A cute and very real-like slug nade from the Budding Builders K’Nex set. You can clearly see all the flake piece this set has to offer, with 3, 4, 5 or 8 side joints. The red rod on the shell’s top is flexible. It’s not so good for holding the pieces together, but you can use it to mark the outline of your craft’s shape.
Mini K’Nex goes along with Playmobil sets pretty well – figurine’s hand firmly holds on small pieces. We made this teeter-totter by the manual, and then we built the swings. Then we run out of small pieces, so we had to built the carousel from the regular ones.
The smallest, very cute gears just magnetized 2-year-old Arkhip. He is also a big fan of blue, so simple designs are all in shades of deep blue and baby blue. Edtoy has Jamjam block set with only blue pieces – and only tubes, without cubes and prisms. There are also similar multi-colored sets.
Giant Clics towers we made. They are almost as big as their builder and hold together surprisingly well.
ClicsToys is a Belgian company that was founded in 2001. They operate their own factory located in Kempen, where they manufacture the well-known Clics building blocks. These building sets consist of square pieces, all of which share the same form and shape. They easily connect at their edges, forming joints that can be moved. Since the fundamental components of Clics are square, the basic forms you can build are typically cubic or brick-like. Nevertheless, thanks to the movable joints, you can connect them at various angles, resulting in diverse shapes. With careful assembly, it’s even possible to create triangular or sloping figures. However, the cubes remain the most robust and dependable structures this set can offer. Additionally, you can explore the option of crafting flat mosaics by combining pieces of different colors. Using these plastic squares, you can construct flat surfaces and transform them into 3D shapes. Despite having relatively few extra pieces and accessories, Clics offer limitless creative possibilities. Some sets may include wheels and decorative panels, but these are the primary add-ons. On the plus side, Clics sets generally contain numerous pieces, enabling you to create complex structures with a single set.
The cardboard piece imitating a part of the wall with merlons has pictures on both sides. One side depicts a stone wall with merlons, and the other side shows either the same stone wall or a latticed window, typical for medieval castles and fortresses. The upper part of the cardboard element should be slightly folded, so that the merlons protrude forward slightly, and then it can be secured to the plastic panel, better a transparent one. To ensure a tight fit between the cardboard and the panel, the cardboard has small slits, and the panel has small pegs.