Lilliputiens Wigwam and Indians Play Set: Review

It can be hard to find really good quality toys that are both safe and stimulating for older babies and young toddlers. As my daughter reached an age of beginning to sort and explore with her toys, I wanted to get her some kind of play set with little people and objects in - but at 12 months old, she was too young for most of the plastic play sets available.

I was delighted to find just what I was looking for from Lilliputiens - a world full of little wonders! I already had some soft baby toys from this brilliant Belgian company, including their fabulous mascot, Walter the Dragon, so knew how high quality their toys were.

They produce a range of SOFT play sets, full of little figures and objects for little fingers to play with and be creative! It was hard to choose between the farm, the circus, the pirate ship, Noah's Ark and the Indian wigwam - but I eventually opted for the indians, because not only was it so beautiful and unusual, but I also felt that it had the potential to be a very long lasting toy in terms of both play and learning.

Read on to find out more about this terrific play set, which I think is definitely one of the best learning toys for toddlers!

This is a truly wonderful toy. As I outlined above, I really wanted to find a good play set for my daughter that would have longevity as well as appealing to and being suitable for a one-year-old.

Lilliputiens make a fantastic range of soft play sets and this one is no exception. All elements of the set are extremely well made, suitable for surviving all that baby teeth chewing! The stitching is of the highest quality and all the tags, woolly hair, headdresses and other small parts of the dolls are firmly fixed on, so no worries about anything coming off in little mouths.

Ok, so, really this is a tipi, not a wigwam (if you want to know the difference, you'll find out further down the page!) - but whatever you want to call it, the wigwam is also incredibly well-made, from a soft and thick material with beautiful patterns and stitching. Velcro tabs allow you to pin back the flaps so that the Indians can be taken in and out with ease.

In addition to the wigwam and 10 Indians (two of which are babies), you also receive a totem pole, horse, canoe and campfire. The whole set comes in a plastic zip-up storage case so it can be put away and kept dust-free if desired, but to be honest, ours gets played with every day and hasn't been back in its case yet! The wigwam also has a loop on the top for easy carrying.

My daughter absolutely loves it. She reaches into the wigwam eagerly, pulling out the Indians one by one and either inspecting them, putting them into a pile, or taking them one by one to another area and sorting them.

This is also a fabulous set for learning both familiar and unusual words. My daughter learned what everything was immediately and can point to the Indians when asked, as well as correctly identify "boy Indian", "girl Indian", "baby", "boat", "horse" and even "totem pole". I mean, come on. How many 12-month-olds know what a totem pole is??

I can already envisage the future of this toy. Learning how to say each word, learning how to count the Indians, giving each one a name, creative playing and setting up scenes, and eventually learning about what the play set represents, and who the Indians are.

Are there any downsides to this play set? I can only think of one, and that is that it is a little pricey, BUT... well worth the money in my opinion. I would rather have purchased this than a few cheaper toys that will be forgotten in a couple of months. This will last for years. You can tell that Lilliputiens take great pride in their craftsmanship because the quality is second to none, and the toys are safe (see the company safety standards further down the page).

Plus, if you are going to splash out on a quality toy for a birthday or Christmas, then this makes the ideal gift!

I would happily recommend this set to any parent, and would definitely purchase another play set from Lilliputiens. In fact, if I could, I would collect them all!

"This Lilliputiens wigwam and 10 Indians is a high quality toy that will encourage imaginative play in any child."

This soft fabric wigwam with its little family of 10 Indians will provide hours of imaginative play for your little one. Go for a paddle in the canoe, a ride on the horse or stay by the campfire and dance round the totem pole.

The Indians are numbered 1 through to 10 making this toy an ideal way to introduce your child to numbers in a fun and relaxed manner.

Recommended Age: 9 months+

Wigwam height: 35cm

• Putting in and taking out - from a young age your child can learn about moving objects in and out of a container (the tipi)
• Object identification and naming skills - from pointing at the different characters when you name them, to learning to speak the words themselves, this toy is ideal for learning new words and objects. How many 1-year-olds know what a totem pole is and can point to it? Mine can!
• Sorting and counting - your child can begin with sorting the Indians into piles, right up to using them as a counting learning tool
• Creative play - as your child gets older they can make scenes, play with the Indians, put them on the horse/in the boat/round the campfire etc
• Imagination and story-telling - at an older age you and your child can make up stories about the Indians' adventures, or sit them around the fire and make up stories for them to tell
• Education - this toy makes an excellent teaching tool and will grow with the child, from learning about horses or boats, to learning about the history of Native Americans, their way of life, tipis etc

When your toddler is older, you can use the wigwam and Indians as an educational tool! Share Native American stories, history, myths and more, teaching your child about the difference between the Indians of old and the modern Native Americans.

Lilliputiens describe their toys as a world of "wonder". Every toy has its own fun story. Their numerous mascots each have their own magical universe - ones in which children can lose themselves endlessly. Their website states, "Soft materials and disarming characters engender trust while the many shapes, colours, noises and hidden surprises will continuously challenge their inquisitive spirit. A fun and high-quality way to learn."

Lilliputiens is a Belgian company focused on the production of soft toys, striving to produce the highest quality for the best possible price. Aiming at boys and girls between the ages of 0-4, Lilluputiens wish to provide soft and stimulating toys that children will not only love, but love for a long time. Their key aim is to create toys that "grow with your child" - and they certainly have succeeded in my view. The toys I have experienced from them so far are suitable for babies but interesting enough to keep them engaged as toddlers and beyond. They have plenty of scope for growth!

Lilliputiens are also a safe and fair company, and consequently you will find their products on many of the green, eco and fair trade online toy stores. They are hard on suppliers and adhere to strict safety procedures.

* The materials that they use are chosen with care, constantly re-evaluated and subjected to the most severe possible tests (EN71, AZO,

cadmium, plasticisers, saliva, ASTM, etc.).

* Their dyed or printed materials are all certified as AZO-FREE, which means that they have been comprehensively tested for azo compounds,

heavy metals and so forth. This certification guarantees that all the dyes they use in our patterns are non-toxic.

* Every toy is tested comprehensively by recognised external laboratories and complies with the strictest European norms.

* Most toys can be machine-washed.

Visit the official Lilliputiens Website to find out more about the company, meet their mascots and view their wonderful range of toys.

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Lilliputiens. Little doctors set.

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