Brown Bag It

May 06, 2015 by Karen Kim in FURNITURE, PLAY

A third generation hand-me-down Paddington Bear peeking out of the ESSENT-IAL Large Bag, essent-ial.com — A third generation hand-me-down Paddington Bear peeking out of the ESSENT-IAL Large Bag, essent-ial.com

In babies, the curious phase of compulsively putting things into containers is known as "Container Play." It usually presents itself from 6-12 months but can sometimes persist into adulthood, at which point it is no longer called "Container Play" and is no longer considered "cute" but rather an addiction which manifests itself in a obsession with the bin aisle at Muji.

I love containers, and now with my 18 month old similarly afflicted, it's a family affair. For her, everything within reach is put to the container test and falls under one of two categories: either it "fits" (expressed with a smile of supreme satisfaction) or is too "big" (expressed with a look of utmost contempt).

In effort to harness the power of her fascination with order, I am trying to teach her to put her things away into their proper place by having appealing things to put them into.

Of all the containers out there, we prefer reuseable paper ones. They are soft, can be folded away flat, are beautiful but not so precious that they can't be touched, can be easily replaced, and repurposed. They are available in tons of sizes, and can also be rolled down to make them fit anything you can think of. They look great placed anywhere, tucked in cubby squares, lined up in uniform multiples or placed in groupings of various sizes.

We've put together a roundup of the best reuseable paper bags, which among myriad other things, make excellent toy bins. There is the ultra indestructible ones by Siwa designed by Naoto Fukasawa, ones from Italian brand Essent-ial that come in an array of colors (we are partial to the pretty cement grey, and black versions). There are also nice printed ones from Swedish company Tellkiddo, and of course the ubiquitous original, Le Sac en Papier available from Be Poles or from Merci, in Paris.

From Left: TELL KIDDO, Dotted Large Paper Bag $20.25, tellkiddo.com, ESSENT-IAL bag, €28,79, essent-ial.com, SIWA by NAOTA FUKASAWA bag, ￥JPY3,400, japanstore.jp, BE POLES Le Sac en Papier, €4.00, merci-merci.com.

Color Blocks

April 29, 2015 by Karen Kim in PLAY

On the great Stick-vs-Block crayon debate, we side with team Block for the following reasons:

STOCKMAR Beeswax Block Crayon, in 16 White, from set of 16, $24.72, amazon.com

They are easier to grasp for tiny hands (a Waldorf school of thought that makes sense to us)
They have no paper wrappers that can be peeled off and eaten
They do not roll off tables
They are unbreakable - won't snap in half like sticks do when thrown from a high chair
Can be stacked, a top baby hobby

We chose Stockmar block crayons for our baby, a set of 16 that comes in a nice tin with a scraper. German manufactured with excellent quality, they are non-toxic and made with beeswax that imparts them with a subtly sweet, natural scent. The beeswax also makes them glide smoothly across paper without smudging and gives the colors a nice balance between opacity and translucency.

This characteristic is moot in our case, as our tiny artist has ended up showing more interest in the crayons as sculptural objects rather than drawing tools. The crayons are only sometimes used for scribbling, and are most frequently subject to obsessive packing up in their tin case before being dumped out again (a process that repeats itself until the next distraction occurs). Stacking them into a Jenga-like rainbow tower is another favored use that has nothing to do with drawing.

We too think they are pretty to look at. Stockmar has the most gorgeous assortment of richly pigmented colors. They are sold these in sets of a predetermined palette, but there are also complementary palettes and singles available so that you can assemble your own custom color library. Here, we've put together some of our favorite color combinations, in sculptural form, inspired by the Jacquemus collection La Femme Enfant. a favorite of ours for its pure expression of child-like enthusiasm through shape and color.

From top:  06 Yellow Green, 12 Purple, 05 Lemon Yellow, 09 Blue, 15 Black, 16 White, all from Stockmar — From top: 06 Yellow Green, 12 Purple, 05 Lemon Yellow, 09 Blue, 15 Black, 16 White, all from Stockmar

A look from Jacquemus' "La Femme Enfant" collection, jacquemus.com — A look from Jacquemus' "La Femme Enfant" collection, jacquemus.com

From top:  16 White, 15 Black, 03 Orange, all from Stockmar — From top: 16 White, 15 Black, 03 Orange, all from Stockmar

From top:  03 Orange, 01 Carmine Red, 11 Blue Violet, 05 Lemon Yellow, 10 Ultramarine, 16 White, all from Stockmar — From top: 03 Orange, 01 Carmine Red, 11 Blue Violet, 05 Lemon Yellow, 10 Ultramarine, 16 White, all from Stockmar

WHERE TO BUY: STOCKMAR Set of 16 Beeswax Block Crayons, $24.72 at amazon.com

Animal Collective

April 09, 2015 by Karen Kim in PLAY

Holtztiger “Dalmation Papa” — Holtztiger “Dalmation Papa”

Our appreciation of wooden toys has us obsessed with the animal kingdom of Holtztiger, the German toymaker whose endearing motto “from large forests to small hands” sums up what they are about.

The folkish style of their animals in their naive rendering and bright, translucent water color palette reminds us of what you’d see in a Henry Darger painting. We like how the simple characterization and modest materials are instinctive and beautiful. The toys are made entirely of hand-carved and painted solid wood, with some varieties having the addition of a tail made from simple, sturdy waxed cotton cord.

You can collect from hundreds of styles, representing the conventional to the fantastic, to eventually create an entire world of play. A nod to their German origin, they have an enthusiastic variety of farm animals (I have counted 23 styles of cows alone). We are keen on their fairytale collection which features a mix of characters from Hans Christian Anderson stories, to generic fantasy characters like the “Dwarf with Bread" series).

The “Dalmation Papa” pictured here is a constant breakfast table companion to its owner, and as such has developed a patina from daily contact with a tiny mouth and hands (without worry, as all Holtztiger animals are painted with non-toxic paint and water-based lacquer).

WHERE TO BUY:
Padlilly.com seems to have a very comprehensive selection, but a good assortment is also available at Sweet William in New York.