I am smitten with these glorious toys from Muddyfeet. I really can’t get enough, it’s one of those Etsy finds that I literally just trawl through over and over and sigh at every new piece that becomes available.
Muddyfeet is a wonderful company that hand crafts toys for children to enlighten and develop their imagination. The toys are all either wooden or felt, no plastic over here thank you very much. Based in Arizona and created by an ingenious homeschooling Mama, these are the kind of thing that just fill me with excitement! Each toy is designed with the flair of a creative craftsman but still retaining that childlike imagination that is so often lost with today’s big gadgets and gizmos. The other thing I love about these eco friendly toys is that they are actually eco friendly toys, designed from wood or felt and finished using eco friendly dyes and beeswax. You can’t ask for more can you?
I love the story behind the company name. When this Mama took her 8 year old son out of school to home school him, she realised he had never been allowed to get muddy at school after asking him to write a poem, even if it was about something silly like mud. She coxed him outside and got him to stand in a muddy puddle with no shoes on (Do you remember doing that? And mud pies?) and feel the wonder that is nature. From then on both her boys have played with mud and seen it for what it is: anything they can imagine it to be.
My favourite pieces are the Pumpkin set (maybe it’s because it’s coming up to Halloween… I do love a good pumpkin during October) and the brilliant Little Red Hen set which is crafted from wood and designed to be played with as a set or as a game of ‘bowling’ where you knock down the little characters. Perfect for travelling too.
You can visit their Etsy shop here, and their supply website here.
Harriet x