That's the question everybody is asking these days. Here's the list of the 5 best answers we have been able to find for our customers here at Purciful's Magical Toys (and for the children of our own family and friends) : 1. Look for American made merchandise. If you can't tell by looking at the toy, ASK SOMEBODY or do some internet research. American OWNED and MADE is the phrase you're looking for -- US toymakers are the main reseource we can all be ABSOLUTELY sure of as far as safety --because keeping children safe is an important value here. We send people to jail and companies to the scrap heap for putting our children (and us) in reckless danger just to have a fatter bottom line. --at least we hope that's true. But -- you can broaden that list to include toy companies from just about any Western, industrialised nation -- because they really do share our values on this. The key is to make sure they are actually producing toys rather than importing them from emerging nations who count their money without looking back. Not all trade is equal -- and not all capitalism is healthy. And this seems to be a hard truth for US buisness to learn. 2.Where new babies are concerned -- you know, the ones who put EVERYTHING in their mouths -- just skip anything that's painted plastic or wood (or nylon, or rubber, or vinyl, or anything that was once oil.) We're smart enough not to give a baby a piece of glass or metal to cut their teeth -- is it that great a leap to give them only safe and sure toys? And yes, we do sell teethers and such here at Purcifuls. They're made by Gund and Manhattan Toys, and from what we've learned from these companies, they're all testing harmless. But if you're not sure -- then do what my grandmother did -- wrap a few bits of ice in a wet washcloth and tie it with twine. It feels good to red and swollen gums. Purciful's Magical Toys sells lots of baby-safe toys -- and we also sell toys for older children, and even adults. Nobody is going to mistake our "Office Toys" section for our "Itty Bitty Purses" section -- so don't make the mistake of giving a toddler a "Hula Jane Bender" with her tiny plastic grass skirt or her strong mini-magnet hands and feet -- and don't give your Uncle Roger a Cookie Monster Activity Toy or Dora the Explorer finger puppet -- unless Uncle Roger is a little different. 3. Go onto the internet and search for current lists of recalls. When in doubt -- put it up in a box in the hall closet. Wait for information. Read. Be over-cautious -- because it's far better than the alternative. 4. Always - ALWAYS give children toys designed for their own age group. Really. There's no problem giving a 7-year-old a train with small parts so long as your 7-year old has the sense to eat food and not electronic parts and jewelry. Or his/her own toys. The problem is when your 18 month old gymnast and rock-climber scales the shelves in her room and decides to eat whatever is there -- from the picture frame to the musical angel. For the record, our trains are made by Maple Landmark (of Vermont) from untreated Vermont Maple wood, and tinted with non-toxic water-based stains. The magnets that hold the cars together are much bigger than any magnets being cited as problems, and the magnets are held in place by metal screws and wood glue -- next to impossible to remove. We only carry Maple Landmark specifically because of their high quality and clever designs -- don't go for the dime-store versions and knock-offs when you can get good stuff for your children with a little searching. 5. Be a parent. We're not talking about taking iPods away from 15-year-old mallrats. We're talking about babies and toddlers and pre-schoolers. Be the grown up. Read. Study. Don't buy everything they poiint at in the Dollar Store. In fact -- just forget the Dollar Store and the Discount Mart and the Flea Market where your babies are concerned. Give them real toys made of real, healthy, safe materials. Buy some cloth or yarn or a couple of red-toe socks and make them a doll or a puppet. ***** In short -- now that we know emerging nations and those trying desperately to enter the global market can't be trusted to value our lives and our health (is this really a big surprise? We have seen how they value the lives of their own citizens....) then it falls to us to be vigilant and BE THE GROWN UP. Protect your children from anything suspicious -- and if they don't tell you on the package what it's made of, don't buy it. If you can't remember what the package said last Christmas -- then put it up in the closet and save it until they are older. If you can't find a phone number for the company, then don't buy their stuff. If the person answering the phone at the toy manufacturing company sounds 16-years-old and on their first job -- ask for a manager. If the manager's accent is too hard to understand, ask them to mail or email you the information. If it costs $1 at the Dollar Store, remember that it only cost the Dollar Store $0.50 when they bought it from the importer, and the importer paid the factory just $0.25 for it. And the factory made it from the cheapest possible componants and paid the workers less than a penny for their labor to produce a daily quota -- and frankly, that kind of incentive doesn't cause most people to take the time and check for defects, sub-standard componants, or safety. We've been writing "hot checks" in this country for a long, long time -- buying cheap goods made of sub-standard materials, fabricated in sweat-shops by underpaid, impoverished labor pools who couldn't even imagine what health care or retirement could possibly be. We've gotten accustomed to having what we want, when we want it - and the idea spreading capitalism is so close to imperialism that most global companies don't even bother to differentiate. The reason our parents and grandparents didn't have closets full of toys wasn't that toys didn't exist -- it's because buying well made, safe, practical, beautiful toys costs money. If you pay a craftsman what a beautiful toy is worth, then that craftsman can make enough to live on. But it also means you can't buy 14 presents for little Skipper's birthday. Instead of 14 cheap-o discount plastic toys on hanger cards -- little Skipper might just get one, really terrific, lasts-forever well-made gift. Be the parent. Read them bedtime stories. Make a hand-made toy (you might even enlist the help of your older children....) Learn a new skill like knitting, papermaking, or wood carving. Learn something new and then MODEL that ability to learn for your children. Learn to grow violets or tomatoes. Learn to sew or make bead necklaces... then teach your kids. That's a great present to give. I know. We're a toy store. And we love being in the toy business because it brings so many smiles. And -- we want you're children (and ours) to be the happiest, healthiest, and most creative they can possibly be. |
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********************************************* REACH US BY EMAIL AT purcifuls@yahoo.com OR BY PHONE AT (806) 239 2927 during business hours. IF YOU DON'T GET A LIVE PERSON -- JUST KEEP TRYING! THIS TIME OF YEAR WE TAKE LOTS OF CALLS!! ********************************************************* BE SURE TO CLICK THE GLOBE ICON AND GO TO OUR FRONT PAGE FOR CURRENT SPECIAL OFFERS AND COUPONS!!! ********************************************************* FOR COMPLETE SHIPPING DETAILS (what kinds are offered, how long it takes, how to choose etc....) CLICK THE "SHIPPING INFO" BUTTON on the left side of any page. ********************************************************* To find out about Purciful's Policies -- privacy, security, returns, placing orders by mail and phone, or just about us -- go to the ABOUT PURCIFUL'S AND POLICIES link -- it's in the column of purple buttons on the left side of every shopping page! |