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This video introduced me to Jaimie Mantzel. He not only builds toys, he builds everything else! The top comment at reddit tells more about him.
This guy is a complete and total bad-ass. Seriously. (He’s also nearly constantly manic too, but I digress.)
He has this giant tree-house he built in the middle of the woods by hand which he actually lives/lived in. When he realized he needed a lumber mill to build a giant workshop to go along with his tree house in the woods, he made one himself, with two tires, a motor, and some aluminum poles (no joke).
Why did he need a giant workshop in the middle of the woods, you ask? To build a working life size version of this robot of course! And he did it using 99% junk yard scrap MacGyvered together (like everything else he does). He also wore chain-mail while doing all this to ‘stay fit’.
He has a video blog with tons of videos on YouTube. This guy is so interesting he has caused countless people to spend 10+ hours watching his videos in a single sitting (myself included!). Just look at the other comments here and you’ll see how common an occurrence this is.
P.S. Almost forgot! His “tree house” has a giant trampoline in one of the rooms integrated into the floor (one of those giant backyard ones).
P.P.S. He also somehow convinced his lady-friend to move out into the middle the woods and into his tree-house with him while he did all of this.
Anyway, this toy does not yet have a name, but he is working with a toy company to eventually produce it. -via reddit
Love Rat – $4.95
Are you still searching for the perfect Valentine’s Day gift? Look no further! Get the one you love a Love Rat from the NeatoShop. This adorable rat, with printed heart design, is also a squeaky toy. Your sweetheart will be floored by your thoughtfulness.
Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more great Valentine’s Day ideas!
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Instructables member TigrisLi make a tank for her kitten out of cardboard, and posted the instructions so you can make one, too! Even if you don’t want a kitty-sized cardboard tank, don’t miss the short film she made of her kitten using it to blow the enemy away. Link -via Laughing Squid
Lalaloopsy Silly Hair Doll – $59.95
Tis the season to go insane trying to find those toys that your kids really want. Don’t worry the NeatoShop has your back. Just in time for the holidays the NeatoShop now has a very limited supply (and we do mean limited) of Lalaloopsy items. We have dolls, backpacks, and pencil toppers that are sure to make any little girl smile.
Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more great Toys & Games!
Comments Off Mace the ninja dog takes on his arch enemy the plush turtle. His greatest assets are his stealth and amazing self-control. -via I Am Bored
A pregnant cat named Puss Puss had been missing for three days in the village of Moelfre in North Wales. She had escaped while being transported to a foster home by an animal charity worker. Then someone heard a meowing sound coming from a donation bin for used clothing! But the lock on the bin had been damaged, and it wouldn’t open. The fire brigade was called, and they, too, failed to open the bin. Finally, the entire bin was loaded up and taken 20 miles away to an engineering company.
There, steel saws were used to gain access and the mewing prisoner was revealed – as nothing more than a squeaky toy.
Kelvin Owen, who owns the engineering firm, said: ‘Once we got into the bin we heard the miaowing – it sounded just like a cat and we all started to carefully search the bags.
‘Then I found a bag of toys and picked out a toy. I said: “It couldn’t be this, could it?” As I held it it went “miaow, miaow”. Mystery solved!’
The sounds came from a talking plush toy resembling Marie from the Disney movie The Aristocats. Rescuers had a good laugh at the 12-hour effort to rescue the toy. Puss Puss is still missing, but may have been taken in by someone unaware of the search. Link -via Arbroath
Chuck Norris Talking Plush – $13.95
Do you wish you could cuddle up with your favorite action star? Well now you can with the Chuck Norris Talking Plush from the NeatoShop. Chuck Norris comes complete with two plastic model machine guns.
Push plush Chuck’s belly and he will tell you all kinds of wonderful Chuck Norris facts like:
Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more Plush Toy fun!
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Strong’s Spike Mace – $15.95
Do you feel it is your right, nay duty, to introduce your nieces and nephews to the world of medieval weaponry? Why not start them off early with Strong’s Spike Mace from the NeatoShop. This soft spiked plush mace makes adorable rattling and clattering sounds as you swing it around. Also available:
Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more Dress-Up & Pretend Play fun.
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Want to take your pillow fights to the next level? These pillow weapons were designed with you in mind! Guaranteed to cause less bodily harm than a real scimitar, or lightsaber for that matter, they will make you fee like you’re armed with a real weapon when the pillows start flying. Now go forth and plush the heck out of each other!
