We are at the height of the tiny pieces toy phase at my house. I will admit that I am often the one who supports the decision to purchase the toy that comes with a gazillion tiny pieces (Lego, Playmobil, Calico Critter…) because I love miniature playsets. WARNING: All of the suggestions below have many tiny parts and may cause injury if you step on them in the middle of the night.
Does anybody have any other tiny playset ideas? Does anybody have any suggestions for protecting yourself from late night injuries?
Kitchen Littles: These are food playsets that are made of die cast metal and plastic. Kitchen Littles was discontinued then reintroduced. I can’t tell if it has been discontinued again, but some of the sets are available if you run a Google search. The size is perfect for Barbie (or other 12″ doll), and the ones we have are much better quality than the Mattel/Barbie kitchen sets.
Calico Critters: These are tiny animal families with clothes and playsets. Visit the Calico Critters website to locate retailers. You can find about everything you might need for life with tiny woodland creatures. It is like the Brambly Hedge picture books come to life. The detailed pieces that come with each playset are amazing, but they are tiny, and you need to apply stickers to a lot of the accessories when setting up the playset.
Lego: We have many Lego sets, but sometimes the Legos in a set are too specific for building creatively. This year, I am visiting the online Pick a Brick store to purchase a generic set of Lego bricks that can be used to build anything we want. Lego used to have a DESIGN byME service where you could customize a Lego structure and then purchase the bricks needed to build your own design. That service has been discontinued but may be relaunched in the future.
Quadrilla: We found the Quadrilla marble sets a few years ago and have been adding supplemental tracks to it every few years. This is a great toy. The tracks are wooden and do not break easily. The sets come with track design suggestions, but it is very easy to build your own marble track.
It’s all Playmobil at our house. We’ve actually given up the dining room to them. I have to admit I LOVE putting together the big sets, like the hospital or the school. Our girls can spend hours in imagination land. We’ve turned all our neighbors onto them too. As my girls have gotten older, they’ve taken to making stop motion videos of them. GREAT investment.
Have you seen the new Playmobil Future Earth sets? I think that is what is going under our tree this year. It looks so cool!
That sounds awesome! Europe gets everything before we do, and they have a HOTEL! Complete with a maid, a disco, and a gift shop!
Now I have to have the hotel. My kids may or may not be allowed to play with it.
Ah, teeny tiny miniature play sets – Im a huge fan! Polly pocket used to be my favorite as a child 😉
/Camilla
I remember Charmkins and the Littles from when I was a child. 🙂
I’m guessing you’re somewhat younger than me, so you might not remember Sylvania Families, aka Calico Critters of the 80s.
Thanks for the recommendations! I’m a big fan of Lego and Playmobil.
I remember Sylvania Families now. I did not until you posted the comment! Thanks for reading.
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