Wednesday 10 December 2014

{GIVEAWAY!} LaQ Review.... a rival for our beloved Lego!?





We discovered LaQ by chance over three years ago. Wandering through an outlet mall when Lily was about three, we looked through a 'pop up shop' filled with Japanese toys. They had a kids table set up with a bunch of tiny plastic shapes scattered about, that seemed to click together. Lily sat down and was instantly entranced, connecting up all kinds of shapes with her teeny little fingers. We are certainly not the type of parents to just buy kids toys on a whim, but I loved the fine motor aspect and how engaged she was, so we ended up buying a small kit. I know, I know, how spontaneous ;)

So what is LaQ exactly? Well, you can click this link to go to the Japanese site which has a bunch more info. In a nutshell, it's a series of seven small plastic shapes (triangles, squares and joiner pieces) that click together to create pretty much whatever you like, whether 2D or 3D. The pieces click together in the most satisfying little 'snap' and then are easily separated by bending till they 'crack' and come apart. I think this is part of the pleasure of building - the sensory satisfaction! They are really fun to build and create with... and just engage children in a really beautiful way, unleashing all sorts of creativity. Lily and Eli just love squirreling themselves away to make their LaQ creations as I have recorded many times on this little blog, such as here.

Our three engineers gather to do a little post-dinner car building with their new LaQ kit :) This Hamacron kit can make five different vehicles, the kids wanted to try the race car first.
 



Yes, they are sort of like Lego. Now, I would dare not say they are better than Lego (quelle horreur!!), but I would dare to say they are on par! Like Lego, you can build kits or just build freely, wherever your imagination takes you. The plastic is top quality, you can imagine passing it on to your grandkids like you can do with Lego :) With Lego you generally build 3D tower/vertical shapes, but with LaQ you can be creative with 2D images or fully 3D curved and angular shapes. And they are so fun to snap and click together and apart - unlike the agony of prising apart two Lego blocks with your fingernails, haha ;) We are huge Lego fans in this household and always will be, but we REALLY love LaQ too. They are similar but different enough that it's fun to build with both. One bonus is it doesn't hurt to step on LaQ ;)



Concentration Face!
Father and Son, working together on their race car :)


The kids have made do with our tiny little 2D kit for a few years but often ran out of pieces when building. This Christmas I wanted to expand their set to include the 'cornered' pieces so they could build in 3D. I hunted and hunted for a stockist in Australia - they are not easy to find here though they are huge in Japan - and finally stumbled across this absolutely gorgeous (online and real life) store called Crayons. I was pretty impressed - their site is full of creative, quality, exploratory children's toys, including a wide LaQ range. Yippeee!

While making my order I had to make some inquiries about the stock, and lo and behold, the Crayons folk kindly offered to send a couple extra kits - a 3D kit for us to try, and a basic building kit which I decided to give away to share the LaQ love :) So - if you love a good giveaway, this is your lucky day! :) Enter below and you could introduce your children to the joys of LaQ! I honestly believe you will be impressed - kids who visit our home just LOVE playing with it and friends who have purchased it for their kids have become big time fans too.


The finished product - a speedy little race car. They quickly disappeared into their room to make their own LaQ designs right after finishing :)
Lily made a sleigh - very Christmassey ;)
Fire Truck!




A perfect gift for under the Christmas tree, just enter below and your child may be the lucky recipient!

To win, just enter through the Rafflecopter form and answer this simple question: Who would you gift this LaQ kit to, and why?

(Sign in to the Rafflecopter form below and tick the boxes for the entries you want to make. Write your blog comment entry in the regular blog comment box at the end of post (not in the app!). Please let me know if you have any troubles with entering!)



a Rafflecopter giveaway



Terms and Conditions:
Giveaway is for one LaQ Basic kit (185 pieces) , including delivery within Australia
Australian Entries only. 
Must leave a name and email address if using "anonymous" or a profile not linked to a way to contact you if you've won.
Winner will be deemed most creative/interesting response as chosen by me. This is a game of skill, not chance.
Entries close Tuesday 16th December, 12.59pm 2014. 
Judges decision is final. Winner must respond within 48 hours or prize will be awarded to the runner up. Good luck!!!



