It can seem like a dangerous time to be a child or holiday shopper trying to pick out gifts for a youngster.
While browsing store shelves, it's easy to wonder if a toy will soon be recalled for excessive lead levels or worse.
The statistics make the issue even scarier. From October 2006 through September 2007, 61 children's toys were recalled -- 85 percent of which were manufactured in China. In just the past two months, 24 more toys have been recalled. Of those, 92 percent were manufactured in China and 75 percent were recalled because of excessive lead levels.
The issue has pushed many parents, like Barbara and Bryan Chick of Independence Township, to search outside of so-called big-box stores for holiday gifts.
"We're buying a little bit less this year but getting products we can feel comfortable about and toys that will last throughout the years," Barbara said.
The Chicks found wooden cars and trucks handcrafted by Ed McCauley, an 88-year-old Royal Oak resident who's been making the toys in his garage for the past 30 years.
"They're all handmade. There's no nails. They're done with poplar wood and Elmer's glue. There's nothing in them to hurt a little child, nothing toxic at all," McCauley said.
He calls his toys "pretty indestructible" and said a lot of young kids will bite them, and that's OK because, "there's not a thing on that wood that would hurt a little guy."
And McCauley has had plenty of "little guys" in his life -- over the years, his seven children have given him 15 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren to test out his toys.
"Right now is my slow season as far as making them because it's cold out in the garage," McCauley said.
It takes him about a week to make seven or eight toys, which are about 5 inches tall and range from 15-16 inches long for the smaller vehicles to 40 inches long for the semitrucks with double trailers.
McCauley started making the toys after his daughter encouraged him to do it as a hobby, he said. He sells them at area art fairs during the summer.
Down to Earth
The Chicks also found toys through a new Web site, www.downtoearthtoys.com, run locally by Carrin Weirauch, who lives near Brandon Township.
Weirauch officially started her online business in the beginning of November, and business has already been booming.
"I think a lot of people are finding me through Google searching U.S.A. toys. I think there's a strong need for this right now," Weirauch said.
With a husband who works in the automotive industry, Weirauch said she's seen the effect outsourcing has had, both locally and nationally.
"If I can get Michigan toys, that's my first priority. Then, U.S. made products and then European," Weirauch said, explaining that Europe and the U.S. have comparably strict regulations on toys.
Her Web site includes products from Michigan toy makers like a Grand Rapids company that makes ABC blocks and a Chesaning resident who makes puzzles.
"I have a link that lists most of our manufacturers and I've put together a little write-up on their philosophies and practices so people can put a face to a name, as far as where their toys come from," Weirauch said.
Toy stories
On Carrie Kohs' Web site,puccimanuli.com, visitors can also find write-ups about toy manufacturers, and pictures, too.
"With our global economy and mass production, you have no idea what you're buying these days," said Kohs, a resident of Royal Oak.
"I tell the stories of all the toy makers so you know exactly where it came from, exactly who made it and exactly how it was made." Kohs used to work in marketing and advertising in the corporate world and said she'd had enough of it.
"I was over at the Nuremberg Toy Fair in Germany, the world's largest toy fair, and amongst the sea of plastic stuff were the most amazing toys, and most products I found were not available in the U.S.," Kohs said.
With her Web site, she's trying to bring back the value of high-quality hand craftsmanship to the American market, she said.
"I sell a remarkable collection of finely crafted toys and games that are handcrafted by artists around the world. Nothing is mass-produced and nothing comes from China," Kohs said.
Kohs, a Royal Oak resident, believes that knowing the story behind each toy adds even more value to it.
"You can pass that story on to whoever you're giving the gift to," Kohs said.
A selection of the toys, which range in price from $6 to $7,500, will be on display at an open house at the Oakland County International Airport this weekend. To attend, call (248) 288-4410.
Dolls and soldiers
Family-owned and operated for the past 60 years, The Doll Hospital & Toy Soldier Shop in Berkley has seen business jump 30 percent in just November, said owner Jack Parish.
The store carries more than 30,000 different toys, including many U.S.- and European-made toys. Parish also carries many items made in China, but stands by all his toy manufacturers and has had no items recalled.
"Countries don't make toys, companies make toys," Parish said. In his store, he keeps a thick book full of letters from his manufacturers -- who have their own, small factories -- detailing the steps toys go through before making it to the shelf.
Parish thinks the problem with recalls is partly due to a toy industry that depends on television shows or movies seen by children, he said. Big companies jump in to make toys in huge quantities based off the shows or movies, and they give the contract to manufacturers in China, who then give contracts to designers and to people who find materials for the toys, Parish said.
"By that point, you've totally lost control of the quality and safety aspects. That's where it all went sour, big companies not paying attention," Parish said.
"Take three steps in our door and you'll see the difference right away," Parish said.
Barbara Chick, whose children are Ella, 4; Sam, 3; and Evelyn, 10 months, said getting away from TV-based toys is another reason she didn't buy mainstream toys this year.
"We're trying to simplify what our kids are inundated with on a daily basis and get them used to being imaginative, and moving toward those concepts in play," Barbara said.
