I hate putting loads of black bags out but while sorting out our Children's bedrooms that's where their old broken plastic toys seem to end up. The wooden toys however, still look great and will be packed up into the loft for future generations.
I'm going to try not to rant too much but we do seem to do it with everything these days. Buy cheap, buy lots and then throw it away when it's done. This is equally true of the toy market as it is of the supermarket and the clothing industry and any other industry.
Buying wooden toys doesn't have to be expensive. For example you could start them off with a small railway set and then gradually create a bigger set by collecting all the add on pieces with expansion packs and tunnels. Most parents would much rather a few quality toys to tidy up than a massive pile of tat cluttering up the house.
The main point is to think durable and long lasting, we don't have to cut out plastic all together. Lego will always have it's place. A great idea from the Green Toys company is to make toys out of recycled plastic. They have some amazing trucks, boats and planes all made from old milk bottles.
If we can change our attitudes towards not using plastic bags and buying unpackaged fruit and veg, then we can also stop buying cheap plastic toys which invariably come in excessive packaging. You have to ask yourself why is it so well packaged, is it because it's so flimsy? Most of our wooden toys simply come in a printed card board box. What do we want our children to learn from our purchasing habits?
