not made in china.

(image from Willow Tree Toys)

So. . .it's pretty creepy about the whole toy recall thing. I'd love to say our house is filled with only handmade or European/American made toys, but it's not. We have a lot of amazing wood/fabric toys and all. . . but we also have some bad stuff too. And with 80% of all toys made in China (I just read this figure today) how can we not?

I have been thinking about this issue a lot. It was on the front page of our local paper yesterday. Toys and what they mean, where they are made, and all that's tied up with them; consumerism, mass production, cheap labor. . . all that. It's all complicated and depressing. But, in trying to work through this in my head instead of getting stuck in it, I thought about all the great options out there - different options than buying toys from the Big Box stores and other likely places and I'm trying to think positively. I hope all these recalls (with toys and food) will help manufactures and companies think more about not only what they sell, but what conditions must be like in China (and elsewhere) that allows these mass produced items to be so inexpensive - without thought of the health of the user or the maker, just the price point.

I would gladly buy less and spend more on a single item, so many of us would rather do that. Like with so much of the scary stuff regarding kids and health I need to keep it all in check. Making these types of lists for myself and thinking of it as a challenge to creatively come up with solutions, not obsess on the dangers, is where I need my head to be - and then I move on and make cookies. Like chocolate chip with orange zest. Here's some ideas.

Making toys yourself:

I love making toys and I know many crafters love it too-what's not to love? Kids seem to love knowing who made their toys and more importantly, they seem to love knowing toys can be made - not bought. It's hard for me to hide toys while making them because I just don't have much alone time (ever) so sometimes part of the gift for me is making the toys with the girls. Then I just wrap them up later and give them, and the girls love them just as much without the surprise component. Here are some posts I have about making toys at home. Most of these don't have tutorials - they are just finished items, but I think they could be reproduced pretty easily. A toy is the sum of it's parts, and it's fun working with good materials, so I try to use the best supplies I can afford, thrift or find. Making a handmade toy with icky raw materials that are made in China would defeat the purpose of all this.

(This might be an incomplete list of all the toys I have made, but my categories are a mess.)

-paper doll wooden box

-super simple doll house

-clothes pin dolls, and a clothes pin apron

-fairy wings

-musical wands

-painted Russian dolls

-travel finger puppet theater

-aunt sarah dolls

-personalized kid bags

-magic wand

-embellished onesies

freezer paper stencils for kids t-shirts

***other ideas

-Make your own toys from patterns, like from Wee Wonderfuls. Also there are lots of doll kits available online, with supplies and directions included. I have used kits from Magic Cabin and learned a ton. There are doll kits here too.

-Search for tutorials online for toy making.

-Check out all the amazing toy ideas on the mini-swap flickr group that Mommy Coddle set up for her mini-swaps. There are some lovely ideas there.

-Swap labor to get handmade toys from others. My brother is making a wooden doll cradle for Delia. I drew the plan for him and he got all the wood and has the wood tools to make it. Asking a friend or family member to make a toy for your child is wonderful. They will be flattered and you will get a cherished handmade family heirloom.

-Look at blogs with a new perspective. It's amazing what I miss-and then notice later. If you look around craft blogs specifically looking for ideas for toys, you will be astounded. There is so much out there - just grab a pencil and paper, take notes, and start surfing.

Rethinking what a toy is:

My fondest memories of growing up are of doing things with my parents. Not of the toys I had. Baking cookies that were in the shape of Richard Scary characters with my Mom is one of my favorite all time memories. So was any craft project I did with her. Giving kids kits, raw materials, and then the promise of a project is a great gift. Like fabric and thread with a pattern. Wood scraps and a miter box, with real tools. Pots and soil and some seeds. Tickets to a play or concert. Wrapping up cupcake mix layered in a jar with a recipe - that type of thing. I think this works better for kids older than toddlers, but toddlers need very few toys. I could go on and on here because I love thinking about the toy/learning connection with everyday objects. I post ideas about using everyday items as toys ala Montessori-style here.

