Books and Toys

My Lanyard Maker


Helps kids create the easiest lanyards ever – weave it to believe it!

Recently, the Choose Friendship Company débuted the new My Lanyard Maker on popular shopping site HSN –with great applause!

112113_ChooseFriendship_04Whether you grew up calling them lanyards, scoubidou, boondoggle or plastic gimp, this all-American arts and crafts favorite makes making them easier than ever. My Lanyard Maker’s innovative loom is designed to create an endless variety of patterns, without tangling laces and confusing knots. Convenient storage keeps colorful supplies neat and clean, too.

112113_ChooseFriendship_01Fun Gift Idea. Popular with the boys as well as the girls, kids can design colorful plastic bracelets, tradable key rings and backpack charms with My Lanyard Maker –great holiday fun!

112113_ChooseFriendship_03The Choose Friendship Company is the brainchild of David Crorey, who’s philosophy is, “Give me an everyday problem and I’ll invent a solution.” He invented the My Friendship Bracelet Maker® for this granddaughters, so they could make friendship bracelets with ease – a patented innovation.

112113_ChooseFriendship_02Now, David has turned a family business into a global sensation, bringing even more innovation to simple crafting techniques with an expanding product line to engage kids in creative self expression, while promoting the message of friendship.

Little Passports


111213_LittlePassports_packageRaising global citizens right in their own backyards.

Amy Norman says she practically grew up on a 747, traveling back and forth from America to England every three years for her father’s work. So it makes a lot of sense that she would create an educational experience for kids that inspires wanderlust.

Amy is co-founder of Little Passports, a fun way for kids to learn about and enjoy other places and cultures. She and her co-founder Stella Ma dreamed up two engaging characters, Sam and Sofia, who take young aspiring travelers along on their adventures through the United States and to other countries by sharing their experiences with them.

Our products combine the surprise of postal mail with the online games kids love today.

111213_LittlePassports_SamandSophiaWith the subscription-based service, Sam and Sofia send your kids a personalized package in the mail each month that includes an adventure letter, fun souvenirs, stickers, wall-size maps and more. They even get their own passport and a boarding pass to travel the world, with a secret code to access online games and activities at Little Passports’ online Boarding Zone. Everything is designed to encourage kids to take an active interest in their world and other cultures as early as possible – ages five to 12.

111213_LittlePassports_USThis San Francisco-based company is passionate about “helping to raise a generation of citizens who are compassionate about the cultures and people around the world,” donating one percent of sales to non-profits focused on children and issues that affect them.

Amy and Stella are also committed to giving other moms and budding entrepreneurs opportunities to grow businesses with Little Passports. Check them out on the Affiliates and Become an Agent pages.

News from GoldieBlox


Girls, start your engines. GoldieBlox introduces new toy collections! Pre-order now.

GoldieBlox is an inspired collection of games and toys that introduce girls to the fun of building. The company “employs” the smart, curious Goldie as master storyteller, and she’s become a role model to girls, building their self-confidence is all things engineering. The result? Goldie is mentoring the next generation of girls to be the builders of our future.

With a successful début -from Kickstarter to Toys”R”Us in less than one year- founder Debbie Sterling is ready to reveal Goldie’s next adventures.

110513_GoldieBlox_01“GoldieBlox and the Parade Float” is available now for pre-order on GoldieBlox.com for delivery by December 1 and rolling into Toys”R”Us stores nationwide this holiday season. Goldie introduces her new friend, Ruby Rails, and together they help Katinka the pink dolphin build a float for a special parade –all on their own!

110513_GoldieBlox_02In addition, GoldieBlox fans can dream up even larger projects with the Blox + Bits Expansion Pack, also available for pre-order. These rods and blocks fit both the original “GoldieBlox and The Spinning Machine” and “GoldieBlox and The Parade Float” sets.

110513_GoldieBlox_03Online Play Gallery now on! GoldieBlox has recently launched an online “play gallery,” to share stop-motion “how-to” videos starring little girl inventors. GoldieBlox fans can submit their own masterpieces to be featured on GoldieBlox.com and the GoldieBlox YouTube channel. 

ZooBooKoo Cube Books


101013_GearedForImagination_CubeBooks_05A simple toy that engages and educates through play.

Popular toy company Geared for Imagination just introduced its newest educational toy- ZooBooKoo Cube Books.

The more you turn – the more you learn!

101013_GearedForImagination_CubeBooks_06Remember the Rubic’s Cube? Well, these books’ll make it fun for your kids to learn, in much the same way. Designed in the United Kingdom, Cube Books engage kids with knowledgeable info and detailed illustrations packaged in a unique way –by folding and unfolding parts of the cube, revealing the secrets inside.

Cube Books are available in four subjects – the Human Body, Planets, Spelling and Multiplication Tables.

