Hot New Toys for 2012!

This weekend I was at Toy Fair 2012 in New York City.  I want to give you a brief look into what I think are going to be the hot new toys, as well as the trends for this year.  Trust me, there will be lots of posts with all of the details this week.  But first I wanted to give you an overview.

The biggest trend at toy fair?  Tiny.  What may have started with Squinkees is now popping up everywhere. From Trash Packs to Moshi Monters to Go Goes everything is miniature.  

My favorite part of this new trend?  As a mom of boys, the new Star Wars Fighter Pods made my whole family go wow! 

 I love that they engineered the ball that they come in to look like a death star that also functions as a top.  Add to it the pint sized vehicles made to make a game out of knocking over these teeny figures and I know this will be a winner!

And look at all of the options to collect!

 On the exact opposite end of the spectrum, the next big thing in gaming will be giant.  As in Skylanders Giants.  The 2011 Skylanders Spyros Adventure took gaming to an all new level, ecspecially in the young gaming set.  By adding figurines and cross-platform play it opened up new horizons.  Consumers responded by making it huge this past holiday season.

Well, coming the fall there will be a new game, Skylanders Giants.  It features 8 new Giant figures that measure twice the size of the current figures.  My boys (including Daddy D) can't wait!

Other trends?  Glitter tattoos.  There were at least three vendors at the toy fair touting these fun items.  My favorite was Glimmer Body Art.  Super easy to apply with stencils, skin-friendly glue and glitter.  Made to last 3-7 days and waterproof these are awesome!  Great for parties and special events!

Crafts were also big.  My favorite find was the Loop De Doo.  It makes creating friendship bracelets incredibly easy in about 3 minutes!

No more frustrating and tedious knot patterns.  Just with a few twists you can come up with so many styles!

Of course no visit to a toy extravaganza would be complete without talking about plush.  And when you talk about plush, Ty comes to mind.  Their newest offering is Monstaz.  I was happy to meet them on my way into the fair.

This wall is awesome to show all of the colors and sizes they come in.  The larger sizes have sound features as well!  Super cute, cuddly and fun!

So that is a brief overview of what was big at the Toy Fair 2012!  I can't wait to show you more soon!