The WTHRA Show in Long Beach this year was marked by innovation. From plastic potato-chip-shaped pieces that can be used to build kickable balls and sets of armor to a dollhouse that folds into a small cardboard box to a doll that mimics parents, the toys were surprising, fun and of a greater variety than previous shows.
Take a peek at the top-10 picks of brand new toys and games from the TDmonthlystaff, then look at the full video article to see what else graced the floors at this year's WTHRA:
These expandable, retractable dollhouses are designed to fit in any room, large or small. The dollhouse can be folded up into its small box, or expanded to turn an entire room into a dollhouse for fashion dolls 12" and under. No tools required for setup, no small parts. Set-up time- Approx. 10 minutes. Expands up to 108"W x 72"D, Weighs 5 lbs. Made in the US of recycled materials.
These puppets are hand-made in Bolivia. Kids slip their hands and feet into the puppet, so that their motions make the puppet move too. There are 5 different characters to choose from, including four animals and one clown.
This fun variation of Ludo lets kids kick those pesky monsters out of their closet and move them around the board to send them back to a cave where they belong. But players must watch out- if another player's monster catches up, the first player's monster will go running back to hide in the closet all over again. Kids get to draw and color their own fun monster pictures to create their very own game pieces.
One 23" green Beanpod fits four Beandolls, including one pink Beandoll (named “MeiLin”), one red Beandoll (named “Bahiya”), one orange doll (named “Adora”) and one green doll (named “Oris”). The Beandolls are soft and cuddly and the Beanpod can be hung from a loop on its end. Each Beandoll represents a different cultural theme and has a special symbol on it (the meaning of which is explained on its tag). Also sold individually or in pods of two.
Each set consists of soft, flexible pieces in various colors that slide together and lock to create an endless number of different shapes or random creations. Watch Space Chips: Top-5 Video, Toy Fair 2010 Awards: TDmonthly Top Toy Award, June 2011 — Why it won: The pieces are small, flat and flexible, so they won't break if Mom or Dad accidentally steps on them. Kids can play with the toys they make with the Space Chips— balls are both throwable and kickable. And though they were designed to create traditional building structures, kids have used their imaginations and turned the flat clips into suits of armor and costumes.
This product connects pool noodles together. The Link, the End, and the EL shaped links allow kids and adults to create many different combinations of pool noodle shapes- chains, squares, seats, and more. Each shape comes in a pack of four.
Each member of the Piggy Wiggies family comes with a name and a lovable little story. Each Piggy is a hand-crafted plush made from socks. There are also mini Piggy Wiggies. Launch date: February 2011.
This particular T-Rex is more adorable than it is scary. Squishables makes giant, round, fuzzy stuff animals. Aaron Glazer of Squishable.com, Inc, told TDmonthly that the T-Rex "wants only to cuddle and maybe nibble on your nose." Launch date: December 2009.
Miniature versions of the popular Wahoo toys from Marky Sparky, kids can write messages on these pthalate- and latex-free animals, affix postage directly, and mail them to someone special. No packaging is needed.
Parent Dolls are Mom and Dad's real life face and voice- parents upload their photo and snap the image onto the head of the doll. Then, parents can record their voices and when the child presses the doll, the parent's voice comes out. Includes four re-recordable mailboxes with almost 8 minutes of total recording time, so parents can leave different messages in order to connect with their child, even when they are apart.
Writer's Bio: ALISON MAREK is an award-winning writer, director and cartoonist whose work has been published by Fairchild Publications and DC Comics (Piranha Press), broadcast on Showtime and other cable networks, and viewed worldwide in film festivals. See her short films and print work on www.alisonmarek.com. Watch her nefarious villains in the web series www.MuggsMovers.com. Get inspired by her cartoons "Daily ARFFirmations to Unleash Your Inner Fido" at www.ARFFirmations.com. Phew! And then ... Read more articles by this author
Writer's Bio: ALISON MAREK is an award-winning writer, director and cartoonist whose work has been published by Fairchild Publications and DC Comics (Piranha Press), broadcast on Showtime and other cable networks, and viewed worldwide in film festivals. See her short films and print work on www.alisonmarek.com. Watch her nefarious villains in the web series www.MuggsMovers.com. Get inspired by her cartoons "Daily ARFFirmations to Unleash Your Inner Fido" at www.ARFFirmations.com. Phew! And then ... Read more articles by this author
