Two Nods of Approval from TD Monthly

TDmonthly, a trade magazine that guides retailers in choosing their wares, has selected eeBoo’s Life on Earth Tot Towers  as an anticipated hit for Toy Fair in their February issue! The Life on Earth illustration by Melissa sweet, popular with other eeBoo games such as Bingo, Matching and Dominoes, is brand new for our Tot Towers!

TDmonthly also chose eeBoo’s new Make Me a Story game as a Toy to Talk About! This unique activity come with a tin playboard, dye-cut magnets and an easel to prop the board up. The game is perfect for ”directors-in-training” and any kid with a passion for make believe!

Log in to eeBoo and find out what else is new! Or visit us at Toy Fair, in booth 6215!

Tags: eeBoo 2012, eeBoo Life on Earth Tot Tower, eeBoo Make Me a Story, eeBoo new products, eeBoo TD Monthly, eeBoo Tot Towers, eeBoo toy fair

Obstacles a KIWI Favorite Board Game!

 Just in time for the Holidays, Kiwi Magazine has chosen Obstacles as one of its favorite Board Games of 2011! The feature praises Obstacles, which bears the distinction of being eeBoo’s first cooperative game, as  “thought-provoking, but fun at the same time.”

Obstacles is one of our hit games this year! Don’t get left behind – try it out!

Tags: eeBoo Best Board Games 2011, eeBoo Kiwi Magazine, eeBoo Obstacles, Holiday 2011

Sidewalk Games in Woman’s Day Holiday 2011 Gift Guide!

Woman’s Day has selected eeBoo’s Sidewalk Games for its Kid’s Holiday 2011 Gift Guide! Sidewalk Games has won quite a bit of recognition sinces its release over the summer, and this is an encouraging addition! Complete with chalk, a gold coin and book of internationally played sidewalk games, eeBoo’s first “Active Game” will have children, as Woman’s Day says, “jumping for joy”!

Sidewalk Games encourages children to be active outdoors and to appreciate other cultures, as they learn games played by children across the world! And with all this warm weather we’ve been having, you might not even have to wait till spring!

Tags: 2011 Holiday Gift Guide, eeBoo Sidewalk Chalk, Woman's Day eeBoo, Woman's Day Gift Guide

A Stocking Full of eeBoo: Woman Around Town suggests Diaries!

Christmas stockings are like the delicious appetizer before a glorious feast - a kickoff to the fun, excitement and high spirits bound to ensue! And this year, if Santa takes Woman Around Town‘s advice, Christmas’s “appetizer” will be filled with eeBoo Diaries!

As Woman Around Town writer Alix Cohen says, “What little girl doesn’t have a world of secrets. Encourages getting one’s thoughts together, observation, learning about feelings, using words.”

eeBoo’s Diaries aren’t just for Santa’s rounds. They’ll make a petite, fun-packed gift for any holiday! Woman Around Town featured our Princess and Enchanted Diaries, but  you can check out all the lovely styles here!

Tags: 2011 Gift Guide, eeBoo Diaries, eeBoo Enchanted, eeBoo Princess & Butterflies, Holiday 2011, stocking stuffers

Pregnancy and Newborn Magazine a fan of eeBoo Sketchbook & Pencils!

The December issue of Pregnancy and Newborn Magazine is hitting the stands, and eeBoo is within its pages! Flip to the magazine’s 2011 Gift Guide and you will find an eeBoo Sketchbook & 24 Spectrum Color Pencils set, one of our most popular gift offerings.

As it happens, the featured set, Nemo and Princess in Balloon, has been discontinued! However you can still find the sketchbook here and the pencils here.

eeBoo’s Sketchbooks and Pencils are perennial bestsellers – the beautiful cover art and high quality pencils inspire young artists to create their own beautiful illustrations within. Browse through all our styles of sketchbooks here and styles of pencils here, and enjoy!

Tags: eeBoo 24 Spectrum Color Pencils, eeBoo sketchbooks, Gift Guide 2011, Holiday 2011, Pregnancy and Newborn Magazine

Found in Translation: Little Thing explores eeBoo’s studio!

eeBoo is a home-grown company with international reach. How international? Try China! This month  Little Thing, a Chinese style magazine that collects and features especially beautiful items, sought out eeBoo founder Mia Galison to talk about our studio space. In the ensuing interview, Mia talks candidly about the structure of eeBoo, our 19th century ballroom studio space (come and visit us!) on 74th and Amsterdam in New York City, and various sources of inspiration.

