Reviews of items from Maukilo Co Op

[brittone2]

Well, I received my items from Maukilo on Wednesday, which was quite fast since I ordered late Saturday afternoon. Particularly considering it was free shipping! Great job to Maukilo on that! Rashmi, again, thanks so much for your effort in coordinating this co-op.

Well, here is a review of what we got:

-The Haba Food items (carrot, bananas, pear, red pepper, two rolls, the haba cutlery set, and a few other things I'm probably forgetting)...

I really like the colors and they seem very well made. However, I'm quite concerned that these are really really small. I knew they were going to be tiny based on the dimensions listed, but wow, are they small. I'm concerned they will be a choking hazard for quite some time so I won't be giving them out to DS for several months. I generally am pretty relaxed about items that are listed for 3 and above, etc, but my concern is that because these are "food" items he'll be more tempted to put them in his mouth, even once he gets past the everything-in-the-mouth stage. I used to work in a preschool for extra $ while in college and I know even the 3 and 4 year olds had to be reminded not to put the play food in their mouths (they didn't mouth other items but liked to stick playfood in their mouths).

The pear and orange are of a size I'd be particularly concerned w/ because the whole thing could definitely go in his mouth and choke him, particularly if he tried to run around with it, etc. That seems like a very negative review; but I do really like the items on the whole. They will just have to go away (I had planned on that anyway as DS is not even 12 months until next week) for quite some time. Once he stops putting everything in his mouth I'll re-evaluate.

Just curious if anyone else has concerns about this and for anyone who already has these items, at what age was your child able to play with them? I just bought some M&D wooden cutting food for DS, which is much much larger and should hold us over until he's ready for the small HABA food.

-the big red top
Love this. I played w/ it for a minute or two w/ DS and he was quite interested in it. He loves when we spin his wooden rings from a ring stack he has, etc. so I thought he'd probably like it. I put it away for a few days. This is going to be his valentine's day present from us. Very cute and unlike most tops which are quite small, I don't think we need to worry about him choking on it. (it is probably 4 or 5 inches in diameter...pretty big).

-Hotztiger dinosaurs (we ordered all 4 that were on the maukilo site)
Again, probably won't give them to DS for a few months yet, but I *LOOOOOOVE* these. So nicely made, such beautiful detail. Gorgeous!! They are sturdy and just gorgeous. Wow!! Now I think I'm going to be searching for more Holztiger items in the future. I always suspected they were very nice, but wow, they are gorgeous.


Okay, that's it from us. Just thought i'd post my review. Our items weren't terribly "exciting" but we are pleased with everything we got. Some things will just have to go away for a bit longer than others.

I'd love to hear reviews of what everyone bought. Of course, that is dangerous since the code is still active for a few more days ;) Please share what you think of your purchases. I'd love to hear from moms of kids who are actually old enough to play with the items too since my little guy is a little young to enjoy most of what we bought (other than the top).

[Mom2Miri]

Beth,

We received our order last night and I agree with what you said. Even though I knew the dimensions of the Haba food, I was still surprised at their actual size. They are very nice quality. I like the fruits better than the vegetables, but that's true of me in real life anyways :)

My favorites were the Holztiger animals. We ordered the giraffe, polar bear mommy & baby, roebuck, and husky. These pieces are beautiful! The website photos don't do them justice. Even if DD doesn't like them, I would be happy to add them to my displayables collection. We're especally happy with the red husky as we have a red Siberian Husky.

Also, we had a slight mixup in our order and Alex at Maukilo responded to my email right away with a solution. So this has been a very positive experience.

I'd love to hear reviews of other items too!
Helen & Mirielle 2/25/03

[brittone2]

Helen-thanks for sharing your thoughts on this. I definitely like the Haba food, it is just quite a bit smaller (and therefore more "chokable") than I anticipated. I'm glad to know I wasn't the only one who thought this.

Yes, I agree wholeheartedly, the Holztiger animals are fabulous.

[jk3]

Fast shipping! I love the lacing beads and my DS does too. The fruits + vegetables are really tiny so I've separated the small from the way too small + some are going back. The shopping bag and the crate are cute + everything will fit in his kitchen. The products are high quality. I should've paid more attention to the dimensions.

