Reviews by Annabel Andrews, Alice Ellerby and Saffia Farr
CircleTales Adventure Storytelling Game
This is a beautiful game. My daughter (aged 12) enjoyed opening the box for the first time; the bamboo board and cards are really attractive. You start by turning over Moon Cards that contain through-provoking questions such as: “What fills you with awe?” and, “If you could live by your own rules, what would you do differently?”. The questions caused us to really think as you can only write short answers. The players then start telling a story using prompt cards and responses from the Moon Card questions. Our storytelling was quite random at first but it evolved and we gradually got into the flow! There are no winners or losers; it’s a gentle entertainment of thinking and creating. It’s beautifully made and works well. My daughter loved writing with the pen and rubbing it off again! Suitable for 2–5 players, adults and children aged 9+. SF
£46
The Good Life Game
We love playing this Monopoly-style game. The idea is to ‘grow’ fruit and vegetables and raise livestock in order to become self-sufficient. You also try and source a wind turbine, a greenhouse, bees and other elements for a smallholding. You move your wheelbarrow around the board, collecting straw bales which are used as payment. As with Monopoly, there are cards that you pick if you land on certain squares, which can result in extra crops or extra problems, depending on your luck! My family has returned to this game many times over the years. It’s beautifully made with striking images and wooden pieces and a fun way to learn a little about smallholding too! SF
£29.95
THEENK TEA
THEENK TEA has developed a 21-day programme designed to support brain function and mental wellbeing. The programme is comprised of three herbal tea blends and each blend is intended to support you at the different times of the day: Morning Glory gives an energy boost, improves mood and focuses the mind, Afternoon Madness is rejuvenating, and Evening Delight relaxes the body and calms the mind ready for sleep. I found the teas really clean and fresh tasting, with well-balanced aromatic flavours. Coffee is what usually keeps me going, but I am well aware of its pitfalls and of my addiction! Drinking THEENK’s blends, I felt less sluggish, better hydrated and more awake – without the over-stimulated effects of caffeine. One of the strengths of the programme is the routine. There is mindfulness in the act of making these specific teas throughout the day. It encourages you to pay attention to yourself, your energy and your mood which, in itself, is beneficial to wellbeing. The programme also comes with a 21-day eating plan. The attractive packaging is 100% biodegradable and the teabags are compostable. AE
£39
FiddleBeads Necklace
This playful teething necklace from FiddleBeads is so cheerful I can see why my daughter can’t resist reaching for it. She loves chomping away on the BPA-free silicone beads and the adorable hedgehog pendant. The wooden hedgehog is just the right size for my daughter’s little hands and means she has a variety of textures to gnaw when her gums are sore. My previous nursling was a nipple twiddler, which I found quite hard, so I’ve been very keen to avoid that this time around. This necklace is so tactile that it keeps little hands busy while feeding. My daughter also likes playing with it when she’s in the sling. Its sweet design is right at home in my day-to-day life and it’s slim enough to tuck under a shirt if you prefer. I like the simple sliding knots for adjusting the size. It comes in low-plastic packaging and would make a lovely gift for a new baby. FiddleBeads necklaces can be customised with different silicone beads and wooden chomping animals. AA
From £12
www.etsy.com/uk/shop/FiddleBeads
Frankincense Body Moisturiser
This is a gorgeous moisturiser that’s made in Wales. It is thick and rich and leaves your skin feeling really nourished, without being greasy. The smell is amazing – perfect for a mid-winter pick up! It’s made with organic extra virgin olive oil and organic beeswax along with frankincense essential oil, sweet almond oil and apricot kernel oil. I like that it comes in a tin that you can wash and reuse, so there is very little waste. This would make a lovely gift to treat someone with. SF
£9.00
Diversity Deck
Diversity Deck is a pack of 45 cards designed around sustainability themes to introduce different levels of learning and conversation starting points while playing games. There are 16 themed tins to choose from, including Earth’s Spheres, Inspiring People, and Bacteria my Friends. I particularly liked the Endangered Animals deck which contained a very interesting set of animals. The makers hope that the cards prompt children to ask questions, and have supported this with a website that you can register with for free, enter the printed number on the card and then find out more information about each topic. There are online fact sheets and activities to build on the ideas inspired by the cards. The cards are stiff and durable, printed on recycled non-bleached paper using ecological inks, and come in attractive, tactile tins with hinged lids. An instruction sheet explains the rules for nine games that can be played using the cards, suitable for 1–5 players aged 4+. SF
£9.99
maintenant.org.uk/diversity-deck
Pigeon
With the way our interaction and communication has changed this year, these Pigeon notelets could not have come to our attention at a better time! Inspired by origami, the beautiful notelets fold to create the envelope. This makes them fun to write and send, as well as to receive, and a lovely way to keep in touch when we are all apart. There is a range of gorgeous designs, all of which are attractively made. This is a wonderful idea to counteract the separation of 2020: a folded piece of love and connection. SF
£4.95 for a pack of 6
Stacking Farmyard
This is a fantastic set of 10 wooden farmyard animals with a wheelbarrow and a straw bale. They are designed to stack, so you can have great fun seeing how high you can build the animal tower, and who fits best stacked on whom. The animals are also gorgeous figures in themselves, to use in imaginative play. They are made from sustainable rubber wood, coloured with a soft non-toxic water stain, and come in a cloth bag with a barn design, making this a fun toy to take on a journey as it can be self-contained. My children would have loved just taking the animals in and out of the bag! This is a lovely practical, tactile and attractive set of wooden farm toys. SF
£19.95
www.daisytreebabyboutique.co.uk
Oxyflower T-shirt
The beautiful ‘oxyflower’, designed by Artist Kirstie Macleod, is inspired by the molecular structure of oxytocin. It makes a fantastic t-shirt design which is both striking but subtle. The t-shirt is made from 100% organic cotton and is really soft. It is designed with a scooped neck that can be lifted up or pulled down easily for feeding, and I love the scalloped hem which gives it some extra flair. Human Milk is a community interest company that promotes the science of human milk and breastfeeding to help normalise breastfeeding across the world. The clothing company supports this work through fundraising and there are clothes for men, women and children, as well as some fantastic posters. SF
£30
This feature was published in JUNO Winter 2020.
Out Now JUNO Winter