About me:Well "baby" Poppy is not such a baby anymore! We celebrated her 1st birthday on the 3rd Ma...
Member since:30.03.2003
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Review rated by 34 Ciao members on average: very helpful
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We have a Mama's and Papa's store which opened recently in my home town (Basingstoke, Hampshire). It is one of 20 stores in the UK.
They sell a range of products for babies and mum's-to-be. The range includes maternity wear, nursery furniture and furnishings, clothes, buggies and prams, carseats and toys. This opinion is about their range of toys.
They seem to have two distinct ranges of toys. One range is very bright and colourful and the other is soft and neutral.
By soft and neutral, i mean materials such as soft cottons and sheepskin in neutral colours such as cream and "teddy bear brown". They sell old fashioned teddy bears in this range made of the most desirable soft fur. I bought a large light brown one for my 10 month old daughter, simply because I could imagine her getting older and wanting to drag it by the leg behind her, everywhere she went. Its a range of toys which would look perfect in a sumptuous nursery with pine flooring and sheepskin rugs, soft cream walls and floating white drapes. A range of toys which will never seem outdated.
The bright and colourful
range is funky and stimulating with bold primary colours and strong hard edges. It seems the total opposite of the soft and neutral range. Most toys in the bright and colourful range have many activites contained within one toy. These are the "Adventure Playground" of toys. This range would look perfect in a bright and modern nursery with white furniture and splashes of colours everywhere.
Examples of toys ================
I mentioned the big soft and squidgy teddy bears in the soft and neutral range. There are also soft toy animals such as sheep and ducks, in pale pastel colours made of soft velour and springy furs. These toys are suitable and perfect for a newborn baby girl or boy. They also sell fantastic rocking animals which are suitable from when the baby can support themselves without a harness. I would say around 18 months old.
The bright and colourful range is the bigger range and contains the educational toys. There are brightly coloured soft books, animals (a common theme) which make noises, rattles and many other toys which stimulate inquisitive babies. An example that we have bought Freya is a big yellow duck on wheels which she can pull along. It has a little duckling which follows with a life buoy round its middle! Mama's and Papa's attention to detail is what makes their toys stand out in a crowd. As she pulls the ducks, they bob up and down like a duck would on water and their wings move up and down. Plus if you press the big duck's beak, it plays different tunes or quacks.
Cost ====
The big teddy bear cost around £30 which I think is expensive. To give you an idea of size, it measures about 2 feet from head to toe. The small teddy bears seem to start from around £10.
The rocking animals are around £50, although they now sell one which is a snail and has a seat with a harness for babies aged 9 months +. This is £60.
The bright yellow ducks were around £20 and the interactive toys seem to start from around £10 right up to around £40. All the toys which need batteries that I have seen use AA batteries. It varies how many are needed from toy to toy.
There are rattles and toys suitable for highchairs which start from £5.
Summary =======
The range is pricey but seems to be good quality. They use only the highest quality materials and the toys seem to keep my daughter amused for a long time. These are also toys which she can put away for a few weeks and go back to again and again.
I would recommend these toys if you want something a little more traditional than the chunky plastic "lights and sounds" toys which are on the market. The Mama's and Papa's range is soft and gentle for babies from a newborn age.
There is a website for Mama's and Papa's at www.mamasandpapas.co.uk which has a store locator. John Lewis also stocks Mama's and Papa's toys and their website is www.johnlewis.com. You can ring 0870 830 7700 Monday - Friday: 8.30am to 7pm or Saturday: 9am to 5.30pm.
The range is not so easy to buy because its not featured in the Mama's and Papa's catalogue or on any online shops. But if you do find yourself walking past a Mama's and Papa's shop and you have a baby in the family, just remember to check out their toys for yourself.
Please note, i have selected the age range 0-12 months but their range is from newborn right up to around 3 i would say.
06.11.2003 23:21
Great op - the toys sound lovely, unfortunatley there isnt a shop this far north XXX
03.10.2003 16:59
I was in this shop a few weeks ago, though didn't buy anything lol.
03.10.2003 16:10
excellent detailed op! agree with everything u said about the cost and the lovelyness of their products. :) xx E.