In Defence Of Beige

Posted by Mandy Abel on

Recent comments from strangers on some of my Facebook ads led me to pop a poll up last week on Instagram and let me tell you, I have never had so much engagement in stories as with your opinions on beige!
Like almost everything in life, I believe there should be a balance (and it appears that the majority of people do too!). I love colour and we have a lot of colour both in our toys, home and online store. I guess the difference is, in modern toys, colour is often used to overstimulate and distract children, whereas natural toys use it in a way that enhances rather than restricts natural beauty - much like nature!
But beige toys have gotten a bit of a bad rap in the media lately, so here's three reasons why we love them - and nope, it has nothing to do with aesthetic playrooms😉
THREE REASONS WE LOVE BEIGE TOYS
1. Natural (beige) toys are more open ended - this allows children's imaginations to take flight!  When we remove the pre-defined characters, flashing lights and distracting noises of modern (often plastic) toys, we encourage a calmer and more creative type of play. Your child's imagination does the work, which means more buy in, more independence and longer periods of uninterrupted play.

2. Buying beige means you can buy LESS - toys that can be repurposed in multiple ways means you can cut down clutter in your home and pressure on your wallet. A bright plastic fire truck is most likely to be used as... a fire truck. But a natural wooden vehicle could be a firetruck AND so much more - an ambulance, a safari vehicle, a family car, an ice-cream van (or in our case lately, a Jurassic Park ute) ... the sky is the limit!


A 'sad beige' vintage style truck in use as an ice-cream van.

3. Natural wooden toys are made to last! Trends change so quickly and brands are constantly pushing the next new 'must have' item. And while they aren't indestructible, wooden toys are a lot easier to fix than their colourful plastic counterparts and less likely to end up in landfill before the end of their useful life.

On top of this, there are numerous benefits of having 'beige' and natural environments for play and exploration, as well as the less discussed dark side of the modern toy industry - where cheap and cheerful toys have a less shiny history and background behind them, from manufacturing to marketing.

Aesthetic play rooms aside, buying beige can help kids become intentional consumers - discovering ways to repurpose what they already have. It may be the latest trend, but it's actually more of a return to classic toys with timeless design, ones you can (and want to!) keep and pass on to future generations.

Do you think beige has a place in play? I'd love to know your thoughts!

Thanks so much for reading!
Mandy x
These open ended wooden pebble animals can be any type of animal or magical creature, while the arches and stacking plates can be caves, tunnels, homes and more.

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  • We love beige toys!! I have some heirloom wooden toys that belonged to my dad as a kid, that my kids now love – three generations and they are still so well loved!

    Abby on

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