Buying handmade toys from someone you know (or can e-mail):

One of the nicest toys we bought last year for the girls was a wooden moose marionette puppet handcrafted by an artist through Robert Mahar Drygoods. We special ordered it and knew exactly where it came from and who made it - and it is magical. You can buy handmade toys locally at most craft bazaars and 24-hours a day online. I love supporting my friends by buying their creations for gifts, especially when I am burnt out on making my own.

-Etsy has an entire toy/doll category and all the items are handmade. They had over 8000 items listed in the Toys section when I looked just now. I shop there a lot and love knowing I am supporting a craftperson.

-Robert Mahar Drygoods sells handmade toys by craftspeople and artists, and has a crazy cool section of items.

-Look for toys by artists directly. Like the rubber stamps from the Small Object. Or a print from an artist on flickr - artwork framed up would be a lovely gift for a child (just avoid the potentially nightmare producing, I have been told by other children that we have some scary art in the house. uh-oh.)

Buying mass produced toys:

Here are some places to buy mass produced toys that aren't made in China

Rosie Hippo:
I just talked to them on the phone about this and they are so cool. We have ordered from them quite a bit. They have over 1000 products and only 10 are made in China. These are clearly marked on the website.

Willow Tree Toys:
I just exchanged e-mails with them. They have a ton of lovely items and this link here will take you directly to the country of manufacturing - so you can search within that criteria.

The Wooden Wagon:
I haven't talked to them - but the "about" page makes it pretty clear they are a European focused toy seller. I cruise this site often, they have lovely holiday folk art - not just toys.

Oompa toys: This natural toy shop has a great wish list function. (Perfect for the grandparents!) They also have a blog and have set up a "made in Europe" category. Their very helpful blog provides is a lot of information about where European toy parts are sourced, and gives a toystore owner's perspective, who is also a mother. It's a great place to get some information like safty reports.

Magic Cabin:
I haven't talked to them, but in the catalog almost all the toys list a country of origin, and most are not made in China.

**I'm sure there are a gazillion other natural toy sites out there, these are just some I have ordered from before, or feel comfortable with.

Gently swaying family and friends to stop giving junky creepy toys to your kids:
This is a hard one. We have been so lucky in that all the girls best gifts have come from family and friends, they all love the old timey/euro wooden toys as much as we do, but many of my friends have horror stories of freaky toys that would make anyone crazy and also possibly deaf. Not to mention the risk of lead poisoning. . . I have gleaned some tips from some Waldorf sites on trying to somewhat control the types of toys received as gifts:

-Give catalogs/online site links that have safe toys to family members.

-Suggest money for a college fund instead (this might get a mixed reaction, but you never know.)

-Suggest a special activity in lieu of a gift.

-Recommend books and/or music as gifts.

-Suggest that they get that one "special most-wanted toy"  for your child and then make sure it's one you are comfortable with.

-Return the toys that freak you out. Especially if the kids are young. The kids won't notice.

-Mention the made in China situation to family members now, before the holidays, and let them know it concerns you and that you are researching alternatives - so it's not a new thing to them.

I'm almost done with this post:

In an e-mail I exchanged with Willow Tree Toys, they point out that although a toy is made, let's say in Germany, you can't be sure that the raw materials that German company used were not from China - so this can all make you a bit crazy if you dig deep. This goes for so many of our everyday type items. Even if you make your own toys - where do your raw goods come from? Where are your kids books printed? I know I can't be all crazy about this, it could go on and on forever. There aren't easy answers here, but I do think we can make reasonable choices and then move on. They write:

As you probably are aware, the vast majority of toys are made in China. Even most toys made in the U.S. and Europe have Chinese parts or components in them. While we do carry toys from China, we insist that the factories are owned and controlled fully by the U.S. or European manufacturer. We carry Melissa and Doug toys made in China and they own the factory and employ U.S. personnel in the factory to ensure that their high safety are met. We carry Haba products, some of which are now manufactured in China, and again, they own the factories and control every step of the process.

We are a family owned company and are committed to the safety of children. We have two young children ourselves and would never sell a toy that we would not be willing to give to them. We insist on safety assurances from every toy manufacturer and will not sell any toy without that complete assurance. We turn down products that cannot provide us with the safety information we demand.

That having been said, we do sell a number of wooden toys that do not contain any Chinese parts with the exception of a screw (when applicable). It is possible that the screw or wheel of the toy was made in China. You can view our U.S and European made toys here.