A translation for non-Chinese speakers is included at the bottom of this post!

Little Thing is full of stunning photography and boasts an aesthetic that is a perfect mix of vintage and modern. Their motto is “we collect beautiful things!” eeBoo makes beautiful things, so it’s no surprise that we’ve crossed paths!  As Mia says in the interview, eeBoo always strives to ”make art in a real and emotional way” – and we’re glad to share that our studio space reflects that sentiment in style, design and thought!

You can explore our studio here too!

1) eeBoo’s products are so colorful and have such fun childlike qualities. However, the studio was converted from an old building (a ballroom no less!). Why did you choose such a location to establish the eeBoo studio?

I started eeBoo about 15 years ago when I had a one year old son and newborn twins.  My husband is a painter and worked at home and I wanted and needed to be home too.  We rented an apartment in the basement of our building and worked there for many years running up and down to work and to be with our children. Our phone lines ran out the window from our home to our office so if our children needed us they could  stomp on the floor, over where my desk was, and I would pick up the phone.  The most important thing for me was not to give up my life with my family for work so when the time came that we ran out of room in the basement it was of utmost importance that I find an office near my home.  We live in a residential neighborhood and there are very few places to rent for work.  The space we are now in was originally a ballroom for a residential hotel at the turn of the century.  When we found it listed for rent it was being used as a storage space and all of the windows and skylights had been bricked over,  the ceiling had been dropped to enclose air conditioning and the space had been broken down into over ten little rooms.  Even the landlord had no idea of the potential but we saw something very special hidden beneath years of decay and garbage.  Ideally the studio is located near to where my children are at school and a few blocks from my parents.

2) Could you please simply go over the divisions of the space and their functions?

When we first moved in the space was overwhelmingly large.  I had the idea to buy Art Deco Chinese design rugs and use them to differentiate the different departments.  We have a design department where we work on developing our products, a production department where we track our manufacturing, communicate with factories and source new potential manufacturing partners, there is a lady who enters orders as they come in from stores and sales representative, an operations manager who handles our accounts and oversees our computers and banking , and does all the office management, there is a lady who does customer service who speaks all day answering questions and helping  customers and who does outreach to find new customers and press.  We also have two assistants who help out with where needed.  The Vice president of eeBoo who is the primary  sales manager works offsite in an office in Pittsburgh where she relocated a few years ago.  We speak frequently on the phone and she comes to the office a few times a month.  Freelance illustrators come and go. My husband does his art down below in a studio that was once the kitchens for the ballroom.

3) The studio looks very open and spacious. In this large space, where is the heart of the studio?

The studio is very fluid and does not really have a heart.  Loosely we sit in a circle with large tables in the center of the space where we work on projects and have meetings.  I spend a lot of time over with the designers but I also work closely with the production manager sourcing new projects and the sales and marketing staff brainstorming about new ways to find new customers and better satisfy our existing ones.  We have had no more than 10 formal meetings in the life of the company.  I prefer to keep a running dialog going so we can react to situations as they come up.

4) There are so many interesting parts and places within the studio. Are staff members (like the designers, etc) allowed to bring in their personal items to decorate the space?

There is so much stuff in the studio already I don’t know if anyone really wants to bring in anything else but of course they are welcome too.  The lady that enters orders has made herself a a funny tissue paper covered wall to give herself more privacy.

5) What’s one of the most meaningful or special object in the studio?

My husband and I go to flea markets all year long to look for inspiration and I am always buying things to bring back to show  at the studio–so it is too difficult to choose one special object.  I really love a crepe paper hat that the designers made me for my birthday last year and I have many original drawings that my husband and children have made for me over the years.   My favorite things to collect are pieces that were made by hand–stuffed animals, embroidered cloth, carved wooden toys that parents have made for their children.  I have many of this kind of objects and they are all special to me.

6) Because of how spacious the space is, do you ever hold any parties or events there?

We have not had any big parties but we do celebrate everyone birthday with fancy alchoholic drinks and cakes–luckily it always seems to be some ones birthday!

7) Besides providing quarters for a functional office, what other purposes does the studio serve for eeBoo?

One of the great appeals of this beautiful space was that we could have a full showroom and invite our customers here for meetings.  The luxury of having big tables enables us to work on lots of projects at once and lets us spread out materials for review.  It is also possible for me to bring my dogs here everyday and have illustrators and family members come and visit.

8) We believe eeBoo will continue to develop and grow. Do you have other things/requirements you would like of the studio?

