Play kitchen - pastic or wood? - Please help me decide!!

[MeISOE]

I was reading the play food platic/wood posting and thought I would post for advice on kitchens since I am having such a hard time deciding. I always have a terrible time deciding on "big" purchases because I am fearful I'll pick wrong, someone will make fun of me, etc. Paralysis has kicked in on the kitchen.

I want to get DS a kitchen - he's 2 and loved playing with both his cousins' kitchens (one was Plan Toy wooden, one was Step 2 plastic). He liked the Step 2 because of the noises. I liked the Plan Toy because of the style. I kick myself for passing up on the Melissa/Doug that was on sale in Sept. Again - paralysis.

Anyway, DH wants Plastic, I'm still stuck but time is running out to order for Christmas. Does anyone have any opinions, recommendations, good deals that will make up my mind for me? I'm blaming everything on hormones this year since I'm expecting DS #2 in a couple of months. I just want this Christmas to be great, esp. since DS #1 has a birthday next week as well. Last Christmas as an only child.

HELP! (and sorry to vent/long post - again, hormones). I have no local friends with kids to pester.

[chozen]

between wood or plastic. my husband also wanted plastic i wanted wood so i finally got him on my side and we decided on wood. we picked out a kitchen and ordered it from walmart then i kearned from here that some of the wood kitchens contain formaldehyde(the ones that contain mdf or pressed woods, laminates) so then we looked at a couple of solid wood ones but they all seemed small to me 24" wide to me doesnt seem very big for more then one child to play on. so we finally decided on plastic we bought a larger step 2. there are some great deals on step 2 web site right now there dream kitchen is $119.00 free shp. i think i would have stuck with wood if i could have found alittle larger of a kitchen, i did like the elves & angel kitchens as well as colorado little. oh and by the way our daughter will be 2 in a week or so as well. im sure you will make the right choice and make it quickly merry christmas. :D

[sads]

I try to avoid plastic toys in general, but ended up getting my daughter a Step 2 with the microwave, oven, and phone that all makes noises - she just really loved those features when playing with my nephew's kitchen, so I went ahead with that one.

[SnuggleBuggles]

I chose plastic b/c I couldn't stomach the cost of a wood one that would be comparable to what I could afford in plastic. Also, this was 7y ago and I didn't think that hard about health and environmental reasons for one over the other. Finally, I know when I was a kid (heck, and as an adult), I had more fun playing with kitchens that have more realistic features like plastic ones tend to.

Our Step 2 Dream kitchen is 6 years old and still looks new despite being heavily played with. Resale might not be as high on it as wood but I know it will keep going after ds2 is done with it.

At the end of the day, consider your decor and what you want to be looking at for the next several years. :) Our kitchen doesn't bother me at all and it's in a prominent place in the house.

Beth

[wimama]

My DS inherited his cousins old plastic play kitchen. And when I say old I mean like 23 years old. LOL.

He doesn't seem to actually play with the kitchen much, so we don't feel compelled to replace the kitchen with a newer one. He does love to play with play food though.

If we were to replace it, I would either buy this Melissa & Doug one, because I don't think it is too girly and is pretty reasonably price for a wooden kitchen.

http://www.amazon.com/Melissa-Doug-Classic-Deluxe-Kitchen/dp/B000GYUYC4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=toys-and-games&qid=1260202655&sr=8-1

[AnnieW625]

We are most likely going to get a wooden one from Novatoys.com. Brittone posted it last week in another post. DD will have a small room so we need something that isn't so grand and some of the ones on their site seemed to be the right fit and were still less than $200.
http://www.novanatural.com/elves-angels/wooden-kitchens/christinas-kitchen

[brittone2]

I prefer a wooden kitchen, but it is just personal preference. My kids enjoy their Elves and Angels kitchen. I like that it is made in the US (I'm not a purist but think it is a nice option), and will likely be heirloom quality. I also do not have a dedicated playroom and so it sits in my living room. I prefer the aesthetics of wood. I'm pretty sure my kids wouldn't care either way. My kids have gotten a TON of play out of their wooden kitchen so DH and I have never regretted the money we spent.

[Allisonsmommy]

I got my 2 year old a plastic kitchen about 6 months ago. we got the step 2 one. We move ALL the time with the military and i just think plastic would withstand moves more than a wooden one (screws coming loose, etc). Plus, i think the cute noises are really appealing to toddlers. I do love wooden toys but in this case, plastic wins hands down.

[citymama]

I'm definitely a fan of wooden kitchens - more attractive, can be handed down to siblings and better resale value. In general we prefer wood toys to plastic, but especially for larger things like kitchens, doll houses, barns etc.

We have the Educo kitchen, available at oompa.com with free ship for $99 - includes cookwear, play food and other accessories. Love it.

[Seitvonzu]

we have an E&A kitchen very similar to the one that annie posted-- except that it has the "hutch" top to it. we also got the refridgerator-- but, saying "we" means-- nana & papa bought it. they tend to go overboard on holidays, so we felt comfortable asking for this gift for our christmas baby (birthday on the 23rd) as a "joint" gift. we really meant for them to buy one piece and we'd get the other, but they got both and a bunch of "stuff" (the enamel pots and a bunch of wooden accessories and then of course couldn't resist some other plastic food...*Sigh*)

ours lives in our kitchen. we literally LIVE in our eat-in kitchen. once the kitchen arrived we took most of the other toys on our main level and moved them to either the basement or the new playroom. this way i sorta got our living room back! (there are still books books everywhere and a rocking horse and soon the play piano from the other grands will be in there). i wanted a kitchen that i liked looking at because-- well, it's there. and i wanted a kitchen that would be worth moving if we ever moved. i wanted to envision generations playing with our kitchen-- and i really really can. it also SMELLS good. like wood. i just walked into the kitchen this morning and thought "oh, that WOOD SMELL!" :)

i'm sure lucy would have liked a plastic kitchen. her favorite accesory is her plastic slice of pizza- she LOVES it. WE love the wooden kitchen -- mommy & daddy included!

[carolinamama]

We have wood and would do it that way again. It just looks better and since it is a main fixture in the space between our kitchen and family room, I have to look at it alot. It has gotten alot of play from both kids. That said, DS2 loves to play with the Step 2 kitchen at a local toy store because of the buttons and sounds. I think your DS will like either, so get what you will be happiest with down the road. You will have to look at that thing for years - we are going on 3 around here with no end in sight!

[brgnmom]

we have the step 2 kitchen with the microwave, oven, stove, phone, plastic dishes, etc. My son loves how the different features make noises. My mother-in-law kindly purchased the step2 kitchen set for my son as a gift. I'm finally now trying to figure out whether to buy plastic or wooden play foods.

[goldenpig]

We have the Educo kitchen, available at oompa.com with free ship for $99 - includes cookwear, play food and other accessories. Love it.

Ditto, we have the same one:
http://www.oompa.com/baby-toys/item/WH706920/WH-Swiss---Educo-French-Kitchen---FREE-SHIPPING-.html?oompaItem=WH%20Swiss%20-%20Educo_French%20Kitchen%20-%20FREE%20SHIPPING

It's great because it's very compact and neutral looking, yet has everything she needs. We have it downstairs in her playroom. We don't have room for one of those giant plastic play kitchens, and we prefer wooden toys over plastic anyways (although we're not strict about it). I just bought a wooden dollhouse for her for Xmas.

Her play food is plastic though. It's a great set:
http://www.amazon.com/Learning-Resources-Giant-Play-Food/dp/B000BZ6U0I