An Igrushking kit craft.
Waffle blocks are very popular type of plastic building blocks. In these sets, each piece have pegs and square holes, and you can connect pieces in multiple ways to build both 2D and 3D crafts. The bricks connect to each other seamlessly, almost like in a jigsaw puzzle, so you can make endless combinations in any order you want. There are many brands of waffle building blocks, Gakken and Plus Plus are the most popular and well-known ones. This, however, is rarer Igrushking kit.
Blocks by different manufacturers may look different. In Plus Plus sets, for example, all blocks are exactly the same, the only difference is color. This old ex-USSR set, however, has pieces of differnet shapes, and some extras, like figurines or wheels. There are also a number of long, bar-like pieces that help connect waffle blocks together. You can stack many waffles on one bar, which helps to create thick and solid crafts.
The waffle blocks themselves are small, each side of a block has only one or two pegs. Some blocks has H-shape and no pegs at all on some sides. This is a downside, because you can’t connect anything on these sides. Sometimes, however, these pieces are very handy, because you can stuck them in small openings to support the craft around it. It all other regards, it is a typical waffle block building kit with small pieces.
Jane, can you please explain you expressions from this set (and compared to other similar sets)?
Overall, it’s a good set. Large, bright parts, so it is good for the street where we usually use it. I always liked the sets muted colors. For some reason manufacturers believe that they should “develop color perception”, so there are always 4 main colors, so any craft from a distance looks like a deformed parrot. But for the street this is just right (but, in my opinion, it would be better if they made 3 colors). We played on the beach, a few parts tried to get buried, but thanks to the brightness and size we found them easily. Another plus of the size is that there are parts with a large hole in the center – a child’s hand fits in there perfectly, so the houses/garages with these pieces are absolute hits. It holds up well, but not all of it. For example, lowered helicopter blades are not a intended decision; they simply do not lock in a horizontal position. And the wheels don’t hold up at all. More precisely, those in a tricycle hold on, but do not spin, and this, according to my children, is a complete disgrace. But there are also large wheels (like tires), they don’t hold on at all (but, in theory, they spin). There are no qrch, which is a big problem. I remember the children and I built a zoo from Gakken, where not a single animal we could build without it (feathers for birds, manes for horses, horns for buffalos, elephant’s trunk). It’s somehow limiting. And, of course, the size. The set has only 58 pieces, and you better have like 300 pieces to play with full potential of this set, But, for example, the owner of this set, a 4-year-old girl, mainly makes furniture for her dolls, and she is happy.
Great and detailed answer! Thank you very much! 🙂