**The LaQ Hamacron Kit  (for us to try) and Basic LaQ kit (which we decided to giveaway) were gifted to us by Crayons, but all opinions are very much my own. We are LaQ fans from way back! :) **






26 comments:

  1. I've never heard of LaQ but it looks very interesting. I'm sure it would be a hit in a classroom too! Off to check out the online shop you mention now :)

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    1. Great idea Nichole, yes, would be wonderful for the classroom as kids can work together or solo!

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  2. I'd la-la-love to gift this LaQ set to my son this Christmas. Looks like it would keep his busy hands occupied for hours!

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  3. What will I do with two kids with moving-blues?
    I'd love to sit 'em down with a large pile of colorful LaQ!
    Two kids with creative minds and busy little hands
    I have no doubt that LaQ will meet such demands!

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  4. My two would love this and I love it when they collaborate - so if I won it would go straight to the kids! LEGO and PlusPlus are two toys that get them working together as a team ❤️

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  5. I would love to win some LaQ for my son! We don't have any, but my creative little boy would adore something new to tackle and create that isn't Lego!

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  6. My son has a very inquisitive mind and LOVES creating with his hands, so I would definitely give this to him! Thanks for sharing!

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  7. I'd give it to my two 'toy testers' and see if LaQ becomes 'gift of the year' for nieces and nephews in 2015!

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  8. I'm struggling badly to find the perfect present for my little girl. She has an amazing attention span and works with quiet determination on problem solving tasks. I have scoured the web for something suitable but keep drawing blanks. These would perfectly fill that little spot under the tree that has her name on it.

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  9. I feel like I'm cheating on Lego! But these look way more fun!

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    1. Oh, your comment made me chuckle ;) I know what you mean - but I think Lego is big enough to handle it, lol

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  10. I would give it to James - he loves creating and building and would adore this.

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  11. We only have duplo and wooden blocks here so this would be a handy building addition since we don't even have proper Lego (take pity on my children!) lol
    I would definitely gift it to Blake, he is a real kinesthetic learner. I also like the fact that it's flat too, would be easy to store in our camper on our trip around Aus ;)

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    1. Congrats Andi, you are the winner!!! Your kids can enjoy LaQ on your big trip around Australia - and at home too :) Who needs Lego anyway when you have LaQ, heehee! Email me your address xx

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  12. Ooo I would live to win these for my three busy little bees!! I am always on the lookout for things that will captivate their minds, hands and attentions. I love finding things they can work on together not only would these let them build new designs but build on their relationships too.

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  13. I think my husband and son would love it, I can picture then lying on the floor creating together :-)

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  14. Take 2:: Looks great! We have some little friends who love lego so I think they'd be the perfect candidates to receive some of these! :) :)

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  15. I love the look of this kit! I would gift it to my 7 year old daughter, she has wanted to be a scientist when she grows up since she could talk, and has the most amazing and inquisitive little mind. I struggle to find new exciting things for her to play with and learn from, these look like something she would absolutely love. Off to check out the website, thanks!

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  16. My 6 year old is a huge Lego and Magna-tile fan and I just know that she would love LaQ as a new challenge - so great for problem solving and fine motor development.

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  17. Would love to win for alaia as she hasn't gotten into the building yet... Plus. Few lesson from Lily and Eli would e great. Fingers crossed. Annie

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  18. I give this to my 9 year old son who loves playing with any sort of construction toy and I think it would be a real hit with his friends when they come around for a play as it'd be something new and exciting.

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    Replies
    1. email address is: sharon 7999 at yahoo dot com.

      Thanks for the great giveaway!

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  19. This looks really interesting! I'd give it to my girls!

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  20. I would gift this to the whole family as an activity to play on Family Saturday (the day we turn off technology and just spend the day together playing, learning and laughing... oh and eating good food). Perfect present to add under the tree!

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i love to hear your thoughts, thanks for leaving your comments! xx