101013_GearedForImagination_CubeBooks_01Ohio-based Geared for Imagination creates and distributes of high-quality products “Driven by Design, Powered by Play.” Founded in 2009 by dads Ryan Hamilton and Bret Faber, the company recently launched a Retailer Resource Site for wholesale that includes online ordering, virtual catalog, downloadable pictures, videos, catalogs and more!

Pendleton Woolen Mills


100813_Pendleton_150YearsLogoHappy Birthday to the iconic brand of classic American style.

Recognized all over the world as a symbol of authentic American heritage and craftsmanship, Pendleton is celebrating 150 years of weaving fabric in the Pacific Northwest this year.

100813_Pendleton_BigDipperCribBlanketMade in the USA. With six generations of family ownership since 1863, the company owns and operates two of America’s remaining woolen mills, attending to them with the love and respect they deserve with state-of-the-art looms and eco‐friendly technology.

Inspired by its heritage, Pendleton designs and produces apparel for men, women and children, blankets, home décor and gifts.

100813_Pendleton_HoodedTowelFor Little Ones. Pendleton’s colorful, beautifully designed and naturally inspired line of children’s blankets, towels, layette, plush toys, dinner sets and room décor can brighten your child’s environment with pieces that can become family heirlooms.

100813_Pendleton_FranklinHorseEach of the “Tell-Me-A-Story” blankets are inspired by the true history of the native peoples of America, giving real-life shared experiences to parents and their kids. Full stories for each blanket can be found on the company website.

100813_Pendleton_Ah-DayMuchachoGirlsAh-Day. “Ah-Day” means “special” in Kiowa, and the Ah-Day blankets are produced exclusively by Pendleton for the American Indian College Fund, a Native American-operated organization dedicated to education. Designed by acclaimed contemporary Native American artist Virginia Stroud, the blanket is inspired by a Plains Indian tradition of new parents placing their child’s remaining navel cord inside an amulet shaped like a turtle. The amulets represent the turtle’s hard shell that will guard the spirit of the child and ensure a long, protected life. Also, a portion of the proceeds from the Ah-Day blankets benefit the Fund.

100813_Pendleton_GirlScoutsGirl Scouts’ Centennial Celebration. Last May, Pendleton wove a custom blanket design for the Girl Scouts’ 100 year celebration, each one issued with a commemorative label signed by Girl Scout alumna and former Governor of Oregon Barbara Roberts.

100813_Pendleton_LayetteAdorned with a few of the original Girl Scout proficiency badges and the Girl Scouts official 100th anniversary logo, the blanket design represents the history as well as the diversity of skills that girls have learned in the last century. Stripes along the top and bottom represent the three parts of the Girl Scout Promise and the Courage, Confidence and Character element of the Girl Scout mission.

100813_Pendleton_PillowPendleton is available through select retailers in the USA, Canada, Europe and Asia, at Pendleton stores, through company catalogs the Pendleton website.

Measuring Up App & Book


When shopping for children’s clothes, measure twice, buy once … and leave the children at home?!

092513_MeasuringUpApp_ImageLauri Chertok has a good thing going.

The Chestnut Hill, MA native who pursued a fabulous fashion career in New York is now a consultant to Moms who want to excel in the fine art of shopping for their children’s clothing.

Call A Babysitter! Lauri is the creator of the successful Measuring Up App for Apple® iPhone and iPad, a nifty shopping app that’s portable enough to use whether you’re in a store, flipping through catalogs or browsing online.

092513_MeasuringUpApp_BookShe’s also the author of a new book, Measuring Up: Buying Clothes that Fit. In it, she puts her 25+ years of experience in the fashion industry to work for you, with a simple, three-step guide that gives you the measurements you need to bring home clothes that fit –without any dressing room temper tantrums and youthful meltdowns. Why? Because you’re kids can stay home.

I want everyone who clothes shops for kids to buy this time-saving app. It will make shopping fun, stress-less and totally doable.

Two-Fisted Ease. While the Measuring Up book includes helpful inventory pages to track your child’s wardrobe for what they’ll need each season, the Measuring Up app lets you email measurements directly to anyone who may need to know them –like grandma, who’s buying a present –or knitting a sweater- for their grandchild (There’s also an automatic conversion function, so she can shop when traveling abroad!).

Whether you use the app, the book or both, Lauri’s easy measurement instructions and accurate storage takes the stress out of shopping.

And they work for grownups, too!

That’s right! Lauri’s thought of everything. As she says, she’ll always be obsessed with fashion, art, good behavior and proper fit.

Learn more about the app and the book by visiting the Measuring Up App website. While you’re there, check out Lauri’s blog, Measuring Up Maven, for her current tips and tales about kids, their parents, children’s fashion and more.

How Roland Rolls


Award-winning actor/artist Jim Carrey is breaking new ground, for himself, his fans –and for a little wave.

