Top Local San Francisco Tweets Of The Week

Okay I confess, I LOVE Twitter. Along with tweeting out Ark Toys media, new toys, and events, I also spend my morning Muni commute scrolling through tweets about retro toys, Toy Story theories (too awesome), local San Francisco happenings, and I could seriously just go on and on. There's so much toytastic info out there to share!

Since I have Twitter on the brain, I thought I'd round up some fun local San Francisco Tweets. Twitter is great for finding things to do in the city. And speaking of, don't forget to swing by your local Ark location to take advantage of our 40% Sidewalk sale :)

Washed Ashore, a new art exhibit at the San Francisco Zoo http://t.co/gDVIAVbayg

— San Francisco Zoo (@sfzoo) May 23, 2014

It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood! *Mister Rogers Voice* On the corner of #Haight and Lyon. Sun… http://t.co/qwfy72ReUP

— Katherine A (@KAToday) February 3, 2014

Are you an artist in SF? Learn how to safely dispose of unused and leftover art supplies: http://t.co/HrO2pW0Vfv #greensf #SFArt

— SF Environment (@SFEnvironment) May 16, 2014

Happy Carnaval San Francisco! http://t.co/ledyTQ3jYY Look for the bookmobile on the Ninolandia Block at Harrison St btwn 23rd & 22nd Sts

— SF Public Library (@SFPublicLibrary) May 23, 2014

It's another beautiful day on #pier39, perfect for checking out the new @SeaLionCenter that opened yesterday! pic.twitter.com/qZW2yZ4PSi

— Aquarium of the Bay (@AquariumOTheBay) January 18, 2014

Love these SF history makers. RT @pier39: Check out this video of the sea lions' 1990 arrival at #PIER39! http://t.co/FOqzloMEu8

— Kimpton SanFrancisco (@KimptoninSF) August 20, 2013

Unique Plush Gifts For Kids of ALL Ages!

For many of us, stuffed animals never went of out style.  Tossing out our childhood plush friends was definitely out of the question, and from time to time we still indulge in buying a mini plush Totoro or an adorable Steiff baby dragon.  Not to mention they're also tried and true gifts for first birthdays, holidays, and get well baskets.  From fresh Kawaii plush to collector's favorites like Hanza, there's never a shortage of whimsical and fun plush gifts for kids ages 1 to 101!

Dragon Plush

Steiff Baby Dragons make wonderful gifts for friends in the hospital, kids birthdays, and of course Game of Thrones Fans!  He may not be nearly as threatening as Godzilla, but Steiff's Raudi baby dragon will destroy anyone with utter cuteness.  Along with his twin sis, the equally as adorable Racy dragon, this pair would be a wonderful surprise for special occasions throughout the year. Complete with those signature Steiff tags too!

 

Jellycats - The Softest Plush Ever? 

The quest for the softest plush is on!  It's hard to choose between popular favorites like Snuffles and Baby Gund, but Jellycats may take the title on this one. It's up for debate, but one thing's for sure, kids come racing into The Ark Toys looking for magically soft Jellycats to add to their collections.  From zebras, giraffes, to tabby cats and classic teddy bears, Jellycats are quickly becoming the new classic plush for kids. Seriously, check out this giant purple mouse!

 

All this writing about plush makes me want to raid my childhood bedroom for all my favorite Care Bears, Popples, Pound Puppies, and of course BEANIE BABIES! ;) What were your most favorite plush toys growing up?

Buying Child Therapy Toys For The Office

Next to LEGO and Arts & Crafts, Play Food sets were some of my favorite toys growing up. I always got excited when I realized I was unwrapping a fresh new batch of fruits and veggies, pretend sandwich supplies, or wooden pizza toppings.

The other day some family therapists came into the store looking for play food themselves. Plan Toys' and Melissa and Dough Play food sets are two of the top choices among therapists for imaginative child therapy toys.  But how do family therapists and psychologists use wooden play food sets and other toys in their practice?

Next to designing a space that makes the youngest patients feel comfortable with expressing themselves, therapists also buy child therapy toys to aid in creating a safe environment to talk.  Professionals often choose timeless toys such as play food sets, play blocks, building sets, figurines, arts and crafts, and stuffed animals among several others. 

These classic role play toys help therapists establish trust with their patients, and they always start off their sessions by letting kids play for a while. That's why many child therapists have safe sports toys in their office as well, like koosh ball toys or a mini soft basketball sets.  

Along with making kids feel comfortable with their setting, these specially selected toys help therapists address specific issues with their patients. Plus therapists find that these role play toys help to relieve stress in young patients while talking about difficult or traumatic events. 

Wooden play food sets, LEGO, and other child therapy toys have also been observed to ignite creativity in young children too!  As the entire process is helping them to express their concerns as well as creative ideas and thoughts about their future. 

And toy therapy isn't limited to just kids. Therapists often have toys in their office readily available for patients of all ages to help them ease their nerve and talk openly.

These are just a few of the popular child therapy toys that professionals love!

