Beados Quick Dry Design Studio Review
Reviewed by Sandra Mcghee
How thrilled was my daughter (recently turned 10) when she answered the door to the postman who was delivering the above parcel for her. Upon unpacking the package she soon realised what had been sent to her to review was the Beados Quick Dry Station, which she had seen the adverts so many times on TV! The beads magically join together with a spray of water and create lots of designs by making, spraying and then displaying and then drying.
Well what was to follow was very unexpected, I don’t think I’ve ever known her to put so much time and effort and be occupied for quite so long working independently on her own unsupervised as she literally spent the next 5 or 6 hours (only taking small breaks) creating various Beados characters and projects with so much patience and enthusiasm. This was a great start to the half-term break! She continued to spend another few hours the following day also creating more designs.
Lucy used the design cards (there were 4 in total that were supplied with the set), however you could make your own creations too! The only negative about the whole process is the length of time it takes to dry (longer than the suggested guideline of 15 minutes drying time) for the creations to dry more like 40 minutes and even overnight. The end result though is worth the wait though. My daughter has been creating other bead sets over the years which she loved doing, the only thing was we had to get the iron out every time to seal these beads which wasn’t always practical. The whole idea about this particular set is the enhanced main feature the quick dry design station. The set comes with clear easy to follow step by step instructions with colourful pictures displaying the process. The guideline is 4+, I think this is probably too young in all honesty, more like 7+ and then would need a little supervision. The station is a fun activity for both boys and girls. The fan takes two AA batteries (not included), and is quiet during operation. We set everything up on a meal tray. One thing I would suggest is a lid for the bead storage tray when not in use otherwise they would spill over.
All in all a fun craft activity which requires good hand and eye coordination with lots of patience. Once the designs dry, you can attach the suction cups and perhaps use as little sun catchers on your windows. I don’t think for the price enough beads are supplied (500 in total), we ordered some refills almost immediately as we knew this was something that we would continue to get enjoyment out of and is a great activity to share completing with a friend.
Would recommend, but would suggest for the price more beads otherwise can work out quite expensive as you would easily run out of beads quite soon. However lots of enjoyment guaranteed and great pastime on a rainy day!
Rating: 3.5/5
RRP: £19.99
Suitable age: 4 years +
Available to buy from Character Online here.