Jenn
DS 6/03

http://lilypie.com/baby2/030603/2/5/1/-5/.png

[tigalig]

I received my order yesterday (Saturday!) and I thought that was great cs. I agree with everyone about the size of the food, but I am really pleased with the quality of it all and hope to order more. I'm buying for a 3yo and that might make a difference in my opinion. "I'm" tired of the big, chunky stuff. Yes, I suppose I buy for me too. : )

I'm giving the Haba lollies to our ds for Valentine's Day and I know he's going to love them. The Chelona Snail wooden play book is really adorable and I can't wait until I give it to our dd. The Haba cash register is superb and I especially love that it has NO sounds and just plain colored buttons. Of course, this will not do for our ds who is accustomed to the scanner and lady's voice greeting him at the register, but I think it's going to make a fabulous toy for our dd. I'm glad I bought the paper money to go inside and I may have to buy the coins soon too.

[quikeye]

Anyone able to tell me what sizes the holtziger items are? They're adorable but I'm concerned abt sizes now :) TIA!

[Mom2Miri]

The ones we got ranged from about 3" to 14"...I found dimensions at www.tinytots.com

HTH,
Helen & Mirielle 2/25/03

[brittone2]

Our Holztiger dinosaurs are about 4 inches by 3 inches or so as well. I wouldn't be concerned about my one year old DS choking on them. Perhaps some of the smaller baby items would be a concern though? I don't have the dimensions on those but it is just a thought.

I loooooooove the Holztiger stuff! The dinos are too cute.

[NEVE and TRISTAN]

I ordered only grocery /market/ kitchen stuff
I posted the list in the other thread...

We got the wooden scales and cash register-LOVE THEM!!!!
and bought tons of food and all of the tins , and the milk bottles (oh so cute)...
I have to say that I love them so much and they are everythign I imagined/ I worry the boys will dent the tins so I have them out of reach and more of a decoration for now...but I do love them and am thrilled with our order!!!!


Neve
Reichen (6), Karsh (3), Tristan (22 months) and baby girl Bronwyn on the way due March 19th!!!!

[mysweetboy]

My absolute favorite is the Haba Duck Pull Toy. It is GORGEOUS! It will stay in our family and hopefully be passed on to Charlie's children. I also love the Selecta Vehicle Picture Cubes. It will be stashed away and given to Charlie next Christmas.

In addition to the above, I ordered the Haba Wire Toy, Play Cutlery and Baby's 1st Blocks. I plan to return the wire toy (much smaller than I imagined, should have paid attention to dimensions). The cutlery is adorable but I think that may go back as well. For what I wanted it for, our old wooden spoon in the kitchen suffices. When he's older and ready for the kitchen toys, I will definitely re-order. The blocks haven't been opened....still debating about keeping them or giving as a gift. Decisions, decisions. :)

Thanks again for organzing this, Rashmi. I love these toys!

Lori
mommy to the sweetest boy

[zoestargrove]

I'm so glad I wasn't the only one suprised by the size of the Haba food - I read the dimensions, but the pics made them look so much larger. We only opened the bag of fruit so far. The basket of food and eggs are for Easter, but DS LOVED the fruit. Between last night and this morning he must of emptied and refilled the bag a hundred times. He did however think it was funny to say yum and put the cherries in his mouth...so, this is a toy that I will keep out of reach unless I'm playing right there with him. (he's 20 months...and not much for putting other things in his mouth.)

[luvtoshop]

Hi Neve~

I recall some time back that you were adopting children. (haven't been on board since the Kettler coop) I'm assuming that's who these new additions to your name are...CONGRATS! Weren't you adopting from the Ukraine? I have a friend from a loop that has 2 children from the Ukraine.

Just wanted to congratulate you on your newest additions to your family and the exciting news of your March due date! : )

[zuzu]

I got my order last weekend, but forgot to post. I knew the Haba and Erzi food items were going to be small, but when DH opened the tin of cookies and the peas and carrots, he said they were the cutest little choking hazards he had ever seen. ;) We also got the cash register, top and a lacing toy, all of which Sarah can use now. She has some larger M&D food items she can play with now, and we'll start introducing the smaller play food when she gets her kitchen set later this spring.

The ordering process was very smooth and Alex was so helpful--I'd definitely order from her again! A set or two of the blocks are on my list. . .

Melissa, mom to Sarah (5/03)

[NEVE and TRISTAN]

...two beautiful boys inside and out!!!!
We have pics and the story here, the story might bore you but on around December 17th (or there abouts) I posted two pics of the boys that are embedded here so a quick glance and you can see them :)
Ages 6 and 3!!!

www.insearchofourfamily.blog-city.com


Neve
Reichen (6), Karsh (3), Tristan (22 months) and baby girl Bronwyn on the way due March 19th!!!!

