Roundup: Tegu's Baltimore Block Party & Mobility Line at aMuse

 This past weekend at aMuse Toys was quite eventful. Not only did we have a great time racing and engineering some pretty cool wheeled creations, we got to hang with the amazing Tegu pit crew! Will Haughey and his team are some of the most passionate, energetic and just plain FUN people to be around.

Everyone at aMuse Toys had a blast.  We thank Tegu for the unique play experience they provided our customers and staff.

Tegu Mobility is truly ingenious.  Tegu had already taken the classic wooden block to a new level by adding magnets and now, with its mobility line, the possibilities for play are endless. The addition of wheels to the fascinating connectivity of Tegu blocks enhances play value for everyone --regardless of age.

We are thrilled to announce that the Tegu Mobility line is available in limited quantities at both aMuse Toys locations! We are the ONLY retailer in the country to offer the first run of these amazing new products. If you are not local, don't worry you can score Tegu Mobility online exclusively at tegu.com.

Don't forget to enter Tegu's HOW DO YOU ROLL? SWEEPSTAKES. One lucky winner will work directly with Tegu Designer, Nate Lau, to design Tegu’s next car, for more info click here.

Thanks to our friends at theWAIREHOUSE for documenting the fun on Sunday in Fells Point!

Toy Fair 2011: Tegu Jungle Set

The 2011 Toy Fair in New York City has been quite a whirlwind! We've been visiting old friends and finding all kinds of great new toys. You may remember how much we fell in love with Tegu wooden magnetic blocks at the New York Gift Fair this Summer. Well, this Valentine's Day we loved them just as much — if not more than before.

The first thing that caught our eye was the very festive Tegu Valentine's Day heart. They used the pink pieces from the Tegu Tints set and stuck them on a metal display cube. What a great idea! And because they're magnets, they'll stick to your fridge at home too. We're determined to get a big, beautiful, magnetic play table at aMuse built specifically for our Tegu displays.

Both of the Haughey brothers, founders of Tegu, were at the Toy Fair. We had the pleasure of meeting William at the Gift Fair late last year, but it was nice to meet his brother, Chris, as well. They are incredibly fun, kind and socially conscious young men. This is apparent when you meet them, and it shines through in their company values and story.

We tried to get them to disclose the true identity of the Tegu Genius, but they wouldn't divulge the information. If you haven't seen the Tegu Genius yet, he's pretty incredible. He builds beautiful Tegu constructions out of hundreds of Tegu blocks — but you can only ever see his hands! We took a close, hard look at both William and Chris's hands and concluded that neither one of them is the Tegu Genius. (Though they are both 'Tegu Geniuses' in their own right!)

The big news from Tegu is their beautiful new Jungle Set. It features rich colors inspired from the different types of wood and foliage found in a lush jungle. It's a great new option that gives you a combo of green, natural and mahogany wood colors. It's sooo classy. It epitomizes the aMuse Toys mantra of, "beautiful, purposeful play."

We placed a big order so we'll have the Jungle Set in stock as soon as they make it stateside. In the meantime, stop by and check out the other great Tegu products we have at aMuse: natural, mahogany, tints and the carrying case.

We'll be blogging, facebooking and tweeting all this week live from the Toy Fair in New York City. Check back daily to stay in-the-know about all of the beautiful new playthings we find.

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Top Toys: Extraordinary Gifts

Here's a last-minute list of extra-special gifts for that special someone in your life.

1. Eames House Blocks

These exquisite Eames House Blocks are made in the United States from replenishable Michigan-grown basswood and screen-printed by hand using non-toxic lead free inks. They are an absolute work of art and epitomize all the features of a modern classic.

2. Emerson House

Emerson House modern dollhouse is the perfect home for the modern family. The modern home has six rooms including a living room, kitchen, library/office, master bedroom, bathroom and child's bedroom.

3. PLAYFOREVER

PLAYFOREVER is a UK-based toy company that designs ultra-durable, classic playthings for all ages.

4. Playsam Rockers

Playsam is a Swedish company whose self-proclaimed mission is to bring lovely design to the world. Their rockers make beautiful accent pieces to any nursery or playroom.

5. Let's Play Mail

These durable, handcrafted felt mailboxes are too cute to handle. Each piece is made with care here in the USA by skilled artisans.

6. The Learning Tower

The Learning Tower is the safest way to raise your child. It's a sturdy alternative to a step stool, which helps young toddlers safely explore, discover and experience the world around them!

7. Haba Push Carts

Pushing carts provide children with a sense of independence and help with balance while learning to walk, but even after your little one becomes comfortable on foot, these carts remain just as fun and useful.

8. Tegu

Tegu is a brand new company that manufactures magnetic wooden blocks - think Magformers meet Haba. Serious play with a classic, yet sleek design.

9. UberArc

UberArc is the ultimate building tool. Whatever your age, you have to agree, these building sets are just plain cool.

10. P'kolino Art Easel

Encourage your child's inner artist by giving them an artfully designed P'kolino easel. They are both practical and pretty!

Don't forget to enter to win $150 to spend at aMuse!

Top 10 Stocking Stuffers

1. Buckyballs

Buckyballs are super strong rare earth magnets that are endlessly entertaining. They make a great toy to keep on your desk at work and make a great open-ended building toy.

2. Spot it!

 Spot it is a new game from Blue Orange Games that relies on quick visual recognition and recall. There is only ever one matching image on any two cards. Be the first one to spot the match and get rid of all your cards to win the game. 

3. Travel Tegu

This 8-piece travel set by Tegu fits perfectly in a stocking. Complete with its own felt carrying pouch, you can easily throw it in your purse to take to restaurants for play or simply keep it on your desk at work for when you need a creative outlet.  

