Blog - Serabeena

French Giraffe Baby Toy Goes Global

2012-03-08T00:00:00Z

Photo care of WSJ

Interesting article from the WSJ about how the iconic French teething toy “Sophie la Girafe” went global. Created in 1961, the baby toy has been produced in France ever since. Sophie the giraffe is a national iconic.

According to the article:

In 2010, Vulli sold 816,000 giraffes in France, and 828,000 babies were born, meaning that nearly every French newborn got one.

The giraffe’s international success is partly contributed to parent’s continued concerns about toy safety.

Hello Googly Eyed Friend!

2012-02-23T00:00:00Z

Googly Eyes are out and about town…

…more can be found at The Happiest Street Art In The World blog post at Beautiful/Decay.

Blank Canvas and Stickers

2012-01-04T00:00:00Z

I often hear from parents that their children use stickers to decorate everything: tables, windows, furniture, the TV. While parents might feel that this clashes with their decorative aesthetic, it is interesting that children have a natural inclination to decorate and make use of the stickers in such a way.

In an interesting exploration of that theme, Yayoi Kusama’s new art installation at Queensland Gallery of Modern Art took a blank canvas in the form of a plain, white room and provided children with thousands of stickers.

The results below:

More images and information via thisiscolossal.com.

Confetti Glitter Glue Pens - In Use!

2011-12-21T00:00:00Z

Anna at The Imagination Tree used our Serabeena Confetti Glue Pens and sand play dough to make glittery novelty cookies.

Interactive Animal Alphabet

2011-12-07T00:00:00Z

Check out this really cool interactive Animal Alphabet called Bembo’s Zoo. Especially good for typographers and people interested in fonts.

And the 2011 Worst Toy of the Year goes to......

2011-12-05T00:00:00Z

Image care of vincigenius.com

Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood (the C.C.F.C.) has announced their Worst Toy of the Year Award for 2011. The Toady award which stands for “Toys Oppressive and Destructive to Young Children” nominates a few select toys every year that are, as the name implies, oppressive and destructive to kids.

This year a Tablet PC called Vinci Genius takes the top prize.

For more check out this opinion piece from the New York Times and a tech review of the device from Gadgesteria.

Lego to film new movie in Australia

2011-11-18T00:00:00Z

image care of Wacky Owl

According to recent news reports, Lego will shoot their new film Down Under.

What will the film be about? This Vanity Fair piece has a few funny suggestions.

Also, check out these clever Lego movie posters over at Wacky Owl.

Top 10 Films that feature toys

2011-11-15T00:00:00Z

photo care of dijitalfix.com

Came across this list of top 10 films featuring toys from Richard Gottlieb over at Global Toy News.

Is a Balloon really a toy? If it’s not a toy, what else could it be?

Good list with all classic films, but what about “Big” with Tom Hanks? “Toys” with Robin Williams was quite dark but toys featured a central theme in the film.

photo care of spydersden.wordpress.com

photo care of http://upload.wikimedia.org/

What toys do Europeans buy their children?

2011-11-14T00:00:00Z

image care of njekaterina via flickr

Some interesting toy statics from a recent article featured in the magazine The Economist. The article mostly applies to consumer trends in Europe, but speaks of the different buying habits of the English, French, Germans and Italians. The British toy market appears much more driven by licensed goods. UK parents are even labelled by the UNICEF as encouraging “compulsive consumerism” in children. Yikes!

Some interesting highlights from the article:

– British parents buy an average of 41 toys per year, which is almost a toy per week. In Spain, by contrast, children receive few toys outside the Christmas season.

– About one-quarter of toy sales in Britain are licence-driven, which means they are based on characters from Disney films or television series such as the popular “Peppa Pig” and “Fireman Sam”. The proportion in Germany is just 14%.

– Dolls account for fully 16.8% of toy sales in Spain, compared with 9.7% in Britain and just 7.9% in Germany. Italians buy a disproportionate number of toys from small, local makers.

Kids just want to ride bikes

2011-11-07T00:00:00Z

photo care of jonny.hunter’s flickr stream

There is much talk these days about the amount of time children spend playing video games but according to a recent survey in the UK reported by the Guardian newspaper, kids actually just want to ride their bicycles:

Research…asked children what they wanted to spend more time doing – and 54% of children questioned said they’d like to play on their bikes, while 52% elected to spend more time playing on their computer consoles.

A definite relief for parents concerned with the high costs of hi-tech toys.

Making Toys From Rubbish

2011-11-03T00:00:00Z

Toymaker Arvind Gupta presents toys from India in this TED video. Although very basic and made from humble materials (trash), they show great imagination and creativity.

If necessary, subtitles available in 31 different languages.

Apps are the hot, new toys. Really?

2011-10-18T00:00:00Z

image care of daddytypes.com

Looks like one of the hottest trends in toys this Christmas season is….apps. Really?

According to recent news, including this one from kidscreen, app-based playthings top the list of hits this year.

I still refuse to believe that apps are a substitute for toys. Although apps on the iPhone and Android keep children occupied and amused while at restaurants, I just do not see how they can be more fun than actually playing.

The trend also highlights a more worrying trend that toys are slowly being edged out by screens.

