D.I.Y. Delights
Cliff Annicelli -- Playthings, 4/1/2009
After a 1 percent sales gain in 2008, toymakers are looking to further jump-start their arts and crafts offerings this year with products that stand out from the traditional mainstays of what is a very traditional category. Their timing couldn't be better. With financial jitters keeping so many consumers home in order to conserve precious cash, arts and crafts kits should get a welcome boost as parents look for new ways to keep their kids occupied while at the same time getting their creative juices flowing.
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Splatter Brush ($54.99), from East Aurora, N.Y.-based Fisher-Price, is an interactive plug-and-play system with a wireless brush that kids ages 3 to 8 use to create art or play ‘colorful’ games on their television screens. The unit offers three ways to interact: decorate eight themed worlds with stampers or unique paint brushes, such as odd choices like spaghetti or whipped cream, and add special effects; create virtual spin art; or play games in the “splat arcade.” Built-in save and print features let kids keep their projects. |
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Toronto’s Spin Master adds a new activity to its innovative line of craft products with its Paperoni system that lets kids turn tiny rolls of paper into imaginative works of art. The assortment includes the Paperoni Deluxe Studio ($24.99), a set that comes with design tools and 2,000 Paperoni rolls for 2-D and 3-D projects; the Paperoni 3-D Design Kit ($5.99), with 400 Paperoni rolls, a 3-D template, tweezers and accessories; and the Paperoni 2-D Design Kit ($4.99), with 250 Paperoni rolls, tweezers and 2-D template. |
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Last year, Crayola turned sidewalk chalk art into 3-D masterpieces. This year, the Easton, Pa.-based company does the same for paper. Crayola’s Color Explosion 3-D, Wide Version ($14.99), allows children ages 6 and up to create 3-D drawings on “widescreen” paper that allows for a better viewing experience. The kit includes 3-D glasses, an 18-page pad containing both blank and pre-printed designs and scenes to color in, six markers and an easel. |
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There are all sorts of DIY activity kits out there designed to let kids embellish everyday items. There aren’t many—and possibly none—that let a child fancy up a doorbell, unless you’re Delta Creative. The City of Industry, Calif.-based company’s Doorbell Activity Kit ($12.99) let’s kids ages 6 and up customize a working electronic doorbell and a doorknob hanging message box using its included stickers, glitter glue, marabou trim, rhinestones and three doorbell covers. |
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Faber-Castell’s Cleveland-based Creativity For Kids banner gives boys several crafty options this year, including Sky Diver Paper Airplanes ($14.99). The kit shows kids ages 6 and up simple folding techniques to turn sheets of paper with pre-printed patterns on them into 10 awesome airplanes, then allows for further customization using included accent stickers. The fun doesn’t stop there, though: pilots can try to land their planes on included punch-out runways or play with a bonus sky diver with a parachute. |
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Scratch Magic Wacky Scratch Silly Swirls kits ($6.00), from Scratch Art, Avon, Mass., take scratch art to an eye-popping new level. Wacky Scratch images create the illusion of movement and dimension as kids scratch away the page’s black coating to reveal intriguing patterns. Each Wacky Scratch kit contains four Wacky Scratch sheets, a stencil with more than 30 shapes and a wooden stylus for scratching. Also offered is a Deluxe Set ($16.00) that includes three picture frames. |
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