It is virtually impossible to find toys today that do not include some Chinese component. With the cost of labor today, it is unlikely that manufacturing will be removed from China. However all of the recent bad press will certainly bring attention to the safety issues and will likely result in better inspections and safer toys. Since it would be extremely difficult/impossible to avoid all Chinese products, my suggestion is to keep doing the research and make sure that you are buying from reputable companies. The company's safety reputation will help insure your child's safety more than the origin of manufacture. Insist that companies you do business with use Chinese factories that are owned by U.S. or European citizens and are overseen by zealous safety representatives.

Okay, whew! I hope this helps. I feel better, anyway.

Comments

[Amy Lu]

Beautiful post! So timely! Great resources and ideas!!!

We made a "no plastic/no batteries" rule several years back with our families. It covers all gifts, for birthdays and the winter holidays.

They complained a little bit (less than I expected) but I told them if they can't find/afford something wooden and made in the USA or Europe, they can always fall back on BOOKS and CRAFT SUPPLIES!

The kids L-O-V-E it! (and so does mama!)

[Bethany Hissong]

Thank you for this valuable information!!! My kids are getting out of the whole toy thing but I have lots of nieces and nephews. One thing I did when I was little was keep my favorite greeting cards with pictures of kids or animals and they became my paper dolls! (maybe a little strange, but hey, I was recycling at age 4!).
I'm reading your book right now and loving it...who knew I needed to change my machine's needle so frequently?!!

[JaimeLeigh]

Amy, Thank you! I am glad to know I am not the only person somewhat *obsessing* a little over these things. It's pretty scary, but thank you for such great info and tips! Some of my son's favorite toys are handmade from family and friends and I have always been more "oldfashioned" I guess in that sense. :)

[mrspilkington]

Great post! One of the most inspiring toymaking books for me has been Jean Ray Laury's Handmade Toys and Games. Oh, and "Making Things", Books One and Two. And...

[Mandy]

Thanks for all this great info. We are also lucky in the fact that the grandparents usually only buy what we ask them to buy. It's Great Grandma that buys the noisy things. We decided that one or two loud toys a year isn't going to kill us; they're hardly played with anyway. And who's going to argue with the family matriarch? Not me!

[Kim]

Bravo! Thank you for all the great resources! I have been racking my brain trying to remember the name of the cool toy catalog that I got last Christmas that had these really neat cherry tree blocks made from real branches. My son wasn't old enough then but I think that he would love them now. I googled and have not been able to find it anywhere! Then Voila! It is Magic Cabin! Thank you! I also have been meaning to write and thank you for your awesome book! You have inspired me to make this a Homemade Christmas. I have already started making coaster sets and totes and I have a whole list of all the projects that I will be sewing for gifts this year. I figure if I start now I can probably get it all done! : )

[jenni s-g]

Geat post! Thanks for the list of toys to make. Craft Magazine is also a neat read to keep an eye out for kid-oriented DiY projects.

[amigurumigirl]

Great post! Thank you so much for all the resources and ideas. I can't wait to try/implement them. By the way, I bought your book and I love it. Thank you thank you!

[cari]

What a great post. Thank you!

[Maria]

Thanks so much for these resources! I'd like to add a plug for buying second-hand, at thrift stores, yard sales, craigslist, etc... You need to keep on top of recalls and safety issues and so on, but it saves all the energy and resources of making a new product and shipping it to the store (and maybe again to you), keeps something out of a landfill (at least for a while), makes "shopping" into participating in your community and often contributing to charity, and saves money! You'll have to sort through a lot of noisy plastic, but great secondhand toys are out there, and for many of us, this is the only option.

[laeroport]

What a thorough post. It makes me feel better knowing I'm made all of the gifts for my children's classmates this year (a tote bag and pencil roll) and none of them will be recalled.)

Cheers!

[Sarah]

I was just dealing with this yesterday with all of Nolan's wooden Thomas toys. And what really frustrates me is that we just bought them mid-July, thinking that they were safely NOT part of the recall. AND we bought from a mom and pop hobby store (because we like to support small business).

