Wooden Nativity Set

[WednesdayO]

I have kept my eyes open over the past few years for a wooden nativity set that isn't too expensive. Last year, I saw this nativity set in a catalog that my mother had, but later I couldn't find it online. She received another catalog with it this year, so I knew where to look this time. Anyway...

Does anyone have experience with this set? It says it is exclusive to One Step Ahead, but it really reminds me of the Woodland Fantasies sets I had seen.

Also, do you know of other nativity sets that would cost around this same price ($45)??

THANKS!

[Madalyn]

Ooh I'm not being helpful here but I'm so bookmarking this one myself! I've been trying to find a pretty one that wasn't $100+ and this one is the best I've seen so far too. I wonder if there's any chance it'd go on sale any after or shortly before Christmas...

[tea_time]

I bought that set last Christmas for my then 2yo DD to use. It's a nice set that comes in a rather large wooden box. The pieces tend to fall over easily, but my DD still enjoyed playing with it. One interesting thing about it is that there are 2 (or 3) pieces that don't seem to fit anywhere. Kind of a mystery, which is what others wrote under reviews on that site as well.

[WednesdayO]

tea_time - I did read that in some of the reviews. Is it because the bottoms aren't flat or are they top heavy etc?? So you think it's okay for the price then?

Madalyn - I doubt it goes on sale just because they relist it each year it seems. I know what you mean about price!!

Oh... if anyone is interested in German candle displays for the holidays, Tuesday Morning has a beautiful variety of them (the pyramid type and even ones with Santa)! They are not toys of course, and they are not cheap, but they are a much better deal than full price!

[WednesdayO]

On a whim I searched again and just found this one. It's a little cartoony, but a good price.

[boatbaby]

Jalu Toys has BEAUTIFUL sets!
http://www.jalutoys.com/inside.htm

While I don't have the nativity set per se, we have lots of his animals and his stackers and they are gorgeous and so well made.
He is also on etsy, but we get a better idea of his full stock from his online shop aboe. Order early for the holidays.

http://www.etsy.com/shop/jalutoys

[tea_time]

I've been happy with it, especially for the price. I saw more expensive sets last year but couldn't bring myself to spend that much. I do appreciate that it is wood. I think they tip over b/c little fingers aren't as coordinated so they have the domino effect. I'm sure it will be less so as she gets older.

[mamaUK]

I have just bought the Osthiemer mini nativity which we have wanted for two to three years now. It has arrived and is stunning, but it was about £250 ($400 approx) I am justifying it to myself by knowing that it will be an heirloom, but as i have two girls, I know they will end up fighting about it when the time comes I didn't really look around at any others so I'm not sure what other companies do them. Let us know what you find.

[notwonamesalike]

We have the Jalu Toys Nativity set and it's gorgeous! Love, love, love it.

[AngelBee]

[FillingMyQuiver]

We opted for the Ostheimer nativity. We dealt with the cost issue by building our set slowly, over a few Christmas seasons.

As part of our Advent calendar activities, we buy new pieces each year to add to our set. We're fortunate that I belong to a few co-ops and was able to get most of our pieces at great prices, but we were also prepared to pay full price.

The first year we started w/ the Holy Family, Mary, Joseph, and Jesus in the manger.

The next year we added the 3 Kings.

The third year we chose to add some of the stable animals, the laying donkey, the laying ox, and a lamb.

Last year I picked out shepherds.

This year I'm trying to decide between the 3 Kings animals (horse, camel, and elephant) or a collection of trees.

I also think we'll be making our own stable for our set since DH and I have begun some light woodworking.

[sweetpeppers]

Making your own is really fun. Nativity scenes have now become my standard wedding gift. you can do it all sorts of ways. If you have a scroll saw, make a wooden one (check out the thread here on mothering about making scroll saw animals). Or if you are handy with a needle and thread, you can make a cute one out of fabric scraps. The first one I made was for my brother and sister-in-law, and I used wooden peg people that I dressed up.