• Stir Fry Wooden Play Food Set
• Birthday Party Cutting Cake Set
• Sandwich Making Play Food Set
• Petit Four Plush Pastry Set
• Plan Toys Cooking Utensils 
• Classic DUPLO Legos
• Citiblocs Wooden Building Sets
• Cuboro Standard Marble Run 
• Magnatiles Deluxe

My Favorite Easter Pins of 2014

Wow, Easter is seriously just around the corner. Super fun times! We've been dressing up our windows with vintage Easter egg gift boxes, yellow chicks, Hanza bunnies, Jellycat, and loads more. Even the Easter Bunny himself has already finished making the rounds to all our bay area locations. 

I still have Easter on the brain though, and all the festivities as of late inspired an Easter egg hunt of my own on Pinterest. There's been some great Easter 2014 pins this year; here are several of my personal favorites!

       

Need more Easter decorating inspiration? Stay tuned for more featured Easter pins and my upcoming Easter TV Guide for the Kids!

How to Buy Nursery Decor When You Don't Know Anything About Babies.. Or Nurseries

Don't have kids? That's cool, neither do I.  Babyworld is still mysterious terrain for me, so I know all too well how difficult shopping for a friend's newborn can be.  Finding unique, useful, and meaningful gifts for babies and new moms is a fun challenge though.  And luckily today's nursery decor offers some really creative and clever choices. 

Wow.. I've been working toys for quite a long time, but I've had a lot of fun getting acquainted nursery decor over the years that isn't run of the mill. 

For starters, basically everything from Authentic Models is amazing!   Their products are definitely high-quality and based on fascinating content, making them a neat choice for stylish nurseries. Their mobiles in particular work great with a variety of wall colors, furniture, and themes, plus they don't feature jarring characters that could scare a baby.

The A-Cup Sailboats mobile (pictured above) is a BIG hit with nautical themed nurseries, and with the recent USA victory in the America's Cup, the history behind these lil' racing boats makes for really special gift too.

The boats of the a-cup mobile were modeled after the real 1932 American J-Class racing yachts!  But it's not the only Authentic Model's mobile that's inspired by American history. Switching gears to aviation, the Gee Bee Squadron mobile represents the real, award-winning Gee Bee racing planes of the 1930s.

I read a blurb online that likened these planes to something you'd find in a Disney Movie.  I could totally see it, especially in Who Framed Rodger Rabbit or Disney's 2013 feature, Planes.

Aside from neat mobiles, tabletop or dresser decor for the nursery is another good route to take. Stylish wooden "nesting" blocks work great as colorful nursery decor, plus they serve the dual purpose of being safe, high-quality play blocks for babies when they're a bit older. 

Other gifts that fall in this category are Ostheimer wooden figures and decor, which come in a wide variety of trees, animals, people, homes, and more. They're all handmade from Germany's most recognized wood shop. Ostheimer gives people the freedom to create dresser top decor that fits perfectly with any nursery theme. Literally, I think they make EVERYTHING. 

Last but not least, I wanted to mention the versatility of Steiff plush. Most recognized for their vintage jointed teddy bears, Steiff also has a series of more plushier stuffed animals that make for cute, whimsical nursery decor as well. 

My Favorite Rare and Retired Lego Sets

I seriously can't get enough of LEGO. They were, hands down, my favorite toy growing up. And since I work at a toy store, I'm knee deep in Hobbit Lego, star wars Lego, city sets, Heartlake Friends sets, etc, it's awesome! So I decided to take up the quest of finding the most valuable Lego sets in the world.

There are some great LEGO sites out there, like Brick Picker , The Plastic Brick Blog, and the Eurobrick forum, which combined are great sources for Lego history, rare sets, value, you name it. There was a good amount to choose from, so I just narrowed down the top 4 to my personal favorites in no particular order. For the time being that is; I think this list is definitely subject to change :)

It's the Ewok Village! I remember the Ewok Village my brother and I had back in the late 1980s - This newer version of a LEGO classic comes with even more odds and ends to recreate one of the most awesome scenes of the Return of the Jedi!

This the LEGO set I want! Retailing at around $300 (yikes!), this impressive set recreates the amazing architecture of the renown Sydney Opera House.

I love the Dumbledore office LEGO set! Harry Potter legos have a great color scheme to them as well; I sort of want to combine them with that Ewok set above. I found this retired set on Brickpicker, with an estimated market value of over $130. Another popular, retired Harry Potter LEGO set is Hogwarts Castle; this 2001 set commands a current market value of $240.

This small Indiana Jones LEGO set from 2008 is pretty popular with Lego buyers these days. Recreating a familiar Indiana Jones Motorcycle chase, I definitely would have begged my mom for this if I were kid back in 08' - Reminds of the motorcycle chase from The Last Crusade.

LEGO is definitely here to stay, so it's fun to think about what the future holds for rare and collectible LEGO sets. Star Wars sets definitely dominates the LEGO collectors world, however sets like Disney's Toy Story LEGO are in demand since the third film was the final installment of the popular animated trilogy. And we can't forget about the insanely popular Minecraft Lego sets, the new Mixel figures, and of course, Duplo!