Fisher-Price Discovery Cottage Review

In the 1990s, when our children were young, they had a few very memorable toys and a few of them were by Fisher-Price. I remember a few in particular and one of the first ones was this Fisher-Price Discovery Cottage. 

This cottage was recommended for children aged 12 to 36 months and featured a house with a number of manually activated elements, two chunky Jumbo Little People figures, a person and a dog, and a tricycle. The figures were perfectly sized, bigger than other Little People, which allowed the youngest child to easily grasp them without the risk of choking. 

The house featured these interactive elements:

• A blue front door that opened with a clicking sound and has a hole to put a figure into.
• A rubber doorbell that rang when you pushed the red button. This button was the one part of the house that did not necessarily stand the test of time on a much loved house. Ours was broken from being depressed so many times.
• The opposite side had a garage door that flipped down to allow access for the tricycle to the parking area.
• Beside the garage door, was a butterfly that pushed up and down and made a clicking sound.
• One side of the roof lifted to reveal a bed and another hole, either of which that could hold a figure.
• The other, fixed side of the roof featured a chimney slide for your figure to slide through.
• The final side of the house had a roller that spun and displayed different images.
• Finally, the house had a handle so that your child could carry it around.

Our little ones played with this toy extensively, initially in a very basic way. I can picture my son putting the figure down the chimney over and over and over again. Eventually they played with it in a more imaginative way using the house as a home for the people.

Apparently, there were a few different versions of this house as is evidenced by a commercial that I viewed recently that shared how this toy had evolved in response to the play style of children. That video featured Fisher-Price's slogan that somehow seems very familiar to me, "Fisher-Price. Children taught us all we know."

Beyond the imaginative play, the Discovery Cottage helped my children learn about shapes and  develop hand-eye coordination. If the toy company still made it, I would buy one for baby gifts. Meanwhile, if you want one you will likely have to settle for a used one, which can be found here on eBay. Make sure to buy extra figures because this house could definitely hold more Jumbo Little People!

See you
at the toy store!
Brenda
Treasures By Brenda

Quick Link:

Check out the new, used and vintage Fisher-Price toys in my eBay store.

WHAT'S THE HISTORY OF THE FANNY PACK?

For those who don’t know, a fanny pack is, quite simply, a bag that originally was worn fastened around your waist but which can also be draped across your upper body. The bag is, however, known by many other names including waist pouch, hip pack, belt bag and bum bag. If I recall correctly, I reluctantly called mine a fanny pack so that is what I will call them here on this page.

According to The Globe and Mail, Adweek Magazine declared fanny packs as “the hottest product of the year” in 1988 and yes, I used one during their height of their popularity in the 1980s and 1990s. As a matter of fact, I still own my original fanny pack though I have not worn it in a long time because it is a bit big and was, for many years, out of style.

Mine original pack is blue, made by XYZ and of a rather simple design. It is not interesting at all like the vintage Jansport, Patagonia or Spyder waist pouches that were made in multiple color combinations and that are available now.

I think that these bags really are a great product keeping what you needed at hand and relieving your shoulders from having to carry a purse. It was interesting, therefore, when I discovered that they, in both new and vintage styles, have recently had a resurgence in popularity.

Vintage Jansport fanny pack shown above was

from the eBay store of 3r_esposa.

FAMOUS MOMENTS

Fanny packs have definitely had their share of moments in the limelight.   In the 1990s, on Seinfeld George said of a fanny pack that it "looks like your belt is digesting a small animal.” In 1996, Dwayne Johnson "The Rock" wore a fanny pack in a Vogue magazine article. That picture has never been forgotten. In 2015, actor Jared Leto was photographed wearing a fanny pack on the beach and went on to sell them on his brand’s website. In 2017, Leonardo DiCaprio wore one on his vacation in Thailand.

Vintage Spyder fanny pack shown above is

from the eBay store of reserve-76.

VINTAGE OR NEW

You can have your choice from eBay of a vintage fanny pack by clicking here or of a new fanny pack by clicking here. I was somewhat surprised that in line with the current popularity of everything 1990s, brands like Louis Vuitton, Versace, Burberry, Gucci, Nike and Saint Laurent have all issued waist pouches though I know Roots Canada has been producing simple, leather waist pouches for at least a decade because I carry one of them.

Do you wear a fanny pack and, if so, what do you call it?

Whatever it is, 

you can get it on eBay!

Brenda

Treasures By Brenda

Quick Links:

Visit my eBay store, Treasures By Brenda.

Ravensburger Elephant Ride Board Game (1999)

We enjoyed Ravensburger games when my boys were children. Ravensburger's Elephant Ride was available but for whatever reason we never encountered it. Made in 1999, it is a German game that is intended for two to four players who are aged three to eight years old.

