My Favorite Toys and the "Hot Toy List"

So it's October and by now the corporate toy chain (we won't mention names but can we say "giraffe") has published its hot toy list for the Holidays.

To which we say, "Beware!"

To the the corporate toy chain, "hot toy list" primarily means, "items we want to push and we hope we can convince you shoppers to create a frenzy for a few of them." And sadly it usually works....then by January 15 those must-have toys are never heard from again.

At My Favorite Toys we ourselves will publish a "Top Ten Toy List" in about four weeks. But our list is based on customer preview reactions, creative play value, developmental benefits, and, yes, just plain fun. Our list is not tied to the latest movie, or TV show, or electronic fad.

And as an independent, family-owned, enterprise, we then compile the items ourselves --- our list doesn't come through a national edict from a corporate headquaters hundreds of miles away.

This approach is consistent with the way we run My Favorite Toys, our flagship store at University Mall in Carbondale, IL, and our online store, www.MyFavToys.com all year around.

Give us a try this Holiday season. We'll serve you with quality toys, puzzles, games and puppets....and whether you shop at our brick and mortar store or at www.MyFavToys.com, we'll treat you as a valued friend, not a commodity in a warehouse store!

...stepping down off our soapbox now!

Pig E. Bank is back at My Favorite Toys and www.MyFavToys.com!

Pig E. Bank is back!

You may remember this popular item from Christmas, 2008. When you place a coin in the slot on Pig E.'s back, he will tell you what coin you have deposited and keep track of your savings on his LCD screen. The LCD screen also allows you to adjust your balance when making a deposit or withdrawal. "Pink Edition" Pig E Bank (pictured above) is a great tool to teach kids to recognize coins and count money while saving their pennies. Pig E. also comes in a flashy chrome style.

Turn your little spender into a big saver! Pig E. is available at our brick-and-mortar store at University Mall in Carbondale, IL, or at our online store at www.MyFavToys.com.

My Favorite Toys 's Favorite Wind-Ups

As we receive wind-up toys from companies such as Toysmith, California Creations and Schylling, our favorites change every few weeks.

Our current favorites are the Neverfall Bumpercars (pictured above) nifty little characters in bumper cars that, well, won't run off the edge of a table or counter. They never fail to elicit a customer response such as, "How do they do that?"

Come check them out at our brick-and-mortar store at University Mall in Carbondale!

My Favorite Toys Says: Deck The Malls With Boughs and Toys!

Let's face it...regional shopping malls have taken a beating recently from retail analysts who chirp about the recession-caused store vacancies.

So it's interesting to see toys on their way back to the mall for the upcoming holiday season. Sears is wading back into the business with toy stores within their mall locations in a few big-city markets. And this week Toys R Us announced 80 temporary stores to open in 80 major-market malls.

Hmmm...suddenly malls are "in" for toys!

Here at University Mall in Carbondale, IL, My Favorite Toys knew this already! We're headed into our fifth Holiday Season, grateful to customers through southern Illinois, eastern Kentucky and southeastern Missouri who have supported us!

The success at our locally-owned and operated brick-and-mortar store has allowed us to broaden our base via www.MyFavToys.com, our online store.

Yes, it's nice to know the "experts" now share our view that there is still life at the mall!

Tearing Up The Wind Ups

A wide range of customers enjoy the Schylling old-fashioned tin wind-ups at My Favorite Toys and www.MyFavToys.com. But we can't remember the last time someone bought several of them to take apart.

That was the plan of a young woman this afternoon, a metals work major at Southern Illinois University - Carbondale. She's planning an exhibit on tin wind-up toys, so she decided she needed to know how some of the classics --- such as the Schylling Duck On The Bike--- work.

We'll look forward to her exhibit and will pass along the dates for blog readers within driving distance of SIU and our brick-and-mortar store at University Mall in Carbondale, IL.

Best Pals, Katjan, and My Favorite Toys

A few days ago we posted a feature on Janet and Kathy Lennon's rag doll line available at My Favorite Toys, our brick-and-mortar store at University Mall in Carbondale, IL and at our online store, www.MyFavToys.com.

Since then several customers have asked whether these are the same dolls as the Best Pal dolls and the dolls from Katjan, Inc.

The answer is "yes." The Lennons' company is Katjan, and the rag dolls are referred to as Best Pal dolls.

And, oh, by the way, we also carry the Best Pals CD, which contains a wonderful group of some of the Lennons' favorite childhood songs

Here Comes Timmy The Tractor From Local Entrepreneur, Angie Wyatt

It's always fun when we introduce a new product or line at My Favorite Toys and www.MyFavToys.com. Doubly so when the developer of the item is a local person and someone we know personally.

Such is the case with our new Timmy the Tractor line, introduced by Angie Wyatt, known to area TV viewers as the news anchor on WSIL-TV.

Angie married into a farm family, and "from raising cattle, to making hay, to growing a crop, I found all aspects of farming to be fascinating," she says.

When her son's first word was "tractor," she sensed a bit about her future! "After scouring the aisles of toy stores, I realized there wasn't much of a selection in character-type farm implements," she said.

As a result, Timmy, the soft plush, interactive tractor was born. A paperback book, "Hay Day," actually preceded the release of the plush Timmy, and that book will be the first of a series which will also include Manny the Mower, Ralph the Rake, and Bill the Baler.

We also carry Timmy The Tractor t-shirts in sizes 2T and 4T at My Favorite Toys's brick-and-mortar store at University Mall in Carbondale.

A theatre production is another aspect of the Timmy series, and maybe even TV and big screen productions will follow.

We're pleased to welcome Timmy to our shelves and online offerings!