4.  Around the Table Games

The 'talk' games by Around the Table Games are great catalysts for conversation. Use them around the dinner table, for breaking the ice with new friends or take them along with you on your next long journey!   

5. Colored Smencils 

Colored Smencils are scented pencils that are made from recycled newspaper. Each color has its own unique smell!  

6. Viking Chubbies Gift Box

These minature cars by the Swedish company Viking Toys are great for any little car lover. All of Viking Toys are all responsibly made from a pliable BPA & PVC-free plastic. The best part about them, however, is that they're all dishwasher safe.  

7. Sleeping Queens

Use strategy, quick thinking and a little luck to rouse these napping nobles from their royal slumbers. Play a knight to steal a queen or take a chance on a juggling jester. Beware of the wicked potions and dragons! The player who wakes the most queens wins.

8. Kanoodle

Kanoodle is a great one-player brainteaser game that's small enough to fit in your pocket. Recreate the images on the puzzle cards with the plastic game pieces in 2 or 3-D. There are hundreds of possible combinations, but only one completes the puzzle!

9. Dano Circus Teethers

Dano Circus Teethers are Made in the USA from medical grade surgical plastic. Each set comes with three teethers and their own plastic carrying case for safe and sanitary teething.

10. aMuse Toys Gift Certificate

This envelope-sized treat is great for filling out any stocking. The possibilities are endless!

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Top 20 Toys of the Season

We hope you enjoyed our Top Toys for under $25 posted earlier in the week! Now we're back for another installment of holiday gift ideas. It was hard to narrow it down, but with a lot of agonizing (because we truly love all of our toys!), we have our Top 20 Toys of the Season.

1. Sustainable Earth Lab

This comprehensive science kit by Thames & Kosmos contains 40 different earth-friendly experiments. Construct your own miniature water treatment plant, make recycled paper and plastic and explore the causes and consequences of greenhouse effect with carbon dioxide tests.

 

2. Strobotop

Strobotop light-phase animator by Eye-Think is one of the coolest new products on the market. Use the flashing LED light and the animation wheel to see the pictures move. You can also make your own animations by using the blank templates that are included with each Strobotop.

3. Magna-Tiles Working Trucks

Your child will love Working Trucks. They are assembled using magnetic connections, so they are easy to connect and rearrange. Kids are able to build traditional style trucks or something from their imagination.

4. My Friendship Bracelet Maker

My Friendship Bracelet Maker simplifies bracelet weaving for any crafty kid. Just clip your thread onto the board and separate the strings. This way you never lose track of what string gets knotted next.

5. Scruble Cube

This brand new word game is interesting mix between Scrabble and a Rubix cube. Align the letters in the cube to create words and earn points based on your letter combinations.

6. HEXBUG Nano Habitat Set

Your kids will love this kit! HEXBUG is a mechanical creature that behaves just like a real bug. It feels its way around sensing objects and responding to loud noises. With this set, you have everything you need to build your own HEXBUG Nano Habitat!

7. Quercetti Fantacolor Junior

Fantacolor Junior by Quercetti is great for building finger strength and dexterity while practicing color recognition and sequencing. Little ones are delighted for hours building the colorful pictures or creating their own unique designs.

8. Terra Kids Microscope

Any serious explorer needs a Terra Kids Microscope set. Its portable design is great for collecting samples in the wilderness so you can analyze them on the spot. Great for any budding field research scientist...

9. Ubertropolis

Uberstix dynamic building sets are the perfect challenge for any seasoned builder. The complex pieces are able to snap into one another in a multitude of different ways, and the pieces can be used in tandem with other mainstream building sets.

10. Wheely Bugs

Prince Lionheart's classic ride-on toy, the Wheely Bug will quickly become your child's best friend. We love them because they're adorable, durable and super fun. Their 360 degree desk chair wheels on the bottom allow your child to scoot around any which way.

11. Treasure, Ready, GO!

Haba's Treasure, Ready, GO! is a fast-paced game that truly is great for the whole family. Complete a series of tasks ranging from charades, to 3-D building to quick memory matching to earn points.  

12. Automoblox Minis

These Italian-designed mini wooden cars have interchangable parts. They are a modern-day classic.

13. Block Crayons

Color and stack! Block Crayons can be used as finger crayons or as colorful blocks.

14. Tegu

These wooden magnetic blocks are like Magformers meets Haba. All of Tegu's unique products are manufactured responsibly in Tegucigalpa, Honduras.

15. Quadrilla Marble Runs

This classic marble run is made of dyed bamboo and is infinitely expandable. Marble runs have been delighting people of all ages for the past century.

 

16. Building Blocks Technics

 One of Haba's newest items, Building Blocks Technics is a block set with clips and wheels. As always, Haba's wooden toys are Made in Germany of solid beech wood and dyed with water-based vegetable dye. Building Block Technics is open-ended play at its finest.

17. HABA Curioso Shape Sorter

Some people say, "it's just a shape sorter," but in our opinion, it's the best and most beautiful one there is. Each shaped block is crafted from solid beech wood, dyed with a water-based vegetable dye and is adorned with fantastic sensory stimulating embellishments such as prisms, bells and beautiful patterns.

18. Magformer XL Cruiser

If you ever want to take an awesome toy and make it even more awesome - just add wheels. That's exactly what Magformers did with the XL Cruiser. They took a top-notch magnetic buildling set and turned it into a cruiser.

19. Water Blocks

Water Blocks are so new on the market that we don't even have a picture of them yet. They are a super unique pool or tub toy. Magically, they stick to smooth surfaces when wet so you can have a tub time marble run! They're already a huge hit, so stop by either aMuse location to check out what the buzz is about.

20. Melissa & Doug Shopping Cart

This one's a classic. Melissa & Doug's metal shopping cart is a must for any pretend-play store.

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