toucanBox
Inspired by TV shows like Blue Peter, toucanBox offers a selection of craft goods for children delivered through your letter box on a regular basis. The boxes are personally addressed to your little one and larger sizes are available for those with more than one child in the household.
Each month, the box follows a different theme with an activity for your child, which had been developed by educational experts. There is also stickers for your child to collect with the bigger boxes coming with a book and a parent card that provides more ideas and inspiration for other fun activities.
At A Glance Info | |
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What's in the box? | Arts & crafts materials for your children created by educational experts |
How often does it come? | Fortnightly |
Sent from | UK |
Options | Add extra materials for a sibling for an added fee |
Website | www.toucanbox.com |
toucanBox Review
By Emma & Thomas (September 2017)
I was sent a box from children’s craft subscription service toucanBox to review with my five year old son, Thomas. We love crafts in our house, so much so that our under-the-sink cupboard lacks the usual cleaning supplies and is instead filled with paper, paint, stickers, pipe cleaners, pens, glitter, and much, much, more. I was therefore keen to try the service, to see if it could provide inspiration and good value for money.
First Impressions
The box arrived promptly and was delivered by Royal Mail. It fit neatly through my letterbox, so there was no issue with having to wait in for delivery or chase it up at the depot. The box had been personalised with my son’s name on the front and was decorated with a picture of a rocket. It was therefore very well presented, but it did mean that my son, as a space fanatic, assumed that the contents were space related.
On opening the box, it was apparent that the theme of this particular box was dinosaurs. On the inside of the box, there was a note attached to the packaging that greeted my son by name and explained in a child friendly way what the activity involved. I liked how the note made the experience more personal, and Thomas was excited to see his name printed.
What We Received
Inside the box we found various craft materials that were neatly packaged together, along with additional booklets and leaflets.
Dinosaur Tail
The box contained almost everything we needed to create a wearable dinosaur tail, with the only additional item required being a pair of scissors. There was a green cloth triangle with string that formed the base of the tail, a sheet of brown foam for cutting into “spikes”, and some foam sticker shapes, as well as double-sided tape. There was also a small instruction leaflet that was very easy to follow.
My son needed help with cutting out the foam sheets but other than that he was able to complete the activity independently, and did so in about 15-minutes. He seemed to have fun making the tail, and after he wore it and declared himself to be Triceratops, his favourite dinosaur.
Dinosaur Mask
Luckily for my little prehistoric lizard, the box included a bonus activity. This was to cut out a mask of a dinosaur, which just happened to be a Triceratops!
Thomas again needed help with the scissors, but he stuck the stick onto the mask himself and was happy to have something that completed his dinosaur look.
Activity Book & Information Leaflet
The box also contained a leaflet for parents that explained how the activity had an educational element. It was a good reminder of how children can learn valuable skills through craft activities. The leaflet also included suggestions on how to take the theme further, and I think we will definitely be trying out one or two of the suggested activities.
There was also an activity book for Thomas to complete, again on the theme of dinosaurs. It was much more than a simple colouring book, being packed with dinosaur facts and small tasks that required a little brainpower. Thomas enjoyed completing most of the tasks. The last activity was a cooking activity that involved creating a dinosaur themed pasta dish. As I didn’t have all of the ingredients, we were unable to complete it, but I have kept the page for the future as I thought it was a very creative idea.
Leaflets For Grown-Ups
There was an envelope in the box marked for “The Grown-Up Assistant.” It had several leaflets offering discounts on other subscription services, including beauty and coffee boxes. These didn’t really appeal to me, but I appreciate that other people may find them useful.
There was also a code to pass onto friends for a free toucanBox. It’s worth noting that once any friend signs up to receive the free box they will be subscribed to the service until they take action to stop it.
Overall Impressions
We received the Petite Box, which costs £5.95 (including delivery) and is delivered every two weeks. Although you can probably purchase the same materials for less, I liked how convenient it was to have everything needed to complete a project, and it’s not much more than a children’s magazine. If you are not a creative parent and you struggle for ideas for craft activities, then the toucanBox definitely offers value for money. There was very little waste, which I also liked, as I usually end up with a box full of half used craft spares and no idea what to do with them.
It was clear that a lot of thought had gone into the design of the activity, with the dinosaur theme present through the various tasks. I liked the educational element, and my son learnt some more facts about dinosaurs that he can use to show off at school.
The big winner for me was how easy it would be to take this activity out somewhere to keep the children quiet. You would simply need a pair of scissors, so it would be useful as a rainy day activity when on holiday, or you could pre-cut the items and take to a café to use whilst waiting for food. As I generally have a lot of craft materials at home, I probably wouldn’t subscribe to receive a box regularly, but I would consider using a box when travelling. On the toucanBox website there is the option to buy a one-off box, so next time we’re travelling to the visit the grandparents, I will definitely be taking a browse. I think they would also make great birthday presents!
How Does It Work?
You sign up for a different sized box for a selected period of time and you then receive all the materials you’ll you need to make and create an exciting project with your child. Aimed at kids between the ages of 3 and 8, toucanBox will deliver their fun box of goodies anywhere in the world, as long as the postal service goes there!
What Do You Get?
You get a box that can fit through your letterbox, filled with all of the materials you’ll need for your child to enjoy a creative, fun learning experience in the comfort of your own home. Equipment such as felt, card, colouring pens and more can be all expected to drop onto your doorstep. The kits also come with illustrated booklets that are easy to follow and the Grande and Super boxes come with what toucanBox calls a ‘parent card’ that has more ideas and inspiration for fun activities to enjoy.
Options
toucanBox offer three main box sizes: Petite, Grande and Super. Petite boxes have what you’ll need for one activity, dressed personally to your child. Grande boxes are also addressed to your child but feature enough materials for two exciting activities. The Super box, meanwhile, has enough stuff for four activities, personally addressed to a child of your choosing. All of the activities are developed by educational experts and the Grande and Super boxes come with a book for you to share together with your child. You can also order additional materials if you have more than one kid, so there won’t be any fighting!
Examples
Previous boxes have contained things such as a Jurassic Excavation kit, a Kings and Queens box and a box containing the materials needed to make a Treasure Island pirate adventure. You can also buy things individually from the toucanBox shop, including stuff like 5 Petite toucanBoxes for party bags, a Paint-a-Rocket Playhouse Set and an artist box.