Some worrying figures from kidshealth.org:

– two-thirds of infants and toddlers watch a screen an average of 2 hours a day

– kids under age 6 watch an average of about 2 hours of screen media a day, primarily TV and videos or DVDs

– kids and teens 8 to 18 years spend nearly 4 hours a day in front of a TV screen and almost 2 additional hours on the computer (outside of schoolwork) and playing video games

Annual Young Inventor Challenge in Chicago, USA

2011-10-17T00:00:00Z

Image care of insideflorida.com

Young game and toy designers aged 6 to 18 years old are invited to submit their inventions for the Annual Young Inventor Challenge held in Chicago, USA. Submission deadline ends 31 October, 2011.

For more information, see below press release:

Press release: Calling all kid inventors! The chicago toy & game fair (chitag) brings together imagination, play and inventive thinking with their fifth annual young inventor challenge (yic), to be held at the fair on saturday, november 19 at chicago’s Navy Pier.

Open to boys and girls ages 6 to 18; participants create their own original toy or game inventions to be judged by popular vote by the fair’s 20,000-plus attendees. Besides great prizes to be won, top toy and game industry representatives will be on hand to provide advice, recognition and encouragement to all young inventors to dream big and discover the possibilities of play!

As always, there is no fee to participate in the young inventor challenge. Participants and their immediate families are invited to be our guests with complimentary admission to chitag for the whole weekend!

How to get started now – it’s easy! Just register online at www.chitag.com or by mail. Print out our inventor workbook www.chitag.com/literatureretrieve. In it you’ll find easy-to-understand, step-by-step instructions on how to take part in the challenge, plus guidelines on how to brainstorm and record your ideas, design and develop your prototype, and how to put your presentation together for display at the Chicago Toy & Game Fair.

The deadline for entries is October 31, 2011, so we will provide a month for children to submit entries.

The contest is decided by popular vote. Industry leaders such as head of global product acquisition at hasbro; as well as representatives from other well known toy and game companies spend time speaking with the kids about their inventions. It’s a great opportunity for kids to get their games in front of experts in the business — all while having fun at one of the best toy and game shows in the country.

Image care of creative bible study

Therapist asks: Are You Buying Toys That Stunt Your Child's Brain?

2011-09-01T00:00:00Z

Image care of Reuters

Psychotherapist Fran Lasker raises some interesting points about the affects of today’s electronic games on children in this piece featured on the Huffington Post.

Are today’s toys merely distractions and stunting our children’s ability to concentrate and be active participants?

Lasker writes:

Enter any toy store and you will find that most toys do “a lot.” They beep, buzz, and have flashing lights and screens. They have everything your child needs in order to be entertained, mesmerized, bombarded and distracted. Toys that do “a lot” are actually doing “too much” and unfortunately, your child is doing “too little.” Most importantly, what they “do not do” is develop creativity and imagination. Children must be active participants in order to exercise and grow their imagination and creativity; it cannot be downloaded or uploaded. The simple act of thinking is very challenging when the background noise is so invasive and the pace is preset at whirlwind speed. The collateral damage of inattention is immense. It affects the ability to learn, to think, to read, to study, to concentrate at school and to form deep and connected relationships. As a psychotherapist, the psychological harm I have seen is enormous!! A child’s self-esteem takes a huge beating when they don’t “get” what is going on around them, when they do poorly in school or when they can’t connect with other kids.

What can a busy parent do? Lasker recommends creative play as a way to foster attention spans:

Make sure that all of your child’s free time is not screentime. Choose toys and games that inspire creativity, artistic development, musical ability and physicality. Try to choose activities and games that motivate children to relate with each other. For babies, sometimes even simple objects like stacking cups and wooden spoons can be used imaginatively in multiple ways. For older children, think about toys that do not do “a lot” such as dolls, action figures, blocks, trains, instruments, art projects and books. Beware, you may encounter some resistance when you choose Legos rather than PlayStation, but stay the course.

Selfridges Opens Roof Installation

2011-07-29T00:00:00Z

care of Getty Images

For the first time since 1939, Selfridges of London has opened their roof to the public. The famous British department store unveiled a fantastical green lake five stories above the ground.

Miss Penny Dreadful has a good blog post about the history of the roof. At various times, it was used as a miniature golf course, garden, cafe and ladies-only shooting range!

Lego Museum

2011-07-25T00:00:00Z

Some photos of Lego’s private company museum (via CNET).

Google's TOY Splash Page

2011-06-03T00:00:00Z

Yesterday Google’s Australian site had a TOY-inspired Splash Page.

"Thank You" Certificate from King David School

2011-06-02T00:00:00Z

Delighted to receive our Certification of Thanks for our participation of this year’s King David School Fete “The King’s Carnival”.

25% Storewide Sale on NOW

2011-06-01T00:00:00Z

Animal Farm at Langham Melbourne

2011-04-01T00:00:00Z

Treat your wee ones these school holidays to children’s Tiffin with a farmyard twist.

The Langham, Melbourne has planned the perfect afternoon of holiday fun, sure to have your little tigers “roaring” with delight.

* Caramel Popcorn Lions
* Sheep Cupcakes
* Pig Cookie
* Frog in a pond
* Freckle Sandwiches
* Ham & Cheese sandwich
* Scones with jam & cream

For a little extra fun, children can design their very own troupe of eight farmyard creatures with a special craft pouch.

$25.00 per child 3 – 12 years young*

$40.00 with animal finger puppet

Serabeena proudly announces that our Animal Finger Puppets will be used at this event.

Monday to Friday only – 10.00am to 1.00pm
Monday 11 April – Tuesday 26 April
*Children must be accompanied by an adult enjoying classic Tiffin
**Price is per person

Hurry seats are selling fast! For further details please contact Restaurant Reservations on 1800 641 107 or email rest.res@langhamhotels.com