Would you like to know what are the best toys for small children? Buying toys for little people can be very overwhelming. Shops and social media are filled with products and adverts which promise the best entertainment for our little ones. New parents and their friends and family often buy way too many items which might not be played with or even opened. We have asked a few mums about their children's favourite toys, which ones worked for them and get the most use of.  It was very interesting reading the answers, as often timeless wooden toys made an appearance which confirms our philosophy that children do not need tons of brightly coloured toys. I hope you enjoy the read and perhaps find inspiration for yourself on how you could simplify your child's toy box. 

I'm Lara, free-lance Graphic Designer / Illustrator / Photographer, born in Germany, raised and living in Paris, France. I have also joined the Babyccino Kids team a couple of years ago to contribute to their Paris city guide and have recently been doing graphic design and set design/decor for their Paris pop up events with The Reunion. Together with my husband and our son Oscar we live right on the edge of western Paris where we were lucky enough to find an apartment with a garden. We love our family-friendly neighborhood but also love exploring the city and its suburbs on the weekends, especially when our seaman Papa/husband is at home with us! Our little boy just turned three and we have another little one on the way :)

- Holztiger and Ostheimer wooden animals. He received a couple of them as a birth present from my brother and we continued collecting them by giving him a couple on each Christmas and birthday, he now has a lovely collection and loves to play with them, pretending they live or travel altogether.

- Wooden Story stacking toy, rainbow stacker, rainbow shape sorter box, shape sorter board, and rainbow shape puzzle board have been played with for countless hours between age one and two and a half. The shapes are fun, the wood is soft and the colours and shades of natural wood are simply beautiful! The brand is a true favourite of ours!

- Sarah and Bendrix pull-along animals, they were a big hit when he started walking and could pull them along everywhere! I bought him the first one while I was still pregnant with him at the London Shop-Up and he ended up receiving two more! The shapes are nice and round, perfect for little hands, and the characters very cute!

- Maileg mice. We got him his first mouse when he was around 18 months old and he loved it straight away. The collection went on growing and now we have a whole big family of mice living with us! ;)

- Bloomingville Mini pretend play food and cooking accessories. The colors are beautiful and Oscar loves to "cook up" something tasty for the entire family, soft toy animals included, mostly all sitting in a row, waiting to be fed!

- Brio railway tracks & train. Because boys really seem to love trains and I mean, it's quite fascinating watching them drive around a track you've created!

- Soft toys by Main Sauvage which he carries around and plays with at all times. They are so soft and squishy and the characters are adorable.

- Wooden camera by Fanny & Alexander to pretend he does just like Mama! When wearing it you will hear him go "clic clac, clic clac..."

- His beloved boy doll by Happy to See You which I had her make in his very own features. Not sure he identifies with it but he really likes to play with it!

- Schleich animals, more detailed than the wooden ones, these can also be taken into the bathtub for hours of play in the water!

- Books, books, books! Oscar loves books since very little! Favourites include The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Gaston, animal books illustrated by Dahlov Ipcar (Stripes and Spots, I like Animals...), by Maria Dek ( A Walk in The Forest) and by French illustrator Emilie Vast (not sure there are English versions of her books though) are also a big hit over and over again!

- He also loves the endless possibilities offered by building blocks such as Wooden Story XL wooden blocks or the classical Duplo by Lego blocks . He plays with them for hours, creating imaginative worlds and I love watching him and listening to his stories!

- Metal cars by Goki who have cute retro designs and their cars are bigger than the matchbox style, more suitable from age two on.