I’m not sure of what you mean by this question but I’ll tell you what my immediate plans for expansion are.  We have just started to develop more art supplies and craft kits.  This is a direction that I think eeBoo is uniquely qualified to succeed in.  We are blessed with such a super talented and creative staff who all understand and appreciate the making of art in a real and emotional way.

Tags: China, eeBoo studio, Little Thing Magazine, Mia Galison, New York City

Time Out Chicago Kids: eeBoo Silver Robot Pencils a Holiday Favorite!

Time Out Chicago Kids  just released its Holiday 2011 Gift Guide and selected eeBoo’s popular Robot 24 Spectrum Color Pencils as part of their ‘Kids 8 and Up’ category! One of only 20 products chosen, Time Out called our pencils “nifty”!

eeBoo’s Silver Robot Pencils make a great stocking stuffer, and pair perfectly with our similarly popular Silver Robot Sketchbook and Silver Robot Metallic Pencils!

Tags: 8 and up, Chicago shopping, eeBoo 24 Spectrum Color Pencils, eeBoo Silver Robot Pencils, Gift Guide 2011, Holiday 2011, stocking stuffers, Time Out Kids, Time Out Kids Chicago

“Playing for Hours!”: Sidewalk Chalk in San Diego Family December Issue

They came back for more: San Diego Family Magazine selected eeBoo’s Sidewalk Games for review* in their December Issue! Similar to how the magazine’s November issue reviewed eeBoo’s Obstacles, Sidewalk Games was given to a local family to play and review. 10-year-old toy connoisseur McKenna gushed, ”it kept me playing for hours!”  That’s the idea: engaging, fun and active! It sure beats TV!

You can check out eeBoo’s awesome new “Active” game here!

*Correction – Please note that the suggested retail price for Sidewalk Games is $8.50

Tags: Gift Guide, Holiday 2011, San Diego Family Magazine, Sidewalk Games

Celebrity Trend Expert endorses Crepe Paper Flowers, Obstacles in LA Family Gift Guide!

L.A.’s parents are currently reading about eeBoo’s Obstacles Game and Crepe Paper Flowers, which were selected for LA Family Magazine‘s Holiday 2011 Gift Guide! The magazine, read by thousands of families in Southern California and Nevada, enlisted the sound advice of Celebrity Trend Expert Rachel Florio-Urso (pictured below) to select this holiday season’s standout toys.

With her crafty sixth sense for all things celebrity and trendy, Ms. Florio-Urso patched together a glowing review of our Crepe Paper Flowers, dubbing them “an instant hit.” And like so many before her, Ms. Florio was smitten with Obstacles, calling it a “perfect family game.”

So far, eeBoo’s Obstacles and Crepe Paper Flowers have charmed parents and the press all over the country, and we’re thrilled by this continued recognition!

Tags: 2011 Gift Guide, Celebrity, Celebrity Trend Expert, Crepe Paper Flowers, Holiday 2011, LA Family, Los Angeles, magazine, Obstacles, product review, Trend

5 eeBoo products selected for Education.com Gift Guide!

Education.com has selected 5 eeBoo products for its 2011 Gift Guide! Their team selects “only the most fun, unique, high value and educational products.” 

This year’s guide includes eeBoo’s Boat Ride Sketchbook, A Walk to the Sea Water Color Pencils, Nature Notebook, Mystery in the Forest Tell Me a Story and I Never Forget a Face Travel Game. We’re thrilled, especially considering that the guide selected only 15 products per school grade!

Education.com, which has over 5 million visitors a month, has kind words to say about each gift idea:

Of our Boat Ride Sketchbook – “A simple gift, but one that opens up a world of open-ended creativity, and offers the kind of freedom only art gives.”

Of our Watercolor Pencils – “Complete with every color any kid could ever want.”

Of our Nature Notebook – “A lovely little journal to put a Bio-101 spin on your child’s next outdoor excursion.”

Of our Mystery in the Forest Tell Me a Story – “From treasure seeking chickens to a raccoon with a mysterious red spool of yarn, there’s plenty of magic and humor to tickle storytelling skills and build vocabulary in the process.”

And of our I Never Forget a Face Travel Game – “Not only will kids get a brain booster, it will spark their curiosity about cultures from China to Haiti and Norway to Tanzania.”

As Black Friday draws near, remember that you can find all of these items and more eeBoo product here!

Tags: Boat Ride, Education.com, Gift Guide, Holiday 2011, Mystery in the Forest, Nature Notebook, Never Forget a Face, Sketchbooks, Tell me a Story, Travel Games, Water Color Pencils