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Those funny false teeth that move on their own -it seems like they’ve been around forever. But they were the invention of Eddie Goldfarb in the 1940s. They were called Yakity-Yak Talking Teeth. Collector’s Weekly has everything you ever needed to know about chattering teeth, from their inspiration, how they work, and how they became a hit. Link -Thanks, Ben!
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If AT-ATs had wheels, they wouldn’t fall down so easy. But they were built a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, possibly before the invention of the wheel. However, Christopher Aleria improved upon the design by setting an AT-AT body atop an Axial Rock Crawler 4×4 remote control vehicle. Link -via Illuminations and Other Stuff
If you feel bad about your hamster’s efforts to run in the hamster wheel without getting anywhere, you might want to get him a car. It can run in place, on the floor, or on a track, and the wheel is detachable, in case the car is just not his style. Link -via Breakfast Links
This ball rolls around, light up, and acts like it has a mind of its own, which makes it the perfect cat toy. It does not have a mind of its own -it’s you, controlling it by Bluetooth! You can even control it and take video of its antics at the same time. $130 is kinda pricy for a cat toy, though, and it’s not even on the market yet. What it does to a cat’s pupils is priceless! Link -via Buzzfeed
Domo With Braces – $10.95
Even adorable farting monsters want straight teeth. Don’t believe me? Check out the Domo With Braces plush toy from the NeatoShop. Hmmm … I wonder if he has to sleep in orthodontic headgear?
Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more fabulous Plush Toys.
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What could possibly make such a cool looking Bowser figure, complete with movable arms, wrists and head and hammer, even cooler? Make him out of leather. This rugged little version of the big bad boss carries a price tag worthy of his royal stature-$300, over at the artist Megan’s custom toy site. This may be one expensive hunk of leather, but at least you’ll have something to brag about.
Link -via Destructoid
Comments Off Do you dream of snuggling up at night with a heavenly body? Well, now you can with the Celestial Buddies from the NeatoShop. These fantastic plush toys are designed to look like the sun, earth, moon, and mars.
Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more loveable Plush Toys.
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Arfsolut Vodka Plush Dog Toy – $11.95
Do you have a trendsetting dog who appreciates the finer things in life? Get him the Arfsolout Vodka Plush Toy from the NeatoShop. Your sophisticated pooch will love this squeaky plush dog toy shaped like the iconic drink.
Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more wooftastic Pet Stuff!
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In 1880, German seamstress Margarete Steiff began making stuffed animals for children. The first stuffed bear she made is called model 55 PB, and may be the earliest teddy bear in existence. Her nephew Richard Steiff registered the design in 1903. A New York toy vendor ordered 3,000 of the bears, and the Steiffs built a factory to fulfill the order, but the bears disappeared! Toy bear expert Leyla Maniera explains:
“The order was definitely made,” says Maniera, “We have samples of the boxes so we know they were boxed up and shipped.
“The archives have copies of orders right from the beginning. We do know the orders were made, they were packed and shipped, but sadly to this day we don’t know what happened to the 3,000 bears.”
So how about that theory about the bears being lost at sea? Gunther Pfieffer, author of four books about Steiff bears, does not believe it.
“The mystery first appeared in 1953 with the 50th anniversary of the teddy bear. A clever employee of the marketing department was writing a little festival book and that’s the first time this story came up.
“So I guess it was just a good marketing idea, nothing else.”
But if they were shipped, why have none ever appeared in attics or auction houses?
Read the whole story at BBC News, then look in your attic to see if you might have a 55 PB. They are worth a ton of money! Link -via the Presurfer
(Image credit: The Steiff Museum)
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Rob Surette send us this image of his latest art project: the world’s largest Lite Brite creation! The work is titled “World Peace” and features American faces on the left and faces the rest of the world on the right, gazing at each other in friendship. The piece is 20 feet long and 10 feet high, and contains 504,000 Lite Brite pegs! See more of Rob’s work at his website. Link
Handtrux Backhoe – $17.95
Can’t keep your kids out of the dirt? If you can’t beat them join them. Get them the HandTrux Backhoe wearable digging tool from the NeatoShop. Playing in the dirt or sand just got a whole lot more fun.
Handtrux Backhoe sold individually. Remember to buy 2 for both hands.
Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more great Toys & Games.
