GOLDEN VALLEY, Minn.-- This morning Happi Olson from Creative Kidstuff joined us with a look at the trends in toys for children. American International Toy Fair is the largest and most important toy and youth product exhibition in the Western Hemisphere. Spanning four days, Toy Fair is a one-stop shop for the more than 10,000 buyers who attend each year.
Here's a look at the items Happi shared with us today:
1. Upcycling fun: Re-purposing is still a very big theme and more toys than ever are made from recycled materials or encourage children to recycle materials in their art projects and play. Lots of packaging is part of the toy.
Makedo is a toolbox of hinges, clips and more to turn everyday items, like soda can boxes and cardboard, into anything you can dream up.
Eco Eggs are 100% compostable and made from corn and 100% renewable content as opposed to petroleum-based plastic. Safe for kids, better for the environment and easy on the pocketbooks!
Cate&Levi collection products are made from sweaters.
2. App-tivity: Creative Kidstuff saw many products that were incorporating tablets and smart phones in active play as well as gadgets that turn tablets or smartphones into games like an app that reads QR codes on playing cards or a board game you can insert a tablet in to.
TheO ball by Physical Apps. TheO represents a breakthrough approach to gaming and physical activity. The soft-foam ball features a secure cushioned slot to hold a wide variety of smart devices, enabling fun ball-based games and activities to be played by a single player or groups of children, teenagers, college students or adults. TheO(TM) works with the iPhone, iPod Touch, and Android smart phones. The smart ball can be safely rolled, tossed and bounced, with a smart device protected safely and securely inside, while players physically interact with each other. This product won an innovation award at toy fair and this is actually a prototype.
3. Play all day: Even though tablets and technology are big at Toy Fair, Creative Kidstuff still saw a lot of toys encouraging kids to GET MOVING.
The Air Guitar Pick is Shaped like a guitar pick, this little gadget plays notes as pretend musicians strum their pretend instrument. Strum slow or fast, the Air Pick will play along. Includes a whammy bar to add a little wha-wha-wha.
Magic Moves ™ Electronic Wand is shaped like a microphone with a light-up gem on top, the wand gets kids moving by calling out commands such as "hop like a frog!" and "stomp like a dinosaur!"
4. Mini Fun: Collectibles and miniatures (including blind items) are still trending and make great gifts.
Nanoblock is a mico-sized building block system with its smallest piece being a mere 4mmX4mmX5mm. Challenging and fun for all the construction enthusiasts in the family, nanoblock lets you build in greater detail than ever before. This iconic brand, who used to stay away from pop culture, is now getting in the game and coming out with a Lady Gaga figure this spring.
5. A note from Fashion Week: It just so happens that Fashion Week occurs the same time as Toy Fair and just as the runways were highlighted with neon, so are products and accessories for kids.
Neon messenger bag by Alex mixes fashion with function and is a great bag for kids or adults.
Colorcube 3D puzzle is a super puzzle that is part construction toy, part teaching tool! Build a color matrix in three dimensions and learn about the many relationships of color. Over a billion possible combinations, but only one true harmonious solution, COLORCUBE is a puzzler's dream (or nightmare!).
For more information about Creative Kidstuff, visit www.creativekidstuff.com.
(Copyright 2012 by KARE. All Rights Reserved.)