MomtoPercy
New member
Very often I read posts from people outside the US, struggling to find toy parts to make toys for their fids. I feel your pain! Living in South Africa, I haven't been able to find a single store that specialises in bird toy parts. However, I tend to be a bit obsessive and I wasn't about to let something as mediocre as 'lack of parts' get me down! I make ALL my fids toys myself because (a) the shops here cater only for very large or very small birds, nothing in between and (b) I refuse to pay the exhorbitant prices the shops charge for a bit of wood and a quick link.
If I may, I would like to show other members what I've learned about where to find toy parts (or make your own) right in the town where I live. I don't live in a large metropol like Johannesburg but my town is not a 'one horse town' either. I live in an average size town with most of the big retailers represented. However, very little of what I use comes from big retailers - it is normally small shops and hardware places.
Ok, let's begin. Here are some pics of my toy parts -
This is my rope selection. I have sisal rope, cotton rope, paulie rope and some shiny fluffy rope which my fid loves to preen. You will see very thick sisal rope on the right - not sure yet what I will make with it but I couldn't resist it! All of these I bought at a local hardware store.
You will also see some plastic chain - I got this at a shop that sells only plastic ware but I've also seen it at the hardware store.
Lastly, in the top left you will see some woven palm - this was 2 woven placemats I got for literally a few cents at a charity shop. I unthreaded the nylon that was used to bind the woven palm strips into a circle and voila! Lovely natural woven palm for my toys!
These are the wood and bamboo items I have already worked (cut and drilled) and which I keep inside. I have pine slats and dowels as well as bamboo sticks in the garage. I buy the pine slats at the hardware shop and the bamboo gets collected for me by a local handyman who charges me ten bucks and a bottle of Coke for a huge bundle
You will see some coloured blocks which were gifted to me by a friend (I coloured them with food colouring) but they are too big for my fid. You will also see the lid of a container that I bought kiddies abc blocks in - very handy! I got this at a toy store. Lastly, you will see cylinder shapes that I got for pennies at a charity shop. They are pine and untreated but old. They need a good wash and bake and then I will use them for something. Oh, and in the back is my collection of popsicle sticks and washing pegs (with the metal bits removed) which I sometimes toss into my fids' toy baskets to chew on.
This is some veg tanned leather (ok, this is quite expensive from the leather shop but I don't use a lot), loofa sponges from the pharmacy (drugstore) and vine balls which I scored for very cheap in a christmas store this month. Untreated vine balls! I bought the entire stock in the shop! LOL. Note the cardboard sweet container - I make holes in them, thread thick rope through, tie some knots and Percy shreds to his hearts content!
Cardboard stuff - obviously I can't get birdie bagles here so I had to improvise. These tubes are all from the supermarkets around town. When they finish using the plastic packets that come on these rolls, they just toss them away! I beg them to keep the rolls for me (and sometimes I conveniently loose the last three of so plastic packets from the roll so I can have it). I cut these rolls into 1" slices and presto! Birdie bagels! There is also a nice thread here somewhere where other members told me some ideas they have to improvise these bagels. My fid loooves shredding these!
I also begged two band new large cardboard packing boxes off a collegue at work who had them in her storeroom - got them for free. I cut them up for foraging toys which you will see in the next post. Oh and don't miss the walnut shells in the bottom left - I crack the walnuts we use ever so carefully and then drill holes in the shell to use for some kind of toy...still thinking about that one
Some miscellaneous stuff - brown paper envelopes for foraging (stationary shop), plastic straws (supermarket), kiddies links (toy shop), grass baskets left over from a charity event and given away for free. Yes, on the right there is a plastic cutlery set - who knows? It could become a toy!
Some plastic toy circle thingies from a toy shop, wine corks free from a restaurant buddy (Percy looooves to shred cork), plastic bottle caps free from my milk and juice (I've drilled holes in them) used in foraging toys.
Beads and spools from a toy shop - somewhat pricey but the beads can be used over and over. Percy destroys the spools.