Jim Carrey – known for his fabulous portrayals of interesting characters in films such as Man on the Moon, The Truman Show, Ace Ventura: Pet Detective  and How the Grinch Stole Christmas, among others, is self-publishing his first children’s book.

Carrey’s created a charming, fun to read, beautifully illustrated book with Roland the wave as a metaphor for the inter-relatedness of everything in the world.”

~ Jane Fonda

091213_HowRolandRolls_BookcoverOn September 24, How Roland Rolls is available wherever books and e-books are sold, as well as on the How Roland Rolls website. An enhanced e-book will be released at the same time, along with a four-song EP that is available through iTunes. Major booksellers are also embracing the wave, so to speak.

“It’s a story about a wave named Roland who’s afraid that, one day, when he hits the beach, his life will be over,” Jim says. “But when he gets deep, he’s struck by the notion that he’s not just a wave — he’s the whole big, wide ocean! It shows humanity’s interconnectedness through the metaphor of a wave in the ocean.”

The personal story behind the book. “When I was a child,” Carrey shares, “my parents were smokers and I had a deep fear that they would pass … and then what would happen to me? I think that’s a common fear for children – the fear of loss. It’s an early existential crisis, if you will. But when we realize that beneath the surface of things – the activities of our lives — we are all connected, all one energy, that fear of loss gets softened. At times, it disappears entirely. At least that’s been true for me.”

091213_HowRolandRolls_JimCarreyIllustrationAs a parent -and now a grandparent- (Yikes! Where did the time go?!) Mr. Carrey reflects on the time he spent reading to his daughter, Jane. “I believe the closest we get to heaven in this world is when we get completely involved in something we love. One of those moments is when we read to our children. It’s total freedom from self, from our worries and problems. We always feel terrific afterwards, and so do the kids. For them, it’s an experience of focused, enveloping love.”

All in the family. Illustrated by one of Jim’s friends, Rob Nason –who’s also an award-winning illustrator and animator- How Roland Rolls is dedicated to his grandson; the four songs on the EP are performed by Jim and his daughter, Jane; and the book itself is being released by his company, Some Kind of Garden Media.

 Philosophers and scientists struggle to understand cosmic consciousness, but Jim Carrey explains it with elegant simplicity to the child in all of us.”

~ Deepak Chopra

Cinders: A Chicken Cinderella


091113_CindersByJanBrett_BookcoverWhile reading the current issue of Country Woman Magazine recently, I was introduced to Jan Brett, an award-winning author/illustrator who also happens to breed award-winning chickens.

Jan is renowned all over the country for her beautiful illustrations in children’s books –and when I saw the cover of her newest tale, Cinders: A Chicken Cinderella, I just had to tell my Children’s Retail Today peeps about it -and about Jan, too.

Cinders is Jan’s take on the classic fairy tale, complete with a little hen who’s transformed into a beautiful and mysterious guest at a ball during one magical night. Her fanciful illustrations capture the grandeur and glamour of eighteenth-century Russia, where Jan traveled herself. Together with her funny flock of chicken characters, this Cinderella story is whimsical and original. A feast for the eyes, one might say!

“I want kids to be able to open my books and feel as if they could walk right into the pages.”

-Jan Brett, in Country Woman

Charmed by Chickens. The Massachusetts-based author is currently touring the United States for her new book, visiting towns in New York, Ohio, Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, South Dakota, Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Kansas, Alabama, Georgia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, North Carolina, New Jersey and New Hampshire (phew!) –visiting book stores, schools and libraries, giving book talks and illustration demonstrations at each signing. It’s something Jan does every fall, to meet her book-reading fans in person.

091113_CindersByJanBrett_TourBusIf you’re lucky enough to live in a town she’s visiting, sign your kids up for Jan’s “Lunch on the Bus” contest, where your child and three friends have the chance to win lunch with Jan on her tricked out traveling machine. Visit JanBrett.com for more.

091113_CindersByJanBrett_JanWithChickensWhile you’re checking out her online footprint, learn more about Jan’s stories that have been incorporated into school curricula across the country and download free educational activities for teachers to use with their students.

Imagine Childhood


Everything under the sun that encourages the wonder of play -for people of all ages, really.

091013_ImageChildhood_Catalog_natureThe first thing you will notice when you visit Image Childhood is the gorgeous photography.

Browse through this family owned and operated company’s Seasonal Catalogs and you’ll lose yourself in the magic of each season, just looking at all the fun and interesting toys, tools and activities that encourage exploration, creativity and play. Imagine Childhood specializes in high quality, environmentally conscious products that allow children to experience the world through their own senses. And for co-founder Sarah Olmsted and her team, the best way to learn is through interacting with nature and our natural environment.

Part community forum, part storefront, imaginechildhood.com is a place where parents and kids can find their own definition of childhood.

