Changeful Magnetic Puzzle, By PlayMe Toys - REVIEW

Nature/ Type:          Magnetic pieces in wooden travel case 

Rating:                     ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

Recommended age:  3 year-old ++   

Who would love this: Young kids that enjoy magnetic + building toys 

 PlayMe Toys has a playful magnetic set called “Changeful Magnetic Puzzle”. We love everything about it - the design, the open-ended play, the creative potential. Thank you Divisible by Zero for providing it for a review. 

Why I love ❤️ this toy: 

(1) 42 Magnetic Pieces + White Board - The set comes with 42 colourful geometric pieces - rectangles of different forms and sizes, circles (full, half, quarter), triangles, squares, and half “donut”. Each of the geometric pieces is magnetised, and can be arranged and attached to the white board to form patterns, 2D images, or anything random. I love that the case includes two separate boards - one is an empty white board for our little artists to create their magnetic masterpiece, another side is printed with images of the 42 magnetic pieces which makes packing up really quick and easy. The design is sleek, functional, and I love how neat and organised it looks. 

(2) Idea Booklets - The set includes two double-sided “leaflet cards” that can be opened up like some cute brochures. The first “booklet” consists of 12 suggested ideas in 2D graphics (eg a dog with a curvy tilted tail, a girl in red shoes, a yacht with triangular sail etc). The second set contains 12 factional concepts (eg 3 slim rectangles can be grouped into a single square, two right angle triangles can be placed diagonally to each other to form another square). We can “match” the shapes, or allow our imagination to run wild and go wacky, or play a guessing game like what my four-year-old loves to do. This is a beautiful toy for colours recognition, shape-learning, pairing and positioning, matching the pictures, and getting familiar with mathematics concepts such as division and factions. 

(3) Smart Features - I love the smart design of the travelling case - magnetic “closures” (that keeps the two boards securely “locked-up” when being closed together), classic steel hinges, wooden toggle with roped loop to fasten the case, wooden case completes with an elegant handle. This is a mess-free, travel-easy, and solid toy. 

(4) Safety Compliance - PlayMe Toys are made in Taiwan. The products are in compliant with international safety test standards (such as EN71 and ASTM). 

Simple love it! 

# gifted in exchange for review 

Where to buy this: 

https://playmetoys.com/products-single-item.php?p=77 (Website) 

http://www.dbzonline.com.au/public/home.ehtml (Wholesale, Australia) 

Enjoy the video! 

Pat Bells, By PlayMe Toys - REVIEW

Nature/ Type:          Musical instrument 

Rating:                     ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

Recommended age:  12 month-old ++   

Who would love this: This is a great first + quality instrument for young kids to explore music in a fun and colour-coded way. 

I have been eyeing these lovingly-crafted Pat Bells from PlayMe Toys (designed and made in Taiwan) for a while. They are such joy to look at, and wait till you hear that enchanting and out-of-the-world sounds reverberated movingly from these little instruments. It’s pure surreal. 

Why I love ❤️ this toy: 

(1) Eight Individual Bells - The Pat Bells come in eight individual bells made of iron and mounted in beech timber stands. Each of the bell represents a note from the C Major tones. The bells can be arranged in ascending order in accordance with the rainbow colours spectrum: red, orange, yellow, green, sky blue, darker blue, indigo, (and back to red for the higher C note). The bells generate loud and crisp sounds, beautifully resonated when we pat on the wooden knobs. There are plenty of songs that can be played with this eight-note octave: from famous nursery rhymes like Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, Mary Has a Little Lamb, Jingle Bells, to classic such as Brahms’s Lullaby and Home Sweet Home. We love the double-sided colour-coded rhythms cards, which made playing music extremely easy (all we need is to follow the sequence by patting on the bells of corresponding colours). 

(2) Wooden Tapping Knobs - I did a review on Pat Bells Shelf from the same brand on 19 January this year, where I mentioned about the slight peeling-off of paints at the top of the bells. There is no such issue with this set of Pat Bells as they are covered with wooden tapping knobs, so I think this set is more superior in terms of durability and colour-retention. 

(3) Storage Box - The storage box is top notched and I love how it is cushioned with quality packing foam. Each bell can be snugly inserted into the encased space, and I really love how sturdy the red box looks. The box also has a nicely fitted lid and carrying handles for convenient portability. 

I love these pat bells! 

[The review was first written and published in Instagram on 22 August 2021] 

Where to buy this: 

https://www.entropy.com.au/collections/playme/products/playme-pat-bells-set-of-8 (Australia) 

Enjoy the video! 

Pat Bells Shelf, By PlayMe Toys

Nature/ Type:          Beautiful musical instrument 

Rating:                     ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 

Recommended age:  1 year-old ++ 

Who would love this: Mini music lovers 

This Pat Bells Shelf by PlayMe Toys (designed and made in Taiwan) is another of my recent loves. Having learned music in full seven notes per octave (or what they call, heptatonic scale), I was a bit sceptical of what a five bells instrument can do. The discovery was mind-blowing. 

Why I love ❤️ this toy: 

(1) The Sound- Each of the bells produces sound that is vibrant, loud, clear, and purely magical! The 5 bells are set in a pentatonic (5 notes octave) ascending scale, and sound lovely regardless of how my two wild kids hit and bang on them. I am especially surprised to discover the number of songs that we can play using just 5 notes. This is joy! 

(2) Materials- the stand is made of beech wood. It’s durable, a bit heavy, and is a toy to be kept for some time. 

(3) Song Books- the set comes with a song book and sheets of colour-coded stickers for melodies making and recording. If you need more songs, you can also download additional songbook lovingly created by Tiny Tones , available from its website (and it’s free!). 

(4) No Tuning - No tuning is required for this instrument, so it’s easy to maintain. 

What I have in the pictures above is a toy library set, so the paints at the top of the bells are a little peeled off after numerous plays by many families, although the beautiful tune of the instrument is not affected. I saw that PlayMe Toys also produces “wooden pat bells” and other 8-bells instruments, which may be better options for some families, and I am eager to explore more of them! 

Enjoy the video!