Well...even though ALL retail establishments were told to stop selling the toys immediately, this one (being smaller and having more to lose, I guess) did not. In fact, I spoke with the manager who told me "yes, we still carry the discontinued toys" like it was a GOOD thing! I love how he used the word "discontinued"...ha!

Anyway, thank you so much for this list. I am doing a serious purge of my children's toys. I completely agree with you on everything...thanks for the wonderful resources!

[kirsten]

i saw an interview with this mom on the today show (i think) and it was fascinating! the made a pledge to live 1 year without anything made in china. it affected EVERYTHING! its called...
A Year Without "Made in China": One Family's True Life Adventure in the Global Economy. they have it over at amazon. i need to see if they have it at my library!

[Jessica]

What a great post! Thank you for all the wonderful links! I don't have kids myself, but I do have an adorable nephew and (as any good long-distance auntie) love to send him gifties. This list is GREAT, I've saved it in my favorites to reference it for Christmas. Thanks again!

[Lauren]

awesome! I love toys(I make them too!) this post is nice, responsible, and beautifully written. I too feel for the people in China, and the horrible conditions they work under and hope that things will get better for them! Thank you for this lovely post

[Heide]

Can I please just tell you that I love you? If your bio-clock is still ticking, and you feel like adopting a 35-yr-old daughter, please call me. Seriously. I'm potty-trained and everything.

[Wendy]

Wonderful post. I think I'll be sending a link to this to friends and families when birthday/holidays roll around.

I did a post about Mahar Drygoods and included my favorite toys of theirs (they've got a softie bento box!), but your list of other retailers is great!

[jennalou]

Thank you so much for sharing this wealth of information!

I do not have kids... yet... but I know when I do this will be a very important issue along with food and clothes. I'm just so happy that others are thinking about these things and hopefully it is making a difference in the world.

[stephanie]

gosh, amy, what an excellent, comprehensive post. i'm really glad this issue is getting media attention and hope it makes a difference.

i would point out, too, that it's not just china that has safety issues/unfair labor practices. these problems can exist throughout southeast asia and central and south america. gah, it's hard.

miles did some research recently and discovered that his beloved playmobils are made in malta (europe) and are made from a non-vinyl containing plastic.

the specifying gifts with relatives thing is *hard*. i used to be really good about it, but have slacked off - which is how we ended up with the plastic made-in-china lights and sounds power ranger sword, i guess.

[Angelina]

I think making toys by hand is great, however, I would also like to point out that this is most successful when making toys for toddlers or for girls. My boy is obsessed with Legos and there is no hand made toy to rival them as far as creative playing for boys who are into space ships and whatnot.

Also, I could never make a car toy exciting and realistic enough to satisfy my kid's love of race cars. He has an enormous Hot Wheels collection that he plays with all the time.

When he was younger he played with a lot more home made and hand made toys and then he just couldn't be interested in them anymore.

I don't like supporting all these toys made overseas either, but there just isn't a great alternative for the things my kid is interested in. So I try to make up the difference with a heightened effort to not by things for myself that are made in China.

[stuffed]

Excellent info. Thanks. :0)

[Katie Alender]

One of my favorite things to do when I was younger was make paper dolls and clothes for them. So easy and such a createful activity.

[Katie Alender]

(I can't believe I just used the word "createful". I didn't mean it to sound so... snobful. I just didn't think "creative" quite got it. Is there a word that combines "creative" and "productive"?)

[stephanie]

just popping in again to address the boy issue as i have one and amy does not :)

*most* legos are made in europe (although some packaging happens in mexico). i agree that they are a great open-ended toy (i'm not a big fan of the kits, however).

my son loves wooden blocks and marbles runs, vintage tinker toys, stuffed animals (yes!), dress-up (including wooden swords and shields), real tools (a stump, nails, and a hammer is a good toy), playmobil and other small knight and castle figures, painting and drawing, cooking supplies, ropes and pulleys, musical instruments, wooden boats, garden and digging tools, as well as the same sewing, knitting and craft stuff as his sister.

[texcilla]

Wow! This is mind boggling! and very scary. My youngest is into sports. I checked his soccer, foot and baseballs and yep all made in China! Will scout out some US or European ones. If anyone out there knows of any, please post!

