Does anyone have/like the Melissa and Doug Latches board???

[chrstene]

My DS (2) loves playing with all sorts of buckles, straps, etc....and I recently remembered seeing this board at the toy store.  I am wondering if it is worth the $, or do the kids get bored with it very quickly?  How is the quality?  

I'm not a huge M&D fan really, but I don't think I've seen any other brand that makes a board like this. ...Unless anyone can chime in (hint hint) ! 

[elus0814]

I have one that is a solid 5-7 years old. I'm not sure if it's changed it that time. It's ok, I'm not a big m and d fan either. It's reasonably well made but has never received much play time. It does, however, make a lock picker out of your child. I child who was never able to open the types of latches on the board can easily do so after the practice the board gives them.

[Shannie77]

I have one and my daughter has never really taken to it.  I have used it with her quite a bit but it is always with me suggesting we play with it. I do like the look of it and like to have it out.  I don't regret buying it.  What I have seen are Montessori like boards where each one has a different kind of "latch"... zippers, buttons, lacing, buckles.  I have also seen some blogging mom's make their own dressing boards. 

[Mal85]

The Montessori school I used to work at had this.  It was a favorite among the kids. I think it works better than the board because they can put things in it and lock them up. It has more purpose for them than just a board with different latches on it. It's expensive though.

[elus0814]

I really like the suggestion of a board with button, zippers, and more common 'latches'. You could even make one!

[JudiAU]

We have it. The quality is merely okay in a typical I-don't-like-M&D but I didn't want to buy the nice one from Tag Toys which I probably should have because it least it would have a useful lifespan and not make it to the dump in 3 years. We bought it when DS was 2 he mastered all but one quickly and it ended up in storage at Grandma's house. On the plus side, if you shove it hard it fits into the M&D storage piece with two different puzzle sizes, not the one with spaces for a single type of puzzle. And even with gentle play it looks sad with torn bits.

I think something with zippers/snaps/buttons/latches would have been more interesting. M&D also makes one but it has even worse reviews than the latches board.

These are the Tag Toys ones: http://store.tagtoys.com/categories.aspx?Keyword=latches In retrospect, the least expensive version also has a place to hide things that DS would have loved at 2 and would still love at 3. All there stuff is nice and can be resold or gifted. Made in the US.

[hildare]

we have one.. my mil got it at a consignment store.  dd is pretty young but has always liked the jingly parts / the 'key' hangs on a lanyard from it too.  older kids seem to enjoy it when they come over to play.  i'd probably get one at consignment again, but not buy a new one. it's good if you rotate toys/ puzzles.. it seems always to be fun for a good little while.

the montessori ones pp's talked about have more real world skills, lacing, tying, etc. -- i've used those in a classroom and would absolutely buy them new.

i've also seen a latch 'box' in a natural toy catalog, but i can't remember which one. 

[petey44]

We have one, got it probably about 6-9 months ago.  DD still likes it.  She figured out all the locks and latches immediately, but she still enjoys tinkering with it, and also talking about the colors, animals, number of animals, etc behind the doors.  I basically view it as a puzzle as far as the amount of use I expect it to receive.

[~cassie]

We have one, have had it for 5 years and it has gotten a ton of play in our house.

[EmmaJane]

We have one -- still in storage between DD1 and DD2.  DD1 liked it. I think my biggest complaint was that if it gets left on the floor and someone steps on it -- OW!!!!

We have a Buckley Boo (one of the small ones) for DD2 and that's been very popular -- she can close the latches, but not open them herself yet. It is hideous! and totally synthetic material! but it's a good snuggle toy -- definitely on her top 5 lovey list -- and machine washes beautifully...

[sunflwrmoonbeam]

LOVE it! My daughter got really into buckles, etc. around her first birthday, so I got her the latches board. She was immediately fascinated by it, and thoroughly enjoyed it for about 3 months. It's been collecting dust for awhile, so it's about to go into storage for a few months (I'm a big fan of toy rotation).

[ellairiesmom]

Ours has recd tons of play.  Other kids love it when they are here too.  I remember when dd1 first learned her colors & #'s and was telling me which ones were behind each "door"...it was so cute.  

But yeah-it hurts like heck when you step on that one...ouch!

Incidentally, I know folks here are not fans of M&D toys.  I used to feel that way because of the handful of times their paint failed safety tests...but we have had really good experiences with all their wood toys here.  And after speaking to them several times, I felt comfortable they take this stuff seriously & monitor their facilities in China closely.  And since they are accessible and WAY more affordable than some of the other wood options often suggested here, it became a doable solution to us for the "plastic crap" from other people & allowed us to get wood toys within our budget.  

[physmom]

Yep, we have one and DD LOVES it (we got it used at a garage sale).  We have to get rid of it now because we're moving abroad and it just weighs too much :(  you aren't in NY by any chance and want it do you?

[chrstene]

Thank you everyone for your replies....so helpful !!!  

and Physmom...I"m not in NY (used to be)...too bad :(

[texmati]

I've been wondering about this board for sometime as well. my ds loves opening and closing things. I've found make your own tutes by searching for busy boards.

[Courtney-Ostaff]

Yah, got one for my now-3 at her 3rd birthday.  She was fascinated for exactly as long as it took her to figure out how to work all the items, which was about 20 minutes.  I also bought the bear board that has zippers and whatnot, and she loves that much better, perhaps because it has a figure on it.  She doesn't actually zip or button or buckle yet, but she likes the bear.  Though she is pretty good at unzipping, unbuttoning, and unbuckling her own clothes. ;)