Sylvanian Families Reindeer Family Review

DISCLOSURE – THIS ITEM WAS GIFTED TO THE REVIEWER FOR THE PURPOSES OF WRITING THE REVIEW. ALL THOUGHTS AND OPINIONS ARE THE REVIEWER’S OWN.

Reviewed by HelenO

Being a child of the 80’s, I was absolutely over the moon to be asked to review the Sylvanian Families Reindeer Family.  I couldn’t wait for the nostalgia to begin and to introduce my young children to the magic of Sylvanian Families!

Sylvanian Families were first produced by Epoch in 1985 and were extremely popular towards the end of the 80’s/ early 90’s.  The characters are grouped into animal families, such as woodland animals, domestic animals and most recently getting a little more exotic with the likes of giraffes, meerkats and even sloths, but these characters differ from traditional animals, in that they are depicted with human traits; they all wear clothes, have jobs and live in houses.

I had loads of them as a little girl and the truth is, I still do!  They’ve all been carefully wrapped and stored in our loft for the best part of 30 years and I have been waiting for the prime moment to introduce them to my children.  That time is now and I cannot wait!

A cardboard box arrived with paper stuffing, to keep the package in place, so all of it was recyclable and the package arrived in pristine condition.  Inside the outer box was, what can only be described as, a beautifully packaged box containing the Sylvanian Families Reindeer Family.

There was Jolly the Reindeer father, Elm the Reindeer mother and Luis & Eve the Reindeer twin children, along with a pink sleigh, the right size to carry the two reindeer children.  Each reindeer was securely attached to a piece of cardboard with a backdrop of trees and flowers.  The item screams quality.

I carefully removed each reindeer from the backdrop, so as not to rip the picture, as I’m sure I can use it during play.

Each reindeer is beautifully dressed in an outfit befitting of their character.  Jolly wears tartan trousers, a white shirt and navy waistcoat.  Elm wears a pretty green dress, Eve also wears a green dress with a gold button and my favourite outfit was Luis’ who wears a red trouser suit, complete with a red Santa hat and bobble.

All of the outfits are removable and therefore you can change what they’re wearing; if you have other families, they would be interchangeable with similar sized characters.  You can also purchase sets of clothing separately.  What I really love is the attention to detail in the outfits, made with such intricate detailing. Absolutely beautiful.

Attention to detail doesn’t stop there, when you look at the faces on each character, they are intricately designed and genuinely resemble reindeers with their facial markings, ear shape, face shape and not to mention their reindeer horns. Clearly a lot of thought has gone into the design process.

Each character has moveable legs, arms and head, which can be posed during imaginative play, to better assist with role-play.

Also inside the box there was a tiny little story book to accompany the characters, which is a really lovely touch to help set the scene, give some idea of the reindeer’s characters to base imaginative role-play on, should the child need a bit of a prompt.

What makes these characters stand out from other children’s toys is the quality.  Each character is covered with a ‘downy fur’ so they’re soft to the touch, which differs from a lot of toys of this type, which tend to be very plastic-based, which can make them appear lacking in personality.

These toys are aimed at age 3 years+, due to the pack containing small parts, which could be a choking hazard for little ones.  I don’t think there is an upper age limit, I’m forty-something and I still thoroughly enjoyed myself, playing with them with the children!  My children thought the Reindeers were really cute and set about creating voices for them. They were a real hit.

In addition to the animal families, the collection also comprises of furniture, clothing, camper-vans, cars, buildings and so much more.  Check out the full range at: Sylvanian Families® | Classic Toys Since 1985 | Sylvanian Families

The Sylvanian Families Reindeer Family has an RRP of £22.99 and I think it’s worth every penny.  The product quality is amazing and they’d make a wonderful addition to any child’s toy box.  The Reindeer Family set would make a lovely Christmas gift, either as an addition to a current Sylvanian Families collection or to start a collection as a newbie.  It’s particularly apt for this time of year, being Reindeers and that the Reindeer twins are dressed for Christmas.

I would absolutely recommend the product to friends and family, I would buy this product and am already looking to purchase more to add to my children’s collection.

Rating: 5/5

RRP: £22.99

Buy here: https://www.johnlewis.com/sylvanian-families-reindeer-family/p110592239