REVIEW

Wicked Uncle Blogger Challenge – My Dad will be the first to admit, he does not have a CLUE when it comes to buying presents for the grandkids. At Christmas and Birthdays, he normally asks for us to provide a bit of a list, and will then pick something off it so it remains a bit of a surprise.

We were recently set a blogger challenge by online retailer Wicked Uncle, to ask a child free adult to use their site to buy a number of toys for a child of our choice (in my case Erin, 3) and for us to share our verdict on the gifts received! 🙂 Afterwards, we asked him how easy he found the process, and to share his experience of the site.

Who are Wicked Uncle?

Wicked Uncle pride themselves on helping solve the mystery of what to buy children of every age. They have scoured the world to find a really useful selection of fun, unusual and different presents for children, and have tested them with their own Junior Testers. Wicked Uncle can gift wrap your presents, send them direct with a handwritten birthday card and even send you a birthday reminder every year to make sure you don’t forget. Perfect for taking the stress out of present purchasing!

My Dad’s Experience

“Ordering from Wicked Uncle was very straight forward. I am no expert when it comes to buying children’s toys – however the site is set up in age and gender categories, making it nice and straightforward to go to the age appropriate toys – one thing always worries about is small parts and ensuring that they are safe. I liked the fact it was grouped into themes as well, so I could focus on the personality of the child I was buying for. Erin, my granddaughter, is an imaginative little girl and loves princesses and acting out little stories, so I filtered by the category “Role play”. There was a good selection of toys to choose from, some of which I had never seen before, and others that were brands I was familiar with such as Tomy and Melissa & Doug (I know these as they have been on previous Christmas lists!)

I chose three different items. Adding the items to my basket was an easy process and checkout was quick and straightforward. I paid via credit card, but you can also pay via paypal and Wicked Uncle is a google certified shop, meaning you can be certain that your purchase is protected.

Upon ordering, you can decide whether you want to have the items gift wrapped (for a small fee), and whether you want to add a message with the parcel. I chose to do this, congratulating Erin on becoming a big sister – Neve was born at the beginning of September.

Once the order was processed, I received an email confirmation, and another confirmation when the items were dispatched.

The items were received by my daughter very quickly after my order 🙂

Based on her feedback, I would use the Wicked Uncle website again, as I found it very easy to use. I also love the reminder service, as remember lots of birthdays for various little people in my life can be somewhat challenging!

Erin’s Verdict

Erin was super excited to receive a parcel addressed to her – and so was Mummy as I was excited to see what my Dad had chosen for us! There were three different surprise toys inside:

Erin LOVES bathtime and would quite happily spend a good hour in the bath playing with her toys if I would let her! We have had a few jigsaw type bath toys before, and they have always been a hit, so when I saw the Build a Boat set, I was pretty confident it was going to be a hit. I wasn’t wrong! 🙂 Erin loved taking all the pieces apart and the fact that the completed boat floated on the water. It was a little tricky for her to put back together as needed to be quite precise to get the boat shape straight, but with a bit of Mummy’s help, she still enjoyed constructing it and popping it back into the water. She also loved sticking the whale, starfish and fish onto the side of the bath. I think this gift is great as a little stocking filler and something a bit different, perfect for both boys and girls. For those that struggle to get their kids in the bath, this could be just the incentive needed to encourage them!!

The Fairy Princess Jewellery Box was an immediate hit!! Probably the best response I have ever had from Erin to a new toy in her whole 3 years, I didn’t expect it to be quite so popular! 🙂 She loved winding it up and watching the little fairy spin inside and was fascinated that the music stopped as soon as she closed the lid. She put her little kinder egg toys inside and kept on opening and closing it and watching the fairy bend away inside. I think she liked the fact that her special toys were hidden and safe. She carried it around everywhere with her and even insisted on taking it with her to Nannies house! She must have said “Thankyou Mummy I love it” about 30 times since she opened it 🙂

From a Mum’s perspective, it was smaller than many other jewellery boxes I have seen, but I actually thought that was actually perfect for Erin’s age. Older children may have wanted a bigger one if they were actually going to store jewellery inside. It is good quality, and quite sturdy, with a lift up lid and internal drawer. The dial was easy enough that Erin could turn it herself, and the song was a delicate tune that didn’t become too annoying – a good job as I have heard it a LOT! 🙂

Finally, Erin loved the Fairy Blossom Tea Set. She has always loved creative play and role play, and enjoys playing with her toy kitchen and pretend food. Erin loved the fact that these were small and dainty and when she visited me in hospital she “made” cups of tea for everyone and passed the mugs and saucers around, adding milk and sugar. 🙂 This little set is lovely for taking out for a teddy bears picnic, and is great for encouraging imagination and sharing with other children. The only down side of it is that it is made from bone china type material, so if you have wooden or tiled floors, caution needs to be applied as otherwise there could be some tears!! It comes in its very own carry case, and Erin loved holding this herself like a “big girl”.

Overall, we were chuffed to bits with the presents we received via Wicked Uncle and I was even more impressed with the options my Dad picked out; which goes to show that the categories really help in recommending a particular theme or type of gift. I woud be more than happy if Dad used Wicked Uncle to select Christmas gifts this year, and I have also personally checked out the recommendations for boys toys age 5, so that I can get something nice for my nephew this year! 🙂

You can see the full range of toys available (some great rare finds!) on their website here www.wickeduncle.com