Who doesn't wish they could discover fairies living in their garden? When I was little my granny would point out toadstool rings and whisper that at night the fairies came out to dance round them.
All things fairy have seen resurgence in recent years and toy experts Interplay have just launched a range of fairy products and a fabulous fairy website, My Fairy Garden to cater to those who wish they could sprout their own wings.
I love the idea that you can play with the collectable toys and follow the adventures of the fairies and their friends online. Fans can find out what their favourite fairy has been up to in the Garden Diary and visit the gallery for inspiration on how to create their own fairy gardens.
There's also a whole host of games online and some brilliant fun quizzes. My ten year old daughter particularly loved the "Which Fairy Are You" quiz. She answered questions like "What's your favourite flower?" and "Which is your favourite season?" and was delighted to find she is like Andrena, the bravest fairy.
Like my daughter, fairy Andrena apparently likes to paint. We actually have the Andrena collectible figure which like all of the fairies and friends characters from Interplay is beautifully detailed and handpainted.
About the toys/collectibles. There is a flowerpot, secret fairy door, garden and watering can to name just a few things you can collect. We have the Fairies and Friends set with three fairies and their animal friends.
As I mentioned they are beautiful but I wondered if they would have limited play value as they aren't jointed or poseable. Maybe if we had one of the accessories like the watering can or flowerpot my daughter would have been more interested.
She did arrange them around a piece of driftwood we have in the house and said when the weather improves she would like to pose them amongst plants in our pots in the garden or create a fairy garden.
It occurred to me that viewed as collectibles rather than toys these would appeal to adults as much as children. I rather like the fairies now adorning our mantelpiece and look forward to helping her re-site them in the springtime.
Disclaimer: I received a free Fairies and Friends set for the purpose of this honest review.
I love the idea that you can play with the collectable toys and follow the adventures of the fairies and their friends online. Fans can find out what their favourite fairy has been up to in the Garden Diary and visit the gallery for inspiration on how to create their own fairy gardens.
There's also a whole host of games online and some brilliant fun quizzes. My ten year old daughter particularly loved the "Which Fairy Are You" quiz. She answered questions like "What's your favourite flower?" and "Which is your favourite season?" and was delighted to find she is like Andrena, the bravest fairy.
Like my daughter, fairy Andrena apparently likes to paint. We actually have the Andrena collectible figure which like all of the fairies and friends characters from Interplay is beautifully detailed and handpainted.
About the toys/collectibles. There is a flowerpot, secret fairy door, garden and watering can to name just a few things you can collect. We have the Fairies and Friends set with three fairies and their animal friends.
As I mentioned they are beautiful but I wondered if they would have limited play value as they aren't jointed or poseable. Maybe if we had one of the accessories like the watering can or flowerpot my daughter would have been more interested.
She did arrange them around a piece of driftwood we have in the house and said when the weather improves she would like to pose them amongst plants in our pots in the garden or create a fairy garden.
It occurred to me that viewed as collectibles rather than toys these would appeal to adults as much as children. I rather like the fairies now adorning our mantelpiece and look forward to helping her re-site them in the springtime.
Disclaimer: I received a free Fairies and Friends set for the purpose of this honest review.