To think most toys are utter shite

[babysoupdragon2]

I have two winter born children and with Christmas as well we've had a new influx of toys. The general quality is dreadful.

Why can big brands/ shops get away with this?

Examples include-
A playdough hairdresser set where the mould doesn't fit together without constant help from an adult
Craft kits where it is physically impossible to recreate what is on the box.
A remote controlled car which broke after 3 days
A chad valley doll which is meant to drink and wee but is so impossible to make work that you end up with a frustrated child and water everywhere

Please could I have some recommendations of quality and consistent brands for a 3 and a 5 year old?

So far I can think of Lego, magnatiles and maybe sylvannian families (although we only have older second hand bits.)

Playmobil every time - my kids had bloody loads of it and it was absolutely wonderful to watch the play they got out of it. So many different sets of all shape and sizes.

Yes god damn that play-doh hairdressers 😡

DD3 likes small world based on her favourite shows, so the rapunzel tower and figures get played with a lot, as do the Ben and holly castle, elf tree and characters. Also she likes role play, so we have kitchen, baby things and shop. She’s more toys than a toy shop and still says she doesn’t know what to play at times 🤦🏽‍♀️😂

So glad I'm not the only one sharing the hatred of the playdoh hairdresser.

What do people tend to give as birthday presents? We have so many birthday parties at the moment and I'm struggling

My observation was the more thing you could do with a toy, the better it was.

So with playdoh... the rolling pins and cutters were better than the complicated machines

Lego/duplo/megablocks can make many things

A simple doll rather than than an interactive one

Blankets etc to make dens, or a simple pop up tent

Balls, rackets, bean bags ropes to make games with in the garden

For the 2-4 age group my standard gift is one of the Melissa and Doug reusable sticker pads, I think most kids that age enjoy stickers.

For the 5-7 age group, the small £5-7 Lego sets. My 6 year old isn't actually that until Lego but most of his peers seem to be

Galt toys
Magformers
happyland
Brio
Lego
Melissa and Doug
Orchard Toys - fantastic quality board games
Rubik’s

Grimms, Grapat, Holztiger, Fagus, Ostheimer, Pintoy, Tegu, Magformers, LEGO, BRIO, HABA, Hape, Schliech

At that age we had lots of wow toys. Dc loved them and were still in good condition after 4 dc. I donated them to childrens playgroup where they are still going strong.

Mine are 4 and 7 now. Playmobil, lego/duplo, Schleich, Holztiger and the massive box of wooden building blocks are the favourites here. We also have quite a few Janod little wooden people sets which play well with the blocks (fairytale, knights, fire brigade, zoo and circus).
Dd (4) also likes Barbies and Lottie dolls. All of that seems to hold up to fairly rough play.

Playmobil has been great, we have a dolls house, several pirate ships, fairies, a ton of Scooby doo stuff and two castles. They have battles, picnics, christmas parties and festivals. The headless horseman, a witch, several small child and a raptor are currently holidaying in one campervan (dc1's choices) and dc2 has a bunch of princesses and fairies plus unicorns in the other one.

toy kitchen
wooden fruit and veg, pizza etc to go with toy kitchen
Playmobil
Lego
car Garage

Learn to disappear gifts. Once out of sight the chances are they are quickly forgotten and you can regift them. I have absolutely no shame or guilt in doing this. DS has plenty and if he was bothered he'd remember them.

Knock off brio is great, by the way. I used to get ours from Tesco, Sainsbury's, Mothercare.

I need to do this!

favourites here are Melissa and Doug pizza and cake sets and ice cream stand, all played with alongside the ikea kitchen and wooden till, orchard toys games, Disney toddler dolls and lots of fancy dress. She also got sylvanians for Xmas and these seem to be a hit.

for presents it depends who it’s for, if it’s for one of my friends kids I take DD to the toy shop to pick something because I can steer her towards something I know they’ll like. For nursery friends I usually go for orchard toys games, I stock up when they are in Aldi.

Oh I agree with you! So frustrating.

Melissa and Doug.
Brio and yes to setting it up.
Happyland. Look on eBay for the zoo/farm/tree house. I got all of ours second hand.

so much stuff isn’t fit for purpose and isn’t cheap either.

Grimms wooden blocks and rainbow. Look nice and still get played with.

Our two are currently 6 & 8. Things that they love and have played with lots since smaller include Lego/duplo, board & card games (dobble, outfoxed and then more recently uno, sabotage, junior ticket to ride & labyrinth), jigsaws, happyland/sylvanian families (though these have lots of timy fiddly bits), simple cars (the matchbox style ones), cheap plastic toy dinosaurs and farm animals, barbie dolls & my little ponies. Craft wise we’ve found it best to buy card/paper/glitter/paint and just make stuff than to get kits

I bought soft play equipment.

Don't overlook felt-tip pens and stacks of A4 white paper, plus children's scissors, and sellotape. Glue sticks are too messy.
Can be combined with stickers or other craft supplies to make a change.

Wax crayons are rubbish, and coloured pencils not bright enough. Some glittery biros or gel pens are suitable.

You have to check all the lids are on when they are finished.

Another vote here for playmobil. Two boys same age. They also love Lego and hot wheels. There's not much else toy wise in our house other than older daughters slyvanian families and Polly pockets. Then jigsaws and craft stuff.

I agree with you on toy quality. They had a paw patrol race track for Xmas that didn't fit together very well and the wheels have snapped off the cars already. Just absolute flimsy plastic.

I tend to find most V-tech and Leapfrog stuff good quality and difficult to destroy. The Leapfrog ice cream cart and sink get played with a lot.

Magformers (they also make Sticko) brand are indestructible

Galt make watercolouring books and small board games that are decent. Aquadoodle is great, get played with a lot here.

Happyland and Little People, totally indestructible. We've got a circus set that is about 15 years old and has come through about 6 kids so far and is totally fine.

I've always been disappointed with the playdoh sets, I bought an ice cream Parlour and it was just impossible to use. And massive 🙄

I must say our hot wheels track was a massive, expensive disappointment. It takes ages to put together (with an adult) and then doesn't work well. It's been renamed The Hard Track by our son as it's too hard to play with and it lives on top of his wardrobe.

Dunno if it counts as a "toy" but we're loving this at the moment

www.decathlon.co.uk/p/baby-gym-balance-kit-ages-2-to-6//R-p-307098?mc=8545074&utm_term=8545074-2713993&&iv=iv_p_1_g_123442844576_c_525604957417_w_aud-1291573007729:pla-295628808180_n_g_d_m_v__l__t__r_x_pla_y_15177021_f_online_o_8545074-2713993_z_GB_i_en_j_295628808180_s__e__h_9044958_ii__vi&gclid=Cj0KCQiAt66eBhCnARIsAKf3ZNFdboHMQhKOFWz5jafmlIvyGxyJIqEaxXCx4GW8IOJOSDgGi6Qu-2oaAsnZEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

Sorry for crazy long link!

Orchard toys games and jigsaws etc