Calico Critters from Growing Tree Toys

Calico Critters Margaret and Halley's Shop Play Set Review

My daughter simply adores Calico Critters.  She first came upon them at a friend’s house and ever since then they have been a major topic of conversation, especially once she picked up the Calico Critters catalog.  For instance: “I’m going to ask Santa for this super cute nursery set, mama” or “wouldn’t it be SO FUN if I had this toy and we could play with it all day long?”.  I must admit, she’s pretty convincing.  So convincing that eventually we caved and got her the Calico Critters Connor and Kerri Carriage Ride Set for her birthday.

Once we opened it, I realized that there was something strangely familiar about the critters; They reminded me of Sylvanian Families, which were some of my favorite toys growing up.  One quick google search and I found out that Calico Critters are basically the same toys I had adored growing up, they just go by a different name now in the US.  While they may have a new name and packaging, they still were the same quality toys that I had remembered, with poseable limbs, removable clothing, and accessories galore. 

Knowing that we were going to be getting her some more sets soon, I couldn’t believe my luck when I got the kind of email that my daughter’s been dreaming about that started out with “congratulations, you’ve been picked to review the Calico Critters Margaret and Halley’s Shop Play Set!” and was followed by a delivery to our front porch. 

All week long my daughter worked hard to earn the toy, cleaning her room, taking care of her brother, and helping me out with dinner, all the while telling me how incredibly excited she was to open her bears.  The moment when she earned opening the toy and began to play, I felt like the best mom ever.  We sat down and set up a whole scene where Margaret and her baby, Halley, go shopping and included all the critters from her Carriage Ride set.  We had a lot of fun having the mamas and babies pick out their outfits and then stroll with their babies and new purchases back to their “homes”.

While my daughter loves all the little accessories – like the yellow purse, necklaces, compact, and teddy bear – I love the dress forms that come with the set.  The dress forms are made of sturdy plastic that hold the extra outfits perfectly, no slipping straps or clothing that falls off too easily, the clothing display stays just as you lay it out for the shopping trip, something I love. 

I’ve now logged hours playing with the two Calico Critters sets and see a whole lot more critters in my future.  They have held up nicely to our playing, but I will caution that little brothers aren’t the best Calico Critters playmates.  They tend to suck on the fuzzy limbs of the critters, hide the accessories, and generally cause mayhem.  For this reason, we’ve put away some of the teeny tiny accessories and make sure we play with them only when it’s his naptime or bedtime.

Now, having checked out Calico Critters vast selection on the Growing Tree Toys site, I am eagerly looking forward to buying more adorable critters and accessories to extend our play.  From houses to playsets to families and more, Growing Tree Toys has everything a Calico Critters enthusiast could hope for.  In fact, if anyone is looking for anything for my daughter for the holildays, I could tell you what is on her long {long, long} wishlist from Growing Tree Toys.

A big thank you to Growing Tree Toys for sending the Calico Critters Play Set for review.  All opinions are 100% ours and no form of monetary compensation was received in exchange for this Rave Review.