Toy History
Here are some of the information regarding the three main brand names, manufacturers, and others connected with and displayed on my webpage.
Once upon a time, three adventurers, Gus Timpertop, Cliff Babblebrook and Ernest Evergreen, shared a dream. Their dream was to discover Sylvanian Woods. They climbed enormous mountains and crossed raging rivers. Finally, the forest unfolded to reveal the beautiful land of Sylvanian Woods. The three explorers decided it was the perfect place to settle down with their families. Other families moved in, too. Before long there was a little town.
The youngsters still gather to hear their grandfathers tell the tales of their adventure discovering this timberland. But there are other stories, too. Funny stories, sad stories, family stories. Join us as we look through the Sylvanian Family Album. But be careful. You might end up wanting to move there, too.
(From the Original Sylvanian Families Photo Album)
Sylvanian Families are a line of flocked toy animal figures, created by Japanese company Epoch in 1985 and distributed worldwide by a number of companies. The characters, grouped into families, feature woodland creatures such as beavers, hedgehogs, mice, and bears. At the beginning of production, in 1985, Sylvanian Families were released in both Japan and North America, albeit with different packaging and minor differences to the characters themselves. In 1987, the success in these markets led to expansion into Western Europe.
(From Wikipedia)
The popularity of Sylvanian Families waned in the 1990s, but was soon reintroduced in a partnership with Flair. This created the open-hand figures and the jointed limb babies, not to mention numerous new families, furniture and houses. For collectors, this creates a distinct, but dismissible difference between the "original" or "classic" Sylvanian Families and the "Flair" line.
The youngsters still gather to hear their grandfathers tell the tales of their adventure discovering this timberland. But there are other stories, too. Funny stories, sad stories, family stories. Join us as we look through the Sylvanian Family Album. But be careful. You might end up wanting to move there, too.
(From the Original Sylvanian Families Photo Album)
Sylvanian Families are a line of flocked toy animal figures, created by Japanese company Epoch in 1985 and distributed worldwide by a number of companies. The characters, grouped into families, feature woodland creatures such as beavers, hedgehogs, mice, and bears. At the beginning of production, in 1985, Sylvanian Families were released in both Japan and North America, albeit with different packaging and minor differences to the characters themselves. In 1987, the success in these markets led to expansion into Western Europe.
(From Wikipedia)
The popularity of Sylvanian Families waned in the 1990s, but was soon reintroduced in a partnership with Flair. This created the open-hand figures and the jointed limb babies, not to mention numerous new families, furniture and houses. For collectors, this creates a distinct, but dismissible difference between the "original" or "classic" Sylvanian Families and the "Flair" line.
Sometime during the 1990s, Epoch lost the rights to use the name "Sylvanian Families" in North America and were forced to switch not only their name, but their manufacturer as well. Now sold as "Calico Critters of Cloverleaf Corners", these figures are made by International Playthings, Inc. Sylvanians are still sold under their original name in the UK and other places. Many collectors of Sylvanians buy Calico Critters without too much difficulty.
During the late 80's and early 90's toy lines saw many "knock-offs" and cheap alternatives. While Sylvanian Families were strong in popularity, there were two other toy lines in competition. A big contender, Maple Town, was a series of figures and houses based on the animated series of the same name.
The other, much cheaper, line of animal family figures are Forest Families. Sometimes called Forest Friends, these dolls are very similar to Sylvanians. The most notable differences are that Forest Families have a limited number of family units (usually only four figures and rarely a baby), mostly consist of exotic wild animals rather than usually domestic ones (tigers and hippos versus rabbits and hedgehogs), are made of much softer plastic, children figures have non-jointed bodies, their hands are open instead of flat, and their facial expressions tend to be more "happy" or "cartoonish". Forest Families and Sylvanians are relatively the same size, so it is easy to mix and match while playing.
While Epoch and Tomy released Sylvanian Families in Japan and America, May Cheong Toys (M.C.Toys) spread their Forest Families throughout Europe and America. Arguably, this fact can show that both toy lines were similar ideas taking place at the same time within different areas instead of a "knock-off" scenario.
Any way you decide to look at it, Forest Families are more popular than when released; with many figures commanding higher values when found on eBay that some Sylvanians!
The other, much cheaper, line of animal family figures are Forest Families. Sometimes called Forest Friends, these dolls are very similar to Sylvanians. The most notable differences are that Forest Families have a limited number of family units (usually only four figures and rarely a baby), mostly consist of exotic wild animals rather than usually domestic ones (tigers and hippos versus rabbits and hedgehogs), are made of much softer plastic, children figures have non-jointed bodies, their hands are open instead of flat, and their facial expressions tend to be more "happy" or "cartoonish". Forest Families and Sylvanians are relatively the same size, so it is easy to mix and match while playing.
While Epoch and Tomy released Sylvanian Families in Japan and America, May Cheong Toys (M.C.Toys) spread their Forest Families throughout Europe and America. Arguably, this fact can show that both toy lines were similar ideas taking place at the same time within different areas instead of a "knock-off" scenario.
Any way you decide to look at it, Forest Families are more popular than when released; with many figures commanding higher values when found on eBay that some Sylvanians!
