Even from a very young age, Erin has always had a powerful imagination. From around 18 months of age she started to act out little scenes and role play – a box would become a house, the sofa become a boat and the floor was red hot lava. It was great to watch, and as she has grown older, her mind has become more and more creative! 🙂

We were recently approach by Kiddiewinkles to see if we would like to review one of their stunning hand embroidered 100% Cotton playhouses, and needless to say, I didn’t take long to respond with a resounding yes.

Who are Kiddiewinkles?

Kiddiewinkles sell a range of play houses to help children’s imaginations run wild – from princess castles to enchanted gardens, space stations to fire engines, these hand embroidered and 100% cotton playhouses stimulate hours of creative play.

Kiddiewinkles also offer a coordinating range of room accessories including toy baskets and bedside organisers that make the perfect finishing touches for bedrooms and nurseries.

For that extra special touch, all items can be personalised with your child’s name, nickname or a message of your choice.

About the Product

The Enchanted Garden and Fairy Woodland Playhouse is perfect for little fairies. The house has a door on both sides, and can be turned around to display the scene of your choice – all inspired by fairytales of flower fairies at the bottom of bluebell filled fields and gardens.

Our Experience

We were sent a Enchanted Garden and Fairy Woodland Playhouse from Kiddiewinkles which we opted to get personalised with the girl’s names. Now that Neve is getting bigger, she is really fascinated watching Erin and really wants to play with her big sister. I loved the idea of this playhouse being something that they could enjoy together as they grow up.

The playhouse arrives neatly packed away in it’s own large storage bag with handles, meaning that it can be dismantled and kept in storage when not in use. This was a real positive, as due to it’s size it is not necessarily something we would opt to have assembled in the girls bedroom all of the time.

Inside the storage bag are two smaller bags, one with all the poles in, and the other with what I would call brackets or connectors, ready to piece them all together. The fabric for the house is folded neatly inside in a protective bag.

The assembly instructions were very straight forward to follow, and bringing the house to life took very little time at all (less than 10 minutes). The poles are all clearly labelled with letters, and as such, it is very easy to figure out what goes where, quickly put the poles in place and get the frame constructed, ready for the cover to be placed over the top.

The fabric cover comes with Velcro tabs all along the bottom, meaning that they can be wrapped around the base poles to hold it securely in place. I did have to crawl inside the house to do this, but to be honest I didn’t take much persuading! 🙂

Unfortunately the fabric does get a little creased in the bag, and as such, I would want to perhaps give this an iron before using the house, particularly if it was going to be kept up for a longer period of time.

First Impressions

My first impressions of the house were that it is a really beautiful piece. It is clear that a lot of thought and attention to detail has gone into creating this product and the quality of the embroidery and applique characters is very high. Each of the windows comes with its very own little set of curtains, each with tie backs so they can be easily opened or closed according to the child’s preference. There are two doors (one on each side) and the embroidery of the girl’s names was in a neat high quality font – Erin was really chuffed that she was able to spot both their names. The embroidered trees and fairies with sparkly wings on the sides were just adorable, as well as the large apple trees on the other side.

The girls were very excited to get inside, and Erin had soon dragged Neve in (almost literally) along with a dolly and a potty chair (obviously) for a little bit of role play. Soon enough, the Fairy House had come a dance studio, and Erin began practising all her favourite gymnastics moves inside whilst belting out her favourite song.

The house is big, so this is something to bear in mind – if you are short of space then this probably isn’t going to be something your room can easily accommodate. In order for the girls to access both doors, we had to pull it slightly away from the wall, meaning that it required a good X metres square playing space.

Erin loves peaking through the windows and surprising her sister below, and I love the idea of adding some cushions or pillows and a throw inside to make this a bit of a reading nook, perfect for those bedtime stories before bed.

The house is easily big enough for Mum or Dad to crawl into as well, unlike a tepee which can be a little more restrictive when they want you to join them for playtime. There is lots of headspace, meaning no cricks in your neck when your children insist you come inside!

At £210 the Enchanted Garden and Fairy Woodland Playhouse is obviously quite an investment, but the girls have had so much fun in recent weeks, and every day a new adventure begins when Erin’s imagination comes in to play.

Overall we were really impressed with Kiddiewinkles, and if your nursery is big enough, feel these would make the perfect addition to any children’s room.

Pros:

• Very easy to construct and dismantle as required, with clearly labelled parts and a large bag for easy storage when not in use.
• Big enough for parents to climb in too, without hurting your back or neck, as well as siblings to share.
• Beautifully designed with stunning intricate details
• Perfect for encouraging role play, imagination and creativity.
• Personalised option makes the playhouse that extra bit special.

Cons:

• The first thing to point out is obviously the price, this is not a budget item and at £210, this is quite an investment. However, you are paying for an item which has been made by hand and is fully personalised, and hence I would expect to pay a small premium for the intricate detail that has gone in to this fairy house.
• It is rather on the large side, so some families simply wouldn’t be able to accommodate such a large item in their home.
• When first removed from the packaging it can be quite creased, and to fully enjoy the aesthetic of the design, I think it would require an iron or steam clean before hand.

You can learn more about Kiddiewinkles and their full range of hand made play houses, nursery products and accessories on the Kiddiewinkles website here.

*Disclosure – we were provided with the Kiddiewinkles Fairy House free of charge in return for our honest review, however as always, all thoughts and opinions are my own*