I’ve loved the Orb Factory line of Sticky Mosaics craft kits, but although their designs are awesome, they were mostly aimed at girls. There are kits for mermaids, unicorns and ponies, princesses, and even a 3-D princess palace and a jewelry box. But my son, who’s really the only one old enough to do these kits without close supervision, was not interested in the girly themes. But finally they’ve come out with some really great designs for boys.

The Sticky Mosaics Dinosaurs and Dragons kits are exactly what you could hope for. They are vibrant and colorful, attractive for boys who are interested in these great, fanciful creatures. As with all the kits, they do a great job of combining creativity with the same kind of logic you find with paint-by numbers kits.

The sticky mosaics are made in China, but Orb Factory has gone through extensive quality control and safety testing, and The Orb Factory welcomes calls from customers wanting further information; their phone number is 902-477-9570.

Approximate Retail: $14.97
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So when my sister in law gave us the Play-Doh EZ2DO Silly Friends for Christmas, I was pretty excited. It looked especially fun for my middle child, who, at 3 years old, isn’t quite ready for some of the trickier Play-Doh contraptions. This set features 3 large tubs of Doh, and about 30 body parts – plastic eyes, arms, mouths, ears, etc. Think Play-Doh meets Mr. Potato Head.

The first thing I noticed was that nearly EVERY SINGLE INDIVIDUAL PIECE was INDIVIDUALLY silver-twisty-wired onto the plastic backing. You know what I mean…those silver twisties are the bane of every mom’s existance, especially around Christmas! I think there were roughly 20 wires. When we finally got them all done, the kids started playing with the pieces.

What I thought were the beauty and simplicity of this toy was pretty much ignored by the kids. My 5-year-old son keyed on the “injector” and its ability to mold feet by squeezing a tube of Doh through the top of the shoes (which is actually a pretty neat double-feature). He also made some hats. My daughter was just happy to have some fresh Doh to play with…she’s content with a few colors and a plastic knife to cut the Doh into tiny messy pieces.

Overall I think this is a nice addition, and I’m glad we got it as a gift – but I probably wouldn’t spend my own money on it. I’d go for a new basic set of fresh Doh and a box of plastic knives from the picnic section.

Approximate Retail: $17.95
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