Stables: Elves & Angels vs. Kinderkram

[jeno31]

I'm looking to get one for my kids for Christmas. They are almost 4 (DS) and 18mos (DD).

I was leaning towards the design of the E&A because it opens from both sides which would allow equal access for both kids. Everything just seems for open and accessible.

My question is more about quality. I seem to be able to get them for similar prices so really I'm just interested for some feedback.

Thanks!

E&A
http://www.blueberryforest.com/image...stable-400.jpg

Kinderkram
http://www.blueberryforest.com/image...stable-400.jpg

[counterGOPI]

we have the kinderkram and love it, its really really well made, my 4 yo can sit and stand on it even! the e& a i think is made of pine wood which I have discovered is very soft and not really a good good for toys or playstands. hth!

[RollerCoasterMama]

We have Elves and Angels. It's also awesome and VERY sturdy! My son was standing in the loft with one leg on each side of the roof the other day. That barn is going to be around FOREVER.

I like the open-ness of it.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/3097561...7622094621789/

We're moving to a smaller house in a couple of weeks, so I sold the train table, but even just in a corner, it still gets lots of play!

How's that to make your decision harder??

p.s. It is pine, but it's thick. It might get dinged up eventually, but so far the only damage is when DS decorated it with a sharpie. I'll be able to just sand it off some day, but right now I'm not bothering.

[Zuzu822]

I just had the same debate with myself and ended up buying the Elves and Angels. First, because of the more open design, it's bigger overall and I felt like there was more potential for play (it can hold a lot of Ostheimer or Holztiger animals and people) for more kids. Second, we've had an Elves and Angles kitchen for a year and love it. It's held up perfectly despite heavy use. Third, it's made in the US by a family business.

[jeno31]

Thanks for your replies.

I'm still leaning towards the Elves and Angels.

From what I can find, the Kinderkram is made from pine also.

[counterGOPI]

Originally Posted by jeno31

Thanks for your replies.

I'm still leaning towards the Elves and Angels.

From what I can find, the Kinderkram is made from pine also.

huh thats weird,mine is some kind of hard wood. it's beautiful. Def not pine.
I think besides the pine issue it's just the look of their barn, the ladder looks so huge to me :Shrug:
We have the e & a dolly high chair, stool and dolly chaning table and all of them were big disapointments (they were all gifts, so that's why we keep getting them! ) All were dented and banged up within days. For the changing table they forgot to send me the sides to it so I had to wait another 2 weeks for the parts *sigh* maybe it's just me having bad experiences with them though

Our stable holds quite a bit of our Ostheimer collection, too

OK sorry that was a novel I'm sorry if I come across so anti- e&a, I'm not!Just throwing out my experiences and 2 cents, I know I would have liked to have known more before the fact, kwim? It's a big decision b/c neither are cheap! I hope you get more input from others

[counterGOPI]

heres a pic from when we were unpacking in our house:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/2103498...7609033108007/

[Zuzu822]

You know, I did just remember that my sister told me her DD tried to teeth on their Elves and Angels kitchen and did leave some bite marks!

The ladder is big on the E&A stable, but so much so that it looks really out of place. The entire design is chunkier than the Kinderkram for sure. I confess that I occasionally worry the ladder will snap, though.

According to Three Sisters and Urth Child, the Kinderkram stable is also pine. http://www.threesisterstoys.com/p-18...am-stable.aspx
http://www.urthchild.com/kinderkram-...se-stable.html

On that note, on my E&A stable the roof and doors are definitely a more sturdy wood than the walls and floors. Are there different "grades" of pine? You can see the difference in the picture a PP posted.

We had the Holzkram farmhouse and I traded it for the E&A stable. Not 100% I made the right choice, but we really wanted something that looked more "barn-y." Nicole, your set up was partially what prompted that change. I will seriously weep if the E&A doesn't hold up!

[Zuzu822]

Originally Posted by counterGOPI

heres a pic from when we were unpacking in our house:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/2103498...7609033108007/

We were cross-posting! That's the pic I mentioned in my post. I spend a lot of time drooling over it.

[counterGOPI]

darn cross posting!
awww thanks! No weeping, I'm sure it will!!!!!

[notwonamesalike]

Ours hasn't received play yet because it's a Christmas present, but DS is getting the E&A stable for Christmas and it appears well built to me. I like the openness of it.