[luvtoshop]

Oh my....I am teary from just reading bits and pieces. Will go back and read more tomorrow when the girls are napping! Congrats! What a beautiful family!!

I have a friend who is a Coordinator for www.life2orphans.org and a
Kirovograd Ukraine Orphanage Sponsor---she'd love to read your story. Do you mind if I forward it to her?

[luvtoshop]

I bought the Holztiger animals and am in love.....so much that I called Maukilo after they arrived and asked how long the discount would apply. She said until tomorrow but thought I'd hold off b/c I've been on a buying streak. eek! I told her that I was very happy with the transaction and that I would continue to be a customer of hers. She mentioned that she's been very happy with the orders 30 - 40!) from the BBB and that she may consider offering a discount to the group once a month!! She was going to coordinate with Rashmi. I told her that any discount would be appreciated.


We talked a bit about the different dimensions of the animals b/c I need to make sure that I do not order any that may be choking hazards for my youngest dd. I love the monkey, but it looked small online. She did not believe that any would be a choking hazard, but did recommend the chimpanzee over the monkey. : ) She also said that she could get any of the Holztiger animals...on the left side of her web page there is a section for special orders...so I'm going to get my list together and be sure to order only from her. She also said that a new shipment of more animals would be arriving soon. When I placed my order she was out of the Orcas and whales and when I went online today they were back in stock and I was bummed that I had not ordered them with my initial order. Now that I know there will be a savings every month, I can wait and order those in March!

Thanks again, Rashmi....I had never heard of Holztiger until Sunday when I logged on. : )

[brittone2]

Aren't they great? I always thought they seemed so pricey, and I was sure they were nice, but I wasn't sure I could justify the price. Once we got ours (we got 4 dinosaurs) we understood completely!! They are gorgeous!!!! More like artwork then toys, quite honestly.

DH isn't big on spending money but he told me that these were a bargain once he saw them. That's saying something!

Uh-oh on the BBB regular discount!! That's dangerous but wonderful :) I'm glad that the folks at Maukilo considered this to be a good experience as it seems most of here did as well. That's great news!

Thanks again Rashmi for organizing this, although if it becomes a regularly scheduled discount, I may need to kick your cyber behind LOL ;) (This morning Beth is repeating to herself LESS IS MORE....over and over again).

[lmladuke]

So is the co-op still on with the discounts?

Lori

Mommy to Jonathan Matthew 7/27/01
and Katherine Olivia 7/28/04

http://lilypie.com/baby1/050728/2/13/3/-5/.png

[papal]

Yeppers! Till the 23rd! :)

[redhookmom]

I hope there are more discounts in the future. I would love to stock up for birthday parties intead of running to Walmart at the last minute. Wouldn't it be thrilling if your birthday child recived a bunch of this stuff instead of a bunch of stuff from Walmart. To pushy to put this on the invites? Just kidding, of course!

[Chel05]

3 Lulu Flower (Cat) Dolls
2 picture Domino games
1 Opoosite game
A wide variety of the wooden zoo animals
A couple of rattles/teethers
People at the train station

This is what I ordered and wow am I pleased with this site. Extremly fast shipping- placed order early Sunday morning and box arrived well packed and taped up in Wednesday's post. Easy site to use too- sometimes with sites and virus/firewall etc.. protection, pictures don't always show up.

The Lulu Flower (Cat) dolls were on top and I just had to open one a feel how soft it was and with five baskets on the kitchen table awaiting five different babies every visitor has been drawn to this item.

Domino game a hit this past Saturday at birthday party! Pictures on wood look to hold up for several generations and a teaching toy to boot! The little four year old's mom does daycare in her home for two other children and when he explained the Domino game to the two year old girl they were off matching the "looky-likes" in a bit of random two sation order.

Opposite game will head to California for Christmas so I think its a neat twist on matching, but have no kid feedback to provide. Also, people at train gift for June birthday, but snuck over while he was at school and will fit with train track already beloved.

Zoo animals were a bit smaller than I expected, but solidly built and will be part of goddaughter's birthday gift as I'll be taking her to the zoo two days before her birthday and she already has a bunch of other wooden animal toys.

Teethers well built- honestly was not sure if wooden was going appeal to me, but in the baby baskets they go- now all are asking- "Where are you learning of all these new sites and discounts too?" I just give or email the BBB site and tell all what a wonderful group that is here and how much I have learned- preschool teacher and longtime babysitter btw- for when I have my own child.

