i may be in love with djeco!

from my fav online toy and craft stores [owned by friends, so yes this is a plug, but a freebie unsolicited one!] i purchased a raft of craft sets from playmerrily to do with my 2 girls and niece and nephew over the summer holiday. At some point i will aim to add some pictures even! But i thought that I would like to specifically say how beautifully designed and realised these craft kits are. they work, they have the right bits, they are packaged properly, the stitching kits have real needles, the sandcraft box kit has a small hole in the box, so you can use it as a tray and then tip sand back into pot, and the instructions work. and the materials feel good, the craft is engrossing and enjoyed by 4 v different children, and the results look good.

SO far we have done some mosaic kits – the lion one doesn’t seem to be available any more, but E and BB loved doing that one, and M and SB had a great time doing the fish one. It was easy and straightforward to do whilst camping, and they didn’t have to concentrate so hard that they couldn’t chat loads!

The next kit is the rather adorable 5 continents mandala sand kit. we divvied up the designs with some slight nudging, so that E was doing one of the simpler ones [with my mum] i initially assisted BB, but actually she was fine. M is doing his so very carefully, and SB did the african one first as she just loved it so [and it is gorgeous] and now the american. i love how the designs actually do reflect the continents, and we had a huge long discussion about that, since mum has visited them all, and i have i guess too, so we could chat about places, native styles to there etc. I love how the actual kit was designed so well, and I also love how beautiful the end product looks. BB and M haven’t quite finished their first, and SB their second, but they are coming back each day to do some more, and really, they are beautiful. BB has requested one for her birthday!

[pics to follow]

The third kit we have on the go [rofl!] are the jewelled animals stitching cards Having originally got it with BB in mind [due to the lizard] i then thought it actually looked perhaps a bit more tricky. but we got it out, and i broke it down to starting with the ‘easier bits’ and BB happily sewing sequins on the lizard, and E enthralled with the chameleon. she hasn’t really done much sewing, and this is really grabbing her imagination. i have to admit to getting more sequins out for E, as she loves glitter, and i think it is adding to her enjoyment having it overkill sparkly. however, i think for most children, they would be happy with the original design! again a really well thought out, and beautifully made craft kit. photos to come, and also perhaps another 1 or 2 kits this week – though also doing other crafty non djeco things, as the kits do come at a price.

bottom line, as a ‘treat’ craft kit or present, i would definitely recommend!