Archive for February, 2008

Playsam

Friday, February 22nd, 2008

The playsam line of classic toys can be considered both a minimalist designer fashion object and a childrens toy. It’s something your kid can play with without breaking and at the same time, you can put it on your desk at the office without people thinking that you’re starting a collection in toy cars. it integrates seamlessly with everyday office objects like computer mice and organizers.

The design is quite simply with minimal sharp lines or edges. The entire concept has an almost organic smooth feal to it, which makes you want to touch it. The cars are made of fine wood with a high density which results in a quite heavy feel. This combined with the well-rolling wheels ensures that it coasts of for many meters of fun after the initial push. (Take into account the length of your desk when using it at the office). The wood has ben perfectly sanded to prevent any abrasions and the finish is piano-grade multiple layered varnish which has been sanded to a deep glossy and smooth surface. The finish is pretty sturdy and occasional bumps against other toy cars don’t seem to damage it. I am however not performing a drop test with it. My daughter will probably do that for me in few months time. It’s a bit too big for baby hands, but very baby drool proof. a quick swipe with a handkerchief and it looks perfect again. The same goes for fingerprints.

My model is the playsam classic, which is the most basic design, others have wooden passengers or spoilers adeed and I have chosen the cappuchino color.  A kind of dark brwon glossy look, but with the right lighting you can see tiny flakes of gold which reflect the light and give it a beatifull effect in full sunshine. The picture below was taken with a flash and the lighting concentrated to show the effect; in everyday use, it looks pretty much as the orginial photo in this article above.

The cars are available in Belgium for at zabadoo (www.zabadoo.be) with prices ranging from 22 to 60 euros depending on the chosen model.