[Tina]

I have to agreee with Angelina, it's tough when you have boys. My son is crazy about cars and trucks, he is hard wired that way. Fortunately, he is also an avid reader and is interested in music.

I do like the idea of making toys, dolls, etc., especially the soft fork! Hopefully this will be a trend and we will see more toys and other things manufactured in our country. I would much rather spend more, for less and have the peace of mind that I don't have to constantly be on the look out for product recalls.

[Sarah]

What a great, informative post! I've been trying to make more of my children's toys and phase out the yucky ones, and this will be a big help. Thank you!

[June]

An excellent post--quite valuable information.

[Amy Scott]

This is an awesome post. I'd like to try that dollhouse idea but I noticed you didn't mention those windows - did the CD box really come with those window-shaped holes in the sides?

[liz]

thanks so much for this post - and for all the research you did to put it all together (i love an organized list too!).
as consumers and as parents, i think taking what steps we can to be informed and conscious of what we provide for our children is so important. i'm glad to see everyone getting involved, spreading the information via blogs and other media, and doing the best we can for our own families.
of course no one can do it all perfectly, but your post is a great reminder of the wonderful resources and options we have avaliable, and another helping hand along the way to making a difference.
thank you!

[Helena Brearley]

Wow Amy, thank you, thank you thank you.

[Nicole]

Great ideas... and I do agree that it DOES stink that almost all toy option come from China or the parts from China.

I was going to put a whole monolog about this, but I figured it would be best on my own blog. This has really hit a nerve.

[crazycatladyMel]

I feel so much better about making the majority of the gifts I give to the kids in my life. I have to keep finding new projects, so they don't get bored, but at least I know they aren't going to be poisoned by anything I give them!

[Lisa]

Thank you so much for this info! I have a nice list started of natural (and not made in China) toy stores :) Your list enabled me to add a few more!

[hillary]

oh god yes, so much harder with boys. maybe your brother can whittle us a new Sarge ;)

[Rebecca]

Thank you for this post. It's nice to know that other people are upset about this, too - sometimes it seems like there's such a sense of complacency. So many people will just throw out the recalled toy, say "oh well," and head to the toy store for some other plastic contraption from China. I so, so, so appreciate that you're sharing other options! Thanks for alleviating a little of my stress about this and helping me to make better choices for my daughter.

[Courtney]

Great post Amy. And that soft food is awesome.

[melissa deakin]

this is an incredible post and an amazing resource.
thanks for taking the time to do all of this.
you have given me so many fabulous ideas.
thank you!
you are an inspiration!

[krista]

This is a great post, and I'm really grateful for all the suggestions and the good toy stores.

However, I did want to mention that I've been feeling throughout this media blitz that we are getting too carried away with the China-demonizing. Seriously, we're getting what we as a society pay for -- we should absolutely try to buy high-quality items for our children, and preferably stuff made close to home (or at home!) as much as possible. And China should absolutely have stronger safety standards (for everything -- in fact, I'd recommend they start with their own domestic drinking water sources before worrying about toy factories). But any country that steps up to fill our need for cheap manufacturing is going to be doing it by cutting corners, so the only real answer is to cut back on our consumption of cheap plastic crap altogether, regardless of where it comes from -- right?

Which is ultimately what Amy's saying, of course, but it makes me uncomfortable that we're talking about the made-in-China label as an easy identifier for potentially dangerous stuff.

And another quick point -- how comfortable is everyone with crayons, paints, glues, and dyes used in craft projects for kids? My guy is just turning 2, so we still spend a lot of time getting him to spit out his play-dough and crayons... just wondering how that factors into everyone's decisions.

[julia]

great post! i think it's easy for people to just freak out with all this stuff and sometimes we forget that there are alternatives to cheaply made stuff. one concern that i did think of was in relation to vintage toys- they used a lot of lead paint back in the day- so even if something is in a fancy antique store (or at a yard sale) it doesn't always mean it's safe. i'm all for recycling and buying used, but it's hard to know what they were using back then. i've never used it, but i've been told that most hardware stores have simple lead testing kits that you can use to test stuff in your home (if you want to really freak yourself out- i head on the radio about a grandma who tested her grandkids' bibs and found dangerous levels of lead!).

thanks for the neverending info and positive alternatives! there's hope yet for a cleaner and safer world.