091013_ImageChildhood_BookcoverIn fact, Sarah wrote the book on it. Imagine Childhood: Exploring the World Through Nature, Imagination, and Play- 25 Projects That Spark Curiosity and Adventure, published by Roost Books last fall, is what she calls “a celebration of childhood through the crafts and activities that invite wonder and play.” For Sarah, the 25 projects in the book offer stepping-off points for children to engage with the world. “They’re about the process of getting there,” she says. “They’re about the conversations that happen while making things together. They’re about getting to know the world inch by inch. They’re about exploring imaginary universes and running through real forests. They’re about living in childhood … regardless of your actual age.”

091013_ImageChildhood_Catalog_explorationPure Natural Wonder. Before starting Imagine Childhood five years ago, Sarah developed interactive education exhibits for the Field Museum of Natural History. And she uses this experience in presenting simple, economical projects for children and parents to enjoy together –without all the technological wonders of the modern day. Just the  pure, natural wonder of our surroundings, revved up with a child’s point of view.

091013_ImageChildhood_OakLeafFairyShop the Store. In addition to Sarah’s book, shoppers will find all sorts of treasures at Imagine Childhood, like this Oak Leaf Faerie, handmade on Bryn Du Farm in Colorado and dressed in plant-dyed wool felt, made from the farm’s own sheep! Also very cool: custom skin and eye color available upon request.

Giada De Laurentiis’ Recipe For Adventure


The New York Times bestselling author and Food Network star cooks up a little something for the kiddies –and for their moms.

090313_RecipeForAdventure_NaplesGiada De Laurentiis knows a little something about travel. Not only was she born in Rome, growing up in Los Angeles where she now lives with her husband, Todd and their daughter, Jade, she attended the Cordon Bleu in Paris and works for a television network based in New York’s Chelsea Market.

Giada also knows a thing or two about how to fill the hours riding on a plane. In addition to perhaps working out new recipes for her incredibly popular television series, Giada at Home, she’s written a few stories about two kids who travel the world, learning about food and culture.

090313_RecipeForAdventure_ParisOn Sale Today! Giada De Laurentiis’s Recipe for Adventure children’s book series transports readers to famous food cities around the world. The first two books in the series, Naples! and Paris!, go on sale today; a third, Hong Kong! is also available.

090313_RecipeForAdventure_HongKongIllustrated by Francesca Gambatesa, the books introduce kids to Zia Donatella, who comes to live with the Bertolizzi family. And when she does,  little do Alfie and his older sister Emilia know what’s in store for them. Zia Dontella is determined to show the kids how a home-cooked meal is better than even the best take-out pizza or burrito. And when Zia’s plan actually transports Alfie and Emilia to famous food cities around the world, they learn first-hand how food can not only take you places but can also bring you back home. Each book includes recipes for those home-cooked meals.

Available on Amazon.com.

090313_RecipeForAdventure_GiadaLogoA Little Something for Mom, Too.  With the recent launch of the digital publication Giada, the very popular chef is re-imagining the very notion of a weekly lifestyle publication, with an editorial package that allows for on-the-spot content and is responsive to reader input.

The new media offers a blend of original and curated lifestyle content focused on food, beauty, fashion, home décor, health and fitness, travel and family life. In addition, there’s  Giada’s “hotlist” -what she’s listening to, reading or watching and  “Feel Good Food,” her weekly column devoted to her secrets for eating well and staying fit (she’s also written a new book by the same name, coming out this fall).

090313_RecipeForAdventure_GiadaIn addition, each issue will include recipes that readers can collect and save in a personal “Recipe Box” and share with friends via Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and email, as well as tips to up their style quotient and ideas for places to visit and products to buy. Upcoming issues will feature reader-generated content as well as editorial features created in response to reader feedback, making it a truly interactive experience for subscribers and Giada’s fans.

Giada has always had an exceptional level of engagement with her fans through social media. By publishing weekly and in a digital format, Giada is able to deepen that engagement, providing a more immersive experience for her highly mobile audience while maintaining the authenticity that is a hallmark of her brand. Giada is redefining what a magazine can be by creating an experience that has the immediacy of a social platform with the functionality of an app. We are thrilled that she has chosen to explore this exciting new space with us.”

-Pam Krauss, Senior Vice President and Publisher, Clarkson Potter

The inaugural issue of Giada is free. Available now for downloading from Newsstand on iPad; iPhone and web-optimized versions will be available later this fall. Future issues will be published every Thursday. Giada is powered by Paragraph’s publishing platform, that lets authors, publishers and other organizations create beautiful magazines for tablets, mobile devices and the web.

I bring all this up because I know a lot of my Children’s Retail Today readers are exceptionally creative and innovative –and Giada’s new products can really inspire new business opportunities!