Crayola Create A Kid - Looks Can Be Deceiving
Written: Sep 03 '02 (Updated Nov 09 '04)
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Pros: Fun for about ten minutes, nice assortment of colors, low price, washable.
Cons: Hard to get clear images, needs to be cleaned constantly, falls over easily.
The Bottom Line: The Crayola Stamp 'N Stack Create A Kid is a good concept but poorly planned and executed.
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| Freak369's Full Review: Crayola Create a Kid |
Strolling along the aisles of Target with a freshly charged gift card I came to one of the aisles that has become a weakness for me – the school section. There’s something about the smell of freshly unpacked crayons, perfectly aligned bottles of poster paint and mountains of loose leaf paper that send me into a euphoric state of mind. The yellow “New Item” tag caught my eye and as I closed in to see what the new fodder was – I noticed it was right in the middle of the Crayola section. Pitter-patter went my heart as I saw the cute little cartoon kids displayed in various colors on the outer packaging of the Crayola Stamp ‘N Stack Create A Kid. Another Crayola product for my ever-expanding collection.
The Crayola name has always meant quality to me. Be it markers, construction paper, colored pencils, activity kits or even the goofy plastic scissors that don’t cut anything – if it’s Crayola chances are I’ll choose it over any other brand. The non-toxic appeal of their products is something else that I have grown to depend on. My brood aren’t the most coordinated offspring when it comes to arts and crafts and since two of them have had allergic reactions to products in the past, it’s almost a rule that any art supplies that come through the door have the Crayola name on them.
What Is It?
The Crayola Stamp ‘N Stack Create A Kid is a cool looking item, but never forget the simple rule looks can be deceiving. The basic premise of this is that you can create cute little cartoon like people using the provided stampers that stack on top of each other. In the base of each is a stamp pad that inks each of the stampers. This is supposed to eliminate missing stampers, stamp pads that dry out and an almost self-contained pack of fun. What it is in reality is this – a good concept with poor design.
There are stamper images included with this set are two faces, one male and one female, two torsos and two sets of legs. The torso and legs are sort of unisexed so you can use them for either the male or female face. Both of the faces are ‘cute’ with the girl having pigtails and the boy short spiky hair. There isn’t much detail to either of the facial images but in this case, that’s a good thing. Too much detail and you would have a hard time getting it to transfer to paper.
The colored stamp pads that are permanently fixed to the inside of the stampers are rather unique in the aspect that – if properly stored – the pads won’t dry out. There are six colors to choose from when making your Create A Kid creation – black, blue, green, red, yellow and orange. The colors themselves are vibrant but if you don’t get all the ink off the stamper before you move on to another color, you will end up with pretty gross looking ink pads. Since the ink is washable you can afford to be a little messy when trying to get the ink off the stamper. I suggest three or four folded paper towels to blot off the ink but remember to press hard the first few times – the ink gets into the groves as well as just on the raised image.
One thing that should be mentioned is that the inks used in this set are non-toxic. This means if you have a messy artist that gets ink everywhere – you won’t have to worry if they get it on their faces. The washable aspect is also an important quality – but please read the directions completely to ensure that you get the best results when trying to remove the ink from clothing, fabrics or surfaces.
The Crayola Stamp ‘N Stack Create A Kid is housed between a red cartoonish head at the top of the stack and two red feet at the bottom. Most of the time mine fell over when I would make the slightest bit of movement at my desk so this was quickly retired to the top drawer. Even so, it is cute – even if it isn’t all that functional. If the feet were just a little bigger it would stand up properly.
The Good
This would be great for kids that love to make new designs, work with rubber stamps or just like to doodle. Great for recess, breaks between classes or as a small reward for a job well done. I won’t say that this is a completely unisex type of product since some boys just refuse to explore the creative stuff. Girls will more than likely love this since they can stamp out the images and then color them in with markers or colored pencils. Personally, I would stick with the colored pencils since the stamp images are small and the colors might bleed into one another.
The Bad
You really have to play around with these to get the right amount of pressure when applying the ink as well as when you are pressing down on the image. If you don’t press hard enough you end up with the outer portion of the image transferring but the inside comes through as blank. Press too hard and the image is fuzzy and distorted. Since there are only six colors and six images, the fun of this might not last too long. If you have extra stamp pads at home – this might stretch out the fun by an hour or so.
Suggestions
The boy and girl stamper in this set can be used to make greeting cards, to make book covers a little less boring, to decorate envelopes, making a family tree or even to make birthday invitations. Even though the designs might seem limited, with enough ideas anything is possible.
I tried using embossing powder with this stamp set and found that there just wasn’t enough ink to hold the powder before using the embossing gun to heat it. When I tried the stampers with regular stamp pad ink it worked nicely so this is also an option for older kids with proper parental supervision.
The Bottom Line
If this sounds like something that you might be interested in, check out Wal-Mart or Target for the best prices however these are also sold at Michael’s, JoAnne Fabrics and Zany Brainy. The only way I have seen these packaged is on a cardboard hangtags near the markers and colored pencils. If they are not available in your area you can try to order them from the Crayola website.
Overall I was mildly impressed with the Crayola Stamp ‘N Stack Create A Kid. With only six images and six colors to choose from, the fun wears off quick. Then again, I am an adult [most of the time] so who’s to say what a kid will do with this. For the suggested retail price of $2.49 this would make a good stocking stuffer or cute tie on to a gift for a birthday. Remember, it’s never too early to start planning for the holiday season :]
As always, thanks for the visit…
^V^ Freak ^V^
© 2002 Freak369
Other Crayola product reviews ...
• Big MiniStampers • Doodle Pad • Watercolor Pencils • Art & Craft Brushes – 8 Count • Create-A-Kid • Collecting Keepsakes • Halloween Treat Pack • Halloween Boo Bucket • Washable Water Colors – 8 Color • Pencil Pouch • Crayola Crayons – 24 Count • Metallic Crayons • Superfine Markers – 5 Count • Gel FX Washable Markers • Tub of Fun • Crayola Sketch Pad • Point Tip Scissors • Sidewalk Chalk – Chicks & Eggs • Art & Craft Brushes – 4 Count • Twistables – 16 Count • Stack-N-Store Art Tower • Washable Water Colors – 24 Color • Sidewalk Chalk – Animal Assortment • Crayola Lap Desk • Click ‘Em On Washable Markers • Washable Markers – 16 Count • Alphabet & Number Pad • Blunt Tip Scissors • Spinning Desk Top Organizer •
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): $2.49
Type of Toy: Arts and Crafts
Age Range of Child: Whole Family
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