As the tagline says,

“Monkey see, monkey do.
If you saw an elephant
You'd climb on him too!”

It is a simple game for young children. The box sums up the game in a very simple manner saying,

“The elephant is the most wonderful animal to ride in the jungle. He is so tall you can see forever when you stand on his back. He walks so gently and his back is so wide, you will never fall off. He makes any monkey feels like the king of the Jungle. But the elephant loves the attention too, so he lets as many monkeys as possible ride on him. He laughs and laughs as the monkeys climb up and over eachUncover some of the details about the Terry Fox 40th Anniversary Orion Running Shoes by Adidas. other, creating incredibly funny stacks of monkeys; there arms and legs and tails everywhere. Each player tries to stack up his monkeys to be the first to reach the elephant’s back. Saddle up and get ready for the ride of your life.”

The image of the elephant on the box shown below also does a good job of demonstrating what this game looks like when being played.

In the course of writing this page, I discovered that this game is a fairly limited game meaning that there are not tons of them available on the resale market. There are, however, a few copies available on eBay by clicking right here.

Have you played Ravensburger’s Elephant Ride? As a child or as an adult with your own children? Are you searching for a copy?

You never know
what game I have in store for you!
Brenda

Quick Links:

Find Elephant Ride by Ravensburger on eBay.
See all of the Ravensburger items in my eBay store.

UPC: 4005556214860

Ravensburger Game Number: 214860 

MUGS ON MONDAY: Garfield and Arlene Shaped Kissing Mugs

Garfield and Arlene are Together Forever on this wonderful pair of vintage 1980 coffee mugs.

I think they that is, the coffee mugs, would make a very romantic gift for a Garfield loving lady but finding a pair still together can be a tough job.

This mug set was from eBay seller Jam-A Sweet Vintage Shop, who is no longer available on eBay. You can, however, click right here to see other Garfield and Arlene kissing mugs available on eBay.

You have to love how these Garfield mugs meant to fit together! Valentine's Day anyone? Maybe a special anniversary? What a wonderful way to say I Love You.

Brenda
Treasures By Brenda

More Garfield:

Find more Garfield items in my eBay store!

Movie Prop from Jumanji

We were fascinated to read yesterday about one of the original Jumanji game movie props selling at auction for a whopping $60,800 on eBay.  We know that movie props can command a lot of money but this sale seems pretty high for a "fake" game board that was used in a movie!

Jumanji started as a book by Chris Van Allsburg in 1995 and went on to  become a now-iconic movie starring Robin Williams.   My children enjoyed both but probably remember best the movie because it really brought to life the story...and because they eventually owned a copy of the Jumanji board game.  

Almost twenty years later, the board game is still a sought-after game that sells regularly on eBay from $30 to over $100, depending on condition and completeness. Right now, a brand-new copy of the game goes for $175 on Amazon.com.

Are you a Jumanji fan? Would you like to see a remake of the movie Jumanji?

Brenda
Treasures By Brenda
You never know what
I might have in store for you!

Quick Links:

Learn more about the Jumanji game.
Check out the new, used and vintage board games in my eBay store.

Disney's Tale Spin Toys

Disney's Tale Spin was an animated children's television series that aired for two seasons in 1990. It featured two main characters: Baloo who we know from Disney's Jungle Book and Kit Cloudkicker who went on plenty of adventures that included air pirates, one of whom was Don Karnage.

In 1991, Playmates released a series of figurines and toys including as shown on the left, Disney's Tale Spin Toy Plane called Don Karnarge's Tri-Wing Terror.

Don Karnarge's Tri-Wing Terror included a "realistic" sounding turbo propeller, which I believe you had to manually turn to hear, a gun sight, a retractable pilot's canopy, aerial attack guns, tri-wing design, detachable bombs and high-flying pontoons. New but in an open box, Don Karnarge sold from the toy department of my eBay store for close to $200.

The Tri-Wing Terror is just one of a number of Tale Spin toys that are rare and sought after, fetching good prices on eBay.

The Giant Baloo Collector Action Figure shown here sold for more than $70 through the eBay store Tootsie's Toys, who is no longer selling on eBay.

And eBay seller reddogedwards found a happy collector for The Molly Cunningham plush toy shown above, who was willing to pay more than $1,000 for this prized memory from the 1990s.

Not all of Disney's Tale Spin toys are so valuable. There are plenty of items that are affordable, like pins, comic books and McDonald's toys, but there are also a few really special pieces, like those sold items shown here on this page. You can see for yourself a huge selection of Tale Spin merchandise right now by clicking right here. 

You never know what
I might have in store for you!
Brenda

Quick Links:

See what new, used and vintage toys are in my eBay store.