[PabloHoneySF]

Originally Posted by Zuzu822

According to Three Sisters and Urth Child, the Kinderkram stable is also pine. http://www.threesisterstoys.com/p-18...am-stable.aspx
http://www.urthchild.com/kinderkram-...se-stable.html

On that note, on my E&A stable the roof and doors are definitely a more sturdy wood than the walls and floors. Are there different "grades" of pine? You can see the difference in the picture a PP posted.

We had the Holzkram farmhouse and I traded it for the E&A stable. Not 100% I made the right choice, but we really wanted something that looked more "barn-y." Nicole, your set up was partially what prompted that change. I will seriously weep if the E&A doesn't hold up!

The E&A stable is made out of white pine which is softer than the red pine that I think the Kinderkram is made out of. I know our Kinderkram stable has the alder wood roof

fwiw- in theory I LOVE the idea of having 2 sides open for play, but with our old Kinderkram dollhouse (which had the 2 sides open) it was hard to have a good set up unless it was in the middle of the room (for access to both sides) as opposed to being against a wall which made it easier in regards to space.

Zuzu, can I tell you how heartbroken I was that the holzkram didn't work out for you! I fell in love with it when you posted pictures! Our Drewart didn't end up working for us either

[TulsiLeaf]

Originally Posted by counterGOPI

heres a pic from when we were unpacking in our house:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/2103498...7609033108007/

Where did you get the little wooden animals? Those are beautiful.

[Zuzu822]

Originally Posted by PabloHoneySF

The E&A stable is made out of white pine which is softer than the red pine that I think the Kinderkram is made out of. I know our Kinderkram stable has the alder wood roof

fwiw- in theory I LOVE the idea of having 2 sides open for play, but with our old Kinderkram dollhouse (which had the 2 sides open) it was hard to have a good set up unless it was in the middle of the room (for access to both sides) as opposed to being against a wall which made it easier in regards to space.

Zuzu, can I tell you how heartbroken I was that the holzkram didn't work out for you! I fell in love with it when you posted pictures! Our Drewart didn't end up working for us either

Thanks for the info on the pine. They must have used a red pine for the E&A roof. It's quite pretty actually.

I can see what you mean about the two open sides on the dollhouse being an issue. I'll have to let my sister know since she has her eye on that or the E&A equivalent for my niece in a year or so. The stable works well open since the set-up isn't quite as fussy.

Don't count us out for the Holzkram yet! The farmhouse with stable was huge and the base made it impossible (it's almost four feet long!). I'm thinking of buying the one with no outbuildings and no base (more like the Ostheimer house).

[mommabeehilly]

we have the kinderkram stable and love it. the only trouble that we had with it is the side door (which is connected by little leather strings) one of them broke with lots of play...so i just tied another little piece of leather and and voila...problem solved.
it is a sweet piece.

hth!

[jeno31]

I did order the E&A, but turns out they are completely out of stock until after the new year from the manufacturer.

So just this morning, I reordered going with the Kinderkram.

Thanks to everyone for your replies. Looks like you really can't go wrong with either of them.

[kittywitty]

Does anyone have experience with the size difference? The E&A one says it's 17" by 22" I think and the Kinderkram is ~18" x 12" x 11". It seems much smaller. It doesn't look 17 x 22 in the picture. Is it really that big?

[Zuzu822]

Yup! I called Nova Natural to verify before I bought it since I found two different sets of dimensions from various retailers.

[counterGOPI]

Originally Posted by Zuzu822

Yup! I called Nova Natural to verify before I bought it since I found two different sets of dimensions from various retailers.

Good to know! Aren't theyso sweetat Nova? I always have such wonderful conversations with the people there

[RollerCoasterMama]

Originally Posted by kittywitty

Does anyone have experience with the size difference? The E&A one says it's 17" by 22" I think and the Kinderkram is ~18" x 12" x 11". It seems much smaller. It doesn't look 17 x 22 in the picture. Is it really that big?

E&A really is that big! Took up a large part of our old coffee table when we first set it up. Here it is by the cat for size: http://www.flickr.com/photos/3097561...7607559239597/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/3097561...7607559239597/ Consider that these animals are the same size as the Holztiger ones...so they're pretty big. I haven't noticed ours is particularly dinged up. It's held up nicely! The ladder is sort of dumb, but DS likes it.

Sounds like you already had your decision made by default, but I figured I'd throw in the extra info since someone asked! I think you really can't go wrong either way!!!