Comments Off A cute kitten spies a hamster ball and decides that’s where he wants to be. Which is perfect for a YouTube video. -via The Litter Box
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A looty is a device you use to gaze into your own eyes. Specifically, one eye looks at the other, and vice versa. It was invented by Jim Woodring, who quit making them “because the effect is unnatural and probably harmful.” However, Instructables member Nachimir shows you how to make your own.
The first time I got my eyes to move independently, it made me recoil.
Close one eye and you get to watch it open again with the other. Tilting or turning your head causes the mirror image to move the opposite way; it reflects you as other people actually see you, apart from the missing chunk of face between your eyes. Tilt the Looty 45 degrees and your reflection turns through 90. It also emphasizes differences in color perception.
It seems to be a source of brief amusement for anyone who picks it up. Yesterday, a guest turned it on its side and used it to inspect his nose hair.
If you’ve ever made or played with one of these, let us know what you think. Link -via reddit
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Mergatroid - $14.95
Heavens to mergatroid!
How do you make a sock monkey even cuter? You give him a nerdy spin.
If you love all things nerdy and geeky you need to check out the Mergatroid from the NeatoShop. This little guy looks a whole lot smarter than your average teddy bear.
Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more fabulous Plush Toys!
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Pocket Volcano - $3.95
Is that a volcano in your pocket or are you just happy to see me. Oh, it is just a volcano in your pocket. How embarrassing.
Wow, that Pocket Volcano from the NeatoShop gives off some eruption. Did you say it can be used over and over again? That’s fantastic.
Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more fabulous Science Toys.
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My First Cthulhu – $18.95
Are you looking for the perfect plush toy for your favorite little monster? You need the My First Cthulhu from the NeatoShop. Abject terror has never looked so cute and cuddly. This is destined to be your budding science fiction lover’s favorite toy.
Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more strange and fantastic Plush Toys and Cthulhu items.
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Silly Putty was invented by accident when GE engineer James Wright was working to develop new types of rubber for the US military during World War II.
Wright spent over a year experimenting with different combinations of chemical compounds, hoping to produce a synthetic, “hard rubber” silicone that could withstand the high heat of jet engines or the freezing cold of nights on Navy ships. Towards the end of the summer in 1943, he and his team tried adding boron nitride as filler to an experimental silicone compound. But the scientists then learned that the substance they thought was boron nitride was actually a mixture of other chemical compounds, including boric acid. So they tried adding just boric acid.
The rest, as they say, is history. The resulting substance was gooey, not hard. Frustrated, Wright threw the goop onto the floor and to his surprise, it bounced right back up at him. A reporter from the Saturday Evening Post described the scene in a story (which, alas, is not online): “‘Golly,’ the scientist exclaimed as he dropped a ball of silicone putty, ‘look at it bounce!’”
They weren’t sure what to do with the stuff, but they had fun playing with it. Read how this mistake became the classic putty toy we all know and love. Link
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Craftster member blupony808 made this awesome plush angler fish out of fabric, garden hose, a night light, paint, and imagination. Yes, it lights up, too! This project won the monthly challenge at Craftster. See more pictures of how she built it. Link -via Rue The Day
Crystal Smith of The Achilles Effect blog looked at the words from TV commercials for toys and used Wordle to present the stark gender bias in toy advertising in graphic form. I’m not surprised at the presence of "battle" or "heroes" in boys’ toys, but am quite suprised to find that "fun" is missing Link – via Wonderland The Playmobil Apple Store is a preschool geek’s dream toy! It features the Genius Bar, kid’s corner, sales floor, and a conference room -and comes with over 60 accessories! And get this -you can slip your iPhone in place behind Steve Jobs and animate his presentation! The Playmobil Apple Store is a new item introduced today at ThinkGeek. Link Wiener Schnitzel with Fries Plush – $16.95 Is your spring time diet preventing you from eating your favorite Austrian dish? You need the Wiener Schnitzel with Fries Plush from the NeatoShop! You may not be able to eat your favorite meal, but at least you can play with it! The Wiener Schnitzel with Fries Plush comes complete with faux lemon slice and ketchup. I don’t know who comes up with this stuff, but I am just so happy that they do! Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more strangely fabulous Plush Toys!
Words in ads for girls’ toys
("fun" is there for the girls’ though.)
Playmobil Apple Store
Wiener Schnitzel with Fries Plush
Posted by Tiffany in NeatoShop Features on March 31, 2011 at 12:50 pm
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