Thank you International Playthings
for providing me with a product to review, free of charge.
These are my own honest opinions.

My daughter loves playing with small figures and their homes. It’s great to see her create scenarios and ‘worlds’, reenact situations which often inspired by our own lives, and develop her pretend play skills which are so important for language development and socialization.

 Calico Critters offer some of the cutest miniature creatures and realistic environments. Cloverleaf Corners community has different homes, from a cozy cottage to a luxurious manor. There is even an adventure tree house. Of course, no community is complete without a school and a few shops and restaurants. It is possible for children to collect multiple buildings and create an entire environment where kids can go to school, parents can go to work, etc. There are also vehicles to get around town. To help add depth and realism to this community, there are ‘ready to play’ sets with one or more figures and all the necessary accessories. For example, there is the ‘Country Dentist’ set, the ‘Let’s Go Camping’ set, ‘Winter Sports Fun’ set, etc.

For this review, I received the Cozy Cottage which is the perfect way ato start a Calico Critters collection. This adorable cottage comes fully assembled with 15 pieces of furniture and accessories, including a bed, table and chairs, etc. I like how many of the items are interactive: the drawers on the countertop can be opened and can be used to store the cutting board and knife, the TV has a ‘screeen’ behind which you can change the picture as if to change the TV channel, etc. There is enough furniture to play with but it’s also nice to expand with additonal furniture sets. A nice feature of the cozy cottage is that it’s a 2-storey house and the second storey floor is reversible (hardwood or green carpet). It can also be removed completed or used to expand the first floor. The house is a perfect size for children: 10.5″ x 8″ x 10.75″. It’s big enough to fit all the furniture yet it doesn’t take up too much room.

In the Cloverleaf community, the Cozy Cottage is the home of the Hopscotch Rabbit family. However, the cottage only comes with one member of the rabbit family: Bell, who is  the daughter. I wish it came with the entire family (2 parents, one brother, one sister) but complete families can be bought separately. I actually like that there are so many families to choose from including koalas, cats, hedgehogs, etc. Babies can also be purchased separately in sets of twins or triplets. Each figure has a lot of details and unique clothing (which is interchangeable between families).

The Calico Critters universe can also be found online. On their website, children will discover the Cloverleaf Corners community with Bell Hopscotch Rabbit. There are short aminations and videos. Children will also find games such as ‘Spot The Changes’, ‘Find It’, puzzles, and more. There are coloring pages to print out. I love how they created wallpaper that we can print out and cut to customize and decorate the different houses. It’s a fun project for older children or something to do with the help of mom and dad.

Calico Critters has already spearked the imagination and creativity of countless children around the world over the last 25+ years. Their timeless style and simple yet realistic design allow children of all ages to immerse themselves in the Calico Critters universe.

Find Out More: Head over to Calico Critters to see for yourself the adorable selection of miniature creatures and their realistic universe. Use the code EMILY for $10 off the Cozy Cottage (which is the item I reviewed).

Connect: Calico Critters is connected! Don’t forget to like them on Facebook and follow them on Twitter and Pinterest for all the latest news and promotions.

Giveaway: International Playthings is generously offering one of our lucky readers a Calico Critters family. The giveaway is open to the US and will end December 19th. For your chance to win, enter the Giveaway Tools below. Good luck!

Rachel