Jaques Toys Review

Jaques was formed in 1795 by Thomas Jaques who was later joined by his son John and it is still a family-run business to this day. Jaques is responsible for introducing the UK to several well-known games: Croquet, Happy Families, and Snap with the latter two having their original illustrations drawn by the same person who illustrated the original Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland books.

The company prides itself on producing high-quality toys and games “to give the very best in creativity, learning, play, exploration, and imagination.” They are also keen to preserve the planet for future generations by making sure that as much of their packaging as possible is recyclable, that the products they use are sustainable and that new trees are planted to replace those used in the production of their wooden toys.

We had a chance to play with the Tumble Tower and a range of other outdoor toys at BlogOn Kids this summer so when we were asked to review some toys from Jaques, I couldn’t refuse. We received two toys to review; the Tumble Tower and the Wooden Car Park.

Ad – This is a gifted review.

Tumble Tower

The Tumble Tower or giant Jenga is marketed among the outdoor games and garden toys but we like to play it indoors as well. It is larger than a traditional Jenga but is not unmanageably large that it prevents indoor use. One of the things I particularly love about the Tumble Tower is the bag that it comes in. The bag is strong and durable so is great for storage but also has handles so that you can easily take it with you on picnics, for hospital stays or to visit friends.

The Unicorn and the Dinosaur both enjoy playing with the Tumble Tower as it is intended to be played with but they also like to use the blocks to build with as they are a good size and are solid wood.

The size and quality of the individual blocks make them ideal for both young and old to play with as they are easy to grip. The Tumble Tower is one of the few slow toys that are suitable for the whole family to play together easily.

Wooden Car Park

The wooden car park comes in beautiful packaging that looks as though it’s come straight from Santa’s Workshop so it would make a stunning Christmas gift. It’s one of a selection of Toys For 2-Year-Old Boys but the Dinosaur has recently turned 5 and he still enjoys playing with it, as does the 9-year-old Unicorn.

The Wooden Car Garage has spaces at the top to park the colourful wooden cars and a Car Ramp for them to go speeding down. As the cars reach the end of each colourful ramp, they flip as they drop onto the ramp below. Car Toys and other typical Boys Toys are always popular in our house with both children as, despite the age difference, they do enjoy playing together.