3-4 Years

Brenda writes…

Here are a couple of my hot selections for this week from BBG favourite The Book People.

Mr Men Complete Collection

The whole collection of the Mr Men series of books, which has been entertaining us since 1971. I remember reading these as a child! The 46 books come in their own box to keep them safe and secure. Price is £29.99. RRP is £115.

Dr Seuss Collection

Dr Seuss is a big favourite in our house. I remember buying The Cat in a Hat book for my eldest and quickly buying up the others, which all 3 have subsequently enjoyed. This set comes in a gift box, with the 20 hard back books full of wacky and wonderful characters that pre-school children love to read and hear about. Price is £20. RRP is £99.80.

Brenda writes…

Continuing on from last week, here are a few more fabulous toys for £10 or under.

London in a Bag

This is a great little playset for a toddler. Made from FSC certified wood, it comes in its own little cloth bag, so once you have finished playing with it, just pop it back in until the next play date. It has all the famous landmarks of London. Available from Nigels Eco Store for £9.99.

Baby active crawl along mirror

This would make a great little gift for a little one. Suitable for ages 6-18 months, your baby can learn to push it, spin it, listen to the fun sounds it plays and watch how the stars light-up. Available from Early Learning Centre for £8 was £10.

Lamaze Jacques the Peacock

Suitable from birth, this is a cute and colourful soft toy. It helps stimulate your baby with its use of different textured fabrics (velvet and corduroy) and sounds. It has a plastic ring for easy attaching to cots or prams. Available from John Lewis for £6.95.

Brenda writes…

I am a big book lover and have tried to instil this into my kids. I think it is very important that we read to our kids and that we encourage them to read, so I will be bringing you lots of budget book ideas in the coming weeks for you to share with your children or to buy as pressies for friends children.

Reading Together Books

Here you get a fab set of 13 books, which come in their own ziplock bag, to keep them tidy. Suitable for ages 3-5 years. Titles include: ten in the bed, the wheels on the bus and walking through the jungle. Price is £9.99. RRP is £51.87.

I Love Animals

This is a great pack of 10 books in a ziplock bag. The books are full of facts and pictures to help teach the children all about different types of animals. Suitable for ages 3-6 years. Price is £8.99. RRP is £59.99.

Brenda writes…

Here are a few suggestions of stocking fillers for your children from Lula Sapphire, a favourite of our sister site Bambino Goodies.

Sweet Pea

This gorgeous little Sweet Pea will make a little baby very happy, as it can be tucked in beside them while they nap. The little sleepy princess is tucked up in her silk lined pea pod. Suitable from 6 months. £9.95.

Continued

Brenda writes…

Over the next few weeks, I’ll be highlighting budget Christmas toys under £10. Here are my first few finds:

56 Piece Train Set

This is a fantastically budget priced train set. It includes a wooden track, toy train, multi coloured carriages, and lots of other fab accessories, to ensure hours of fun, all for a very reasonable £10 from Tesco Direct. Suitable from age 3 years.

Wooden Activity Cube

Again this is a great bargain buy from Tesco Direct. Suitable from 18 months. Measurements for the cube are 35.8 x 20.1 x 20.1 cm. It has many different activities to keep your toddler amused. All this for £10.

Continued

Brenda writes…

I just love the look of this old fashioned Blackboard from Great Little Trading Company.  It will give hours of fun and enjoyment to the children as they practise their writing or drawing skills.

Made from solid beech, this robust but easy on the eye blackboard has got an abacus, pre-printed letters and numbers on the top, which is a great idea for toddlers learning how to copy their alphabet and numbers.  Dimensions are 120 x 60 cm.  It folds up easily in two separate pieces for ease of storage, when not in use.

Suitable from 3 years.  Get it from GLTC for £32 was £65.

Brenda writes…

Today we chat with Lee from fab online toy shop Fantasticals.  He gives a low down on the companies history and his best budget buys at Fantasticals.

Fantasticals is a family run online toy store, based in Cheshire which was set up just under two years ago by Lee Maskell and Nicola Brown.  They were looking to open a decent toy shop in their home town of Nantwich, but struggled to find the right shop, so decided to launch the website first after realising there was a real demand for wooden toys online.

Fantasticals now has over 600 great quality, value for money wooden toys listed on its site and a loyal following of customers from all over the UK.  Recent customer surveys revealed that over 99.96% of Fantasticals customers were delighted with the service they received and would recommend the site to a friend.

Lee and Nicola take great care when sourcing their products. They would have loved to have stocked solely fair trade, but unfortunately there is not enough in that market, so they stock as many as they can.  Their toys have an educational focus, whether it be realised intentionally or not.  This means they help the child develop their social, physical and emotional development through the toys.  They particularly love their imaginative play category and wooden dollshouses category and try to offer a vast range of products in each section to cater for all budgets. Continued

Brenda writes…

Sometimes when it is rainy, the kiddies are moany, the way to cure the boredom to pull out a surprise from the store cupboard!  I am always on the hunt for cheapie activites that I can keep in my store cupboard so here are a few from Urchin.

Colour your own cards pack of 4

This is a great idea for the older pre-schooler.  Get them to colour in the top quality cards and when they have a friends birthday party to go to, they can just put their friends name in and give it too them.  Price is £4.49.  RRP is £9.99.

Knitted Doll Kit

This is a great starter knitting kit for little ones.  It is simple to use and you can create bracelets, hair bands etc.  Price is £3.99.

Air Dry Modelling Clay

You get 8 pots of funky coloured vegetable-based modelling clay that dries on exposure to air.  It will preserve your little ones masterpieces for months.  Does not stain or crumble.  Price is £9.99.

Brenda writes…

My Cooker by Djeco

This is one of the most reasonable pretend cookers on the market. This wooden cooker is pink, comes with a frying pan, saucepan, salt & pepper pots, utensils and a tea towel. All in funky green and pink colours. Available from Leigh Toy Fair for £39.99.

Little Tikes Basketball

This fab beginners basketball set is brilliant. I had a similar one for my boys when they were younger and they had loads of fun with their friends. The height is adjustable so it can grow with your bambino. It comes with a base that you can fill with either sand of water to make it more stable (I found sand worked the best), a clear backboard, net, and basketball. Suitable from age 3 years+. The packaging is damaged thus it has a reduced price, but we are assured that the goods are in perfect condition. Available from Adventure Toys. Was £79.99 now £39.99. 50% discount.

Brenda Writes…

Going on a journey or want to keep some colours in your bag for your artistic toddler then you need to invest in this crayon set in a felt bag.

I have ruined numerous fab bags with my kids crayons but fear no more.

Coming in a brightly coloured soft felt roll up is these 12 different coloured crayons and has a ribbon tie.

Available from Cox & Cox for £5.10. Was £6.