Thanks for letting me lurk so long.

Blessings,
Michele

Who knew I'd ever consdier much less plan to CD, lol?

[katesk]

We bought a few things - most of which we are holding on to for a few more months, until jack can really enjoy them -

Konrad Small Red Bus - super cute! great handle for little hands
Vilac Small Blue Racecar - perfect! very nice quality I am just hoping this will "replace" any need for silly racecar toys...
Haba Natural Blocks - just a nice small starter set....I'm sure I'll end up with more - other types. I'm not "in love" with these...they don't seem as smooth as I expected
Sigikid Sweety Bear plush - LOVE this - actaully - every sigikid we have bought we have loved! very nice plush

Can't wait to buy kitchen stuff (next year?) and holtztigers...

THANKS for organizing the Co-Op - Maukilo is great!

[smomom]

I ordered a few things from the Maukilo co-op, but have only received one item so far - the Spielstabil baker's set. I really like this item. I ordered one for Sage and one for his friend. The dishes/utensils are very sturdy, durable, and perfectly sized for him. The apron is adorable too. It fits him now, but has plenty of room to grow. It also washes well - it got a little messy during our first baking session. Sage likes to help me cook so we've really enjoyed this set so far. He either helps me with baking or "cooks" his cheerios while I do my meal cooking. My only disappointment is that the set no longer comes with the chef hat as shown.

I would also like to reiterate that Alex is a dream to work with. I would definitely order from her again. When I emailed her about the chef's hat I also included a picture of Sage playing with his baking set. She emailed me back asking permission to use his photo on her web site.

So..... here's the link to Sage and his new baking set. Check out the bottom pic!

http://www.maukilo.com/product+spielstabil-7524.html

I can't wait to get my other items, and really appreciate Rashmi organizing this for us.

[redhookmom]

That is a great photo. what a great model!

[papal]

Wow! That is a GREAT picture!

[jec2]

Dana, how cool is that? What a wonderfully fun time it looks like Sage is having :) How did his confections turn out?

[smomom]

I thought it was pretty cool too. I would have definitely cleaned up the kitchen a bit more if I knew she was going to use it on her site. ;)

As for the confections..... Sage's cheerio pies and cookies (cheerios poured into pie tins and cookie cutters) turned out wonderfully. Unfortunately the banana bar recipe that we tried wasn't quite as tasty. :(

[daniandmeghan]

As a newbie to the site, I was wondering if anyone knows if there will be other group discounts? And, how exactly does this work?

[puppymom]

Here's what we ordered, just arrived on Monday:

Spiral Twister Train/Railplay Set
http://www.maukilo.com/product+tctimber0564.html

Circus Train Set
http://www.maukilo.com/product+tctimber0597.html

Alex was wonderful. She called immediately after she received our order to explain (and apologize) that the train set would be a bit late, as it is delivered direct from NY. Maukilo is actually based in the next town over from us, in Vista, CA. If only we could convince her to open a brick-and-mortar store, too! =) We'd be there every day spending way too much money.

Andrew is totally into the train set. We assembled it as soon as it arrived, and he wakes up every morning and scoots over to play with it, and often refuses to eat because he's so intent on pushing the trains around the track. It is challenging for him since it is a two-level track, but he is incredibly patient and anticipates where the train will end up so that he can start again.

We are glad that we bought an extra set of trains, the circus set, because Andrew often will take a train in each ahnd and go over the house with them. This way there are always at least a few trains left on the table itself to play with! I love that they are the perfect size for small hands, that they feel heavy, well-made, the magnets are color-coded to make it easier to tell which ones link together, and the magnets themselves are *strong*, making it super easy to connect them and keep them connected, even down the sloping tracks. The colors are just great, cheerful without being overwhelming.

His grands bought him the train table at Costco for x-mas, and we found that the transportation set it came with was pretty breakable. Our hardwood floors were not kind to the toys. So far the Haba/T.C. Timber set is holding up *much* better, though we plan on moving the table and trains to a carpeted area. I just love love love the quality of the trains and the track set - this will definitely be the begining of more wooden toys for us.

Thanks again to Rashmi for organizing this, we couldn't be happier. This one group of toys has really made a difference to us. Andrew first pulled up to standing on his own on Christmas day when he got his train table, it was the first place he started cruising, and when we got the new trains and tracks he started cruising around the perimeter of the table for the first time!

Thanks again,
Dawn