A New Generation Of Builders With Magnetic Stick N' Stack

We received complimentary product in order to help facilitate the article below, regardless all photos and opinions are genuine and copyright Momma Told Me Blog 2016.

Momma Told Me: If you imagine it, you can build it.

As a young girl I was considered quite the tom boy. While my cousins were toting around baby dolls in toy strollers, playing 'house', I was often drafting the plans for building block skyscrapers and baking glow-in-the-dark bugs with my Creeper Crawler oven. It wasn't the specific type of activity I craved, it was an opportunity to create or problem solve that I truly loved. From early grade school I found myself spending hours making something from nothing- whether with my mothers' crafting scraps, discarded toilet paper rolls, or rainbow building blocks. If Momma said I couldn't have a dragon, Id' make one- if my father told me I'd have to wait until my birthday for new action figures, I'd make new clothes and personas for the old ones. And I am so glad to say that, even in a few short generations, building is now widely accepted as a gender-less play-time activity.

In fact, building blocks are the most popular toys at the after-school daycare I work with on Thursdays. Regardless of a child's age, gender, or background, each can enjoy the satisfaction of bringing their imagination to life, when playing with building blocks.

Of course, as the times change, so do the toys- yet some of the most awesome toys on the shelf remain those with the simplest of concepts, and the most limitless of possibilities. Enter Magnetic Stick N' Stack tiles by Shape Mags. Quite possibly the coolest building blocks ever (and yes, I'm comparing them to blocks that glow in the dark, light up, or stick together like Velcro) these translucent colored tiles feature carefully placed internal magnets which magically fasten them to one another in an almost never ending configuration of shapes and patterns.

Now, you may have seen similar toys at your child's school, daycare, or even in advanced learning classes- There are a few other brands out there cornering the magnetic block movement. However, Magnetic Stick N' Stack sets are actually more affordable than those 'other' brands, while also being 100% compatible! They're also incredibly durable, and the perfect size for small hands- great for kids as young as age 3+.

And, while we did have several 3 and 4 year-olds on hand to build with these, right out of the box, I have to say the adults and even tweens were also eagerly waiting on their turn as well! So what can you expect if you have littles afoot? Magnetic Stick N' Stack sets are perfect for homes with multi-aged children, or toddlers- children can not only grow with the tiles, but also grow and learn while playing with others as well! Carter is often very reserved, yet extremely articulate in his thought processes- at 5 he built several 3-dimensional structures and even a multi-layer vehicle. His pride was evident, as he'd stop those around him often to exclaim, "Look guys! Look what I made!"

Magnetic Stick N' Stack pieces are a little on the heavy side, compared to other brands, which gives me confident they will outlast other sets and toys. This also means a more deliberate hand is required in advance structure design. Lynnsey, age 6, was keen to spot structural flaws in her magnetic structures and would visibly light up anytime she happened to solve a 'problem.' Many of the younger kids worked on a 'piece by piece' level, while the older kids (10+) would gather a group of pieces for their design prior.

I can't lie- I spent my fair share of time trying to sneak away unused pieces to build with. There was something calming as I was taken back to my own childhood of building fantastical structures. I especially enjoyed the more advanced concepts of weights and balances, or structural support. By the time I got my 'penguin' complete, above, I had several pairs of eyes on me. And that's when it officially became a group toy- suddenly the kids were donating their pieces to make one, giant, structure together. And you can't ask much more from a toy than to foster communication, problem solving, and friendship, while remaining wildly fun.

Magnetic Stick N' Stack sets come in a variety of shapes and sizes. I highly suggest investing in a Master or Engineer Builder set to start. While you may not seem too keen to leap into the investment at first, I promise you the wide range of shapes will provide endless entertainment. Once children have had a chance to explore the types of structures they can, and prefer to, make, then you can add on supplemental pieces like a dome set, or building plate. And, did I mention- these don't hurt to step on (that's a building block joke for you!)

If your child is a little less creative, and needs some inspiration- or prefers to recreate and build based on concepts, Magnetic Stick N' Stack also makes some really durable idea books that tuck right away with the blocks. We often started building one concept, then used the foundation of the idea to make something a little more our own. Before long, the kids were going wild creating their own buildings, cars, bridges, animals and more! This is definitely one toy I could have spent hours a day with growing up!

What Daughter Says: I never outgrew building blocks- now kids can grow with a whole new way to build and imagine.

