Over the last few years, a few of us have helped bring long-overdue attention to the amazing, innovative, vintage toys of Creative Playthings. Why? Partly to give credit and appreciation to the makers of the toys we might have grown up with, but also to inspire the makers of today. And most of all to raise awareness among new parents that they don't have to settle for licensed, branded plastic crap.
During that same time, a few others of us have apparently been scouring eBay, craigslist, garage sales, and the backrooms of mom&pop toy stores, and picking up the most beautiful examples of the awesomest toys CP made.
And one of those guys is Mark Eidsness, who created Sparkability, which has pioneered the modern kids design movement, and which was one of Daddy Types' earliest and longest-running advertiser/sponsors.
Anyway, now it looks like Mark has very slightly reversed the flow of sweet Creative Playthings finds. He's put a few pieces on eBay--there are nine as I type this--including several classics in mint, unplayed condition. The stunner, of course, is the mint-in-box, 2-story, plywood Dollhouse. Just for good measure, he's throwing in a houseful of the mod wood furniture, too. There are two other used dollhouses, and some trains [including unplayed ones], and one of my quirky favorites, the Slow Bus by Patrick Rylands.
Check it all out, it really is some of the bestlooking examples of these things I've ever seen. Most items end in early October, the 4th or the 5th, but the Slow Bus ends on Sept 30. And everything's started out at one shiny penny, so who knows, you may be about to make the best six cent purchase of your parenting career.
Check out Mark Eidsness's insane selection of Creative Playthings toys on eBay [ebay]
What happened to Sparkability? I loved that site. Any ideas?