The
buying continues...
Yet
more goodies to inspire your gift shopping today, with four more fun
and interesting products to consider. We'll be running these gift
guides on a regular basis up until Christmas, and if you purchase
everything we recommend, you get to ride along with Santa on his
sleigh as he delivers presents on Christmas Eve. Wow, best get
buying!
Sylvanian
Families Pizza Delivery Set
Part
of the Food & Shop range of sets, this gift-sized pack contains a
Hedgehog Father figure, a moped, and a few pizzas for him to deliver.
This was the first ever Sylvanian Families set we'd ever reviewed,
and actually none of us had played with the huge range of toys as
kids, either. However, the product is pretty good, and the Hedgehog
figure is of a really high quality.
Despite
his big furry back, he sits on the moped well, and the pizzas (in
their own boxes) slide into the back. This is part of a range which
includes a doughnut store, a candy cart, the village shoe shop, and
other delightfully twee settings.
Around
£15
Visit
sylvanianfamilies.net/uk
Go
Travel Piggy Folding Pillow
You
might have a long car journey planned over the Christmas break – if
so, this folding travel pillow from Go Travel would be great for your
young passengers. It's a piggy soft toy for most of the time, but
when you need to lay your sleepy head down on something soft, just
pull out the Velcro tag and it opens up. Yay!
Fortunately
it doesn't smell of bacon but does provide a soft and squishy pillow
that is perfect for a child's head. Actually, smelling of bacon would
be a major plus for us, but the wee ones we gave it to to try thought
it smelt just fine anyway. So on Christmas morning you can give them
this, and then reveal you're all off on a long car trip. Then it's up
to you to explain that it is to see weird Aunt Deirdre, but that's
not Go Travel's fault.
£9.99
Visit
go-travelproducts.com
Meccano
Micronoid Socket
If
you really want to get the kids something that will ensure you don't
see them all Christmas day, you could do a lot worse than the Meccano
Micronoid Socket. This is an interactive robot that kids build
themselves, using Meccano parts and a big chunky pre-assembled
robotic head.
Fortunately the build is pretty simple, taking us about 25 minutes to complete. After that you can set Socket (as his friends call him) into different modes such as dance, programme, and interact. In dance he'll simply jive away to any music he can hear, using a really clever method of locomotion. The only moving part is a swivel joint under the head, which turns quickly to push along the feet that are set on wheels. That is the reason the build is relatively quick and simple, but it works quite well.
With
programme mode set you can use the top-side arrow buttons to code in
a few movements like left, left, right, forwards, forwards, then hit
the action button. Socket will then push himself around in that
sequence, albeit rather unpredictably. Interactive mode is pretty
fun, as you can put questions to Socket (usually having to start with
“Do you...”) and he'll answer yes or no. No is more fun, as he
shakes his head around. So a fun build, and plenty to do with the
finished product.
Around
£35
Visit
meccano.com
Hallmark
Star Wars Itty Bittys
In A New Hope, Darth Vader was responsible for the deaths of millions of people when he destroyed Alderaan. So it's lovely to be able to cuddle up to a teeny tiny soft version of the Sith Lord thanks to Hallmark. We promised last time that every Stocking Fillers feature this year would probably feature some Star Wars merchandise, and this time they're as cute as a button.
We were sent little versions of Vader, Yoda, and Chebacca, each being no bigger than four inches and a big hit with the kids. Hallmark have recently branched out with their licensed stuff, so there are Itty Bittys from the Marvel and DC Universes, The Wizard of Oz, lots more from Star Wars, and also Christmas themed ones too.
Around
£6 each