Where do all the Legos go? To the land of Pley, of course! Rent building blocks today!

We received a Pley service trial in hopes we would share our honest experiences here. Regardless, all opinions are genuine- all photos are copyright Momma Told Me Blog 2016.

Momma Told Me: I'm not going to pay for something you're just going to lose.

From the very beginning we are driven to create- we stack blocks simply to knock them down, then we imagine our childhood bedroom is a dragon's lair, and the floor hot lava. Creativity is a basic instinct, but the ability to compose and create with the satisfaction of completion is priceless to a growing young mind. When I was a little girl, and even a tween, I'd spend hours in my room happily occupied with my building block sets. Coordination, problem solving, cognition, creativity, and sense of accomplishment are all fostered when a child begins snapping building blocks together. You can even count on the benefit of reading skills and teamwork if block sets and siblings/friends are involved.

Every set of building blocks I owned growing up was second hand. Momma refused to invest money in something with such tiny pieces that would inevitably get lost after just one or two times of being built. I remember when Jurassic Park came out there was a raptor play set I asked for every day to no avail. Of course, by that Summer I had moved on to an entirely new obsession and my building block demands had changed. Let's face it, building block sets, such as Legos, are pricey and often only meant to supplement a larger collection of base Legos and characters. And most of the pieces are never assembled the same again, after initial use.

So, when we heard about Pley, the block rental service, I was excited. Pley has over 300 unique building sets in their current catalog, and for one low monthly price you can rent them. Don't worry, the sets are sanitized before being sent back out! In fact, Pley is not only a budget friendly solution for the modern parent (the average parent saves $800 a year by renting building sets), but an Eco-friendly one too. Believe it or not, one single rental saves 10lbs of CO₂ emissions or more, and the average account will rent 2-3 sets in a month! Plans start as low as $19.99/month when you commit to a 6 months membership, or $24.99 for a month to month membership.

While, at this time, you an only have one toy/set out at a time, you can have multiple accounts with multiple email addresses to ensure every child in your home gets a set appropriate for their interests or skill level. The way Pley works is through a 2 step process- 1.) Fill your Pley List with up to 10 of your favorite sets from the Pley catalog, then 2.) Select the set you'd like to receive next from the available sets shown during your delivery window. I recommend an adult always helps with the online account end as we had a bit of confusion over this part of the process.

The Pley system, at this time, will always choose a set to send you based only our chosen difficulty level and interests. At first we were logging in, browsing our day's selections, and  choosing a replacement, then logging out. We planned on logging back in the next day and checking for any different selection availability, and figured the system would ship our selection from the day prior if we didn't make it on. As it turns out you must tell the Pley system to send your set at the time you choose it or you will receive whatever set the system had defaulted to before.

That minor confusion aside the Pley rental service has worked beautifully for us. Our first shipment included a nice Pley 'dump box,' sticker poster, sticker, building brick bracelet band, and extremely cool 'block removal' tool. Following shipments arrived in plastic mailer bags. The blocks themselves are always presented with the instruction/assembly manual in a sturdy red mesh zipper bag with the set name, pieces, and theme printed on a sewn on tag. Should you ever discover a piece is lost upon arrival, or find you've misplaced a piece during play simply logon to your Pley portal and report it.

Pley has a very large range of building sets for all ages from advanced K'Nex sets to simpler DUPLO sets and of course branded Lego sets such as LEGO movie and Star Wars. There are even mini figure sets you can rent to enhance the creativity and fun of your existing creations. While Pley is about building the set or creation rented, the sets are, for the most part, intended to be played with as an add on or enhancement to your child's existing collection.

Once your child has conquered the last block, or grown bored with their rental, they can place all of the pieces back in the red mesh bag and seal it securely in the postage paid shipping bag. Toss it in any USPS postal box, or drop it off at the post office, and you will receive notice that Pley has been informed and your next rental is open within a day or so. The turnaround really is great, and I love that we can track both the return process and the next set. I do, however wonder what Pley does with the broken/missing a piece sets? We think it would be really cool to pay a little extra to get a surprise bundle of random blocks we could keep each month but it would also be neat if they donated them! You can learn more and sign up for Pley here! Have you ever rented toys before? Would you consider renting building sets for your kids?

What Daughter Says: Building blocks come and go- stop wasting money and start renting your building sets while reducing CO_{2 emissions with Pley.}