[Ingrid]

Here in Vancouver, BC, we have Natural Pod as a wonderful source of safe and inspiring toys.

http://www.naturalpod.com/.

And http://www.maplesplendor.ca is a Waldorf resource for Canadians, based in Nelson, BC.

[Jennifer]

Amy: fabulous, nerve-touching post. You speak so well about current issues and provide not just reflection on them but concrete, effective solutions. Thank you, thank you, thank you. As a side note, I also like what Krista said above, about the demonizing of China. This is not a one-country's-fault sort of issue.

I have to go figure out how to sew a piece of cherry pie from upholstry fabric now. Sweet.

[Melissa H]

Thank you for this. My grandfather was a toy maker in his retirement and I'm so glad my mom saved several of his wooden toys and puzzles for our daughter. She also has some plastic crap (haven't been able to get the message across to the family...)

All your recent toy posts (the tea set one especially) have renewed my interest in making my daughter a kitchen set out of wood with handmade dishes and fabric food and everything. I need to get on it!

[Tina]

Krista,
eHow has a recipe for making your own play dough, it's pretty easy to make, and you can add food color to color it. Crayola Crayons are non-toxic, and so is Silly Putty.

[Vanessa]

Ok, first off, I love your blog on any given day. I also have a newish baby and thank GOD not that many plasticky toys yet. I also have always had a predilection for old-timey-toys. It is partly snob-appeal and partly a desire for a connection to my own childhood. If US toymakers profit from this Chinese fiasco, it is a good thing. I do feel that Wal-Mart and its competitors have had a major role in this mess, asking the Chinese to make toys cheper and cheaper. The Chinese have a booming economy yet many of the people there are not very educated. Blend a desire for money with lack of regulation, government corruption and Wal-Mart pressuring you to lower those prices, and you end up with toxic toys and antifreeze toothpaste. It is no surprise, and those of us who have been to China could have told you eons ago that this was looming.

[Alicia A.]

Thank you, Amy, for working so hard to put all of this together! This is an excellent post to keep handy for reference.

[Mama Urchin]

An excellent post. This is something I could start to go on and on about too. I love that my kids have so many toys and clothes that they can say, "Miss Manda made this for me." or "Miss Martha made this for me." They don't actually know Manda or Martha but they know a person created whatever it is for them and that makes them feel special. Even toys like HABA are more fun to them.

And the lead paint thing is scary for us but I also am losing sleep thinking about the poor people who work in those factories exposing themselves to lead to fuel American consumerism. Like I said, I could go on and on.

[Kelly]

wow - thank you Amy - this is all very helpful . . .

[Donna]

Great post!! I so agree - I've begun making toys for my grandchildren - wool needlefelted toys and other things. I do believe children should have beautifully-made toys to inspire their imaginations. I have so many ideas that I don't know if I'll be able to make them all before the grandbabies are grown! =)

The thing is, you don't have to get fancy either, to make toys for children that they will appreciate. I remember my dad (who smoked a pipe years and years ago) used to give me his pipe cleaners so I could make "pipe-cleaner people". It was a simple thing and I was completely delighted by it. I made my grandson a set of horses from pipecleaners months ago and he still plays with them (he is almost 5). =) He also loves homemade scented playdoh and little dolls made from clothes pins! (however, I never checked to see if any of these things was made in China. I know that the materials I use to make my felted items are from the US - usually a farmer).

Now to check out all the wonderful links you put in your post!

[Laura]

Wow, Amy, thank you so much! This is such great information. I also loved your post on plastics and as a result have been thinking about ways to reduce the amount of plastic that comes into my home. Right now, I'm primarily just taking my own bags into ever single store I visit and I don't buy bottled water any more.

The other day I was picking up my sons' toys and thinking, "Geez! This is a lot of plastic crap!" So this post is very timely for me, because I've started to think about getting the yucky toys out of my house. (Then, of course, I worry about what's the right thing to do with them, but there's a whole 'nother can of worms.) Anyway, I just wanted you to know that you've inspired me to be more thoughtful about these things and to make some small changes that hopefully will make a difference.