Not the best pic quality but these are beads and buttons from the fabric shop and craft store. I often buy pretty buttons and just drill a hole through them to fit my rope. I also drill holes through beads that have too small a hole for my purposes (you may be able to make out examples of this in the yellow beads on the right and blue ones at the top). Note that drilling through acrylic beads is really tough on your drill because the friction sometimes causes the plastic to melt onto the drillbit if one isn't careful. The only remedy then is to shatter the bead with a hammer! You will see that there are some tiny beads in there too but they are for Jack, my budgie's toys. I also keep my solid SS rings (from the leather shop) and quick links (from the hardware shop) in this container.
OK, that's most of my 'raw materials'. All of it was bought locally and most of it is very cheap.
I will post some toys I've made with these items in the next post.
If I may, I would like to show other members what I've learned about where to find toy parts (or make your own) right in the town where I live. I don't live in a large metropol like Johannesburg but my town is not a 'one horse town' either. I live in an average size town with most of the big retailers represented. However, very little of what I use comes from big retailers - it is normally small shops and hardware places.
Ok, let's begin. Here are some pics of my toy parts -
This is my rope selection. I have sisal rope, cotton rope, paulie rope and some shiny fluffy rope which my fid loves to preen. You will see very thick sisal rope on the right - not sure yet what I will make with it but I couldn't resist it! All of these I bought at a local hardware store.
You will also see some plastic chain - I got this at a shop that sells only plastic ware but I've also seen it at the hardware store.
Lastly, in the top left you will see some woven palm - this was 2 woven placemats I got for literally a few cents at a charity shop. I unthreaded the nylon that was used to bind the woven palm strips into a circle and voila! Lovely natural woven palm for my toys!
These are the wood and bamboo items I have already worked (cut and drilled) and which I keep inside. I have pine slats and dowels as well as bamboo sticks in the garage. I buy the pine slats at the hardware shop and the bamboo gets collected for me by a local handyman who charges me ten bucks and a bottle of Coke for a huge bundle
You will see some coloured blocks which were gifted to me by a friend (I coloured them with food colouring) but they are too big for my fid. You will also see the lid of a container that I bought kiddies abc blocks in - very handy! I got this at a toy store. Lastly, you will see cylinder shapes that I got for pennies at a charity shop. They are pine and untreated but old. They need a good wash and bake and then I will use them for something. Oh, and in the back is my collection of popsicle sticks and washing pegs (with the metal bits removed) which I sometimes toss into my fids' toy baskets to chew on.
This is some veg tanned leather (ok, this is quite expensive from the leather shop but I don't use a lot), loofa sponges from the pharmacy (drugstore) and vine balls which I scored for very cheap in a christmas store this month. Untreated vine balls! I bought the entire stock in the shop! LOL. Note the cardboard sweet container - I make holes in them, thread thick rope through, tie some knots and Percy shreds to his hearts content!
Cardboard stuff - obviously I can't get birdie bagles here so I had to improvise. These tubes are all from the supermarkets around town. When they finish using the plastic packets that come on these rolls, they just toss them away! I beg them to keep the rolls for me (and sometimes I conveniently loose the last three of so plastic packets from the roll so I can have it). I cut these rolls into 1" slices and presto! Birdie bagels! There is also a nice thread here somewhere where other members told me some ideas they have to improvise these bagels. My fid loooves shredding these!
I also begged two band new large cardboard packing boxes off a collegue at work who had them in her storeroom - got them for free. I cut them up for foraging toys which you will see in the next post. Oh and don't miss the walnut shells in the bottom left - I crack the walnuts we use ever so carefully and then drill holes in the shell to use for some kind of toy...still thinking about that one
Some miscellaneous stuff - brown paper envelopes for foraging (stationary shop), plastic straws (supermarket), kiddies links (toy shop), grass baskets left over from a charity event and given away for free. Yes, on the right there is a plastic cutlery set - who knows? It could become a toy!
Some plastic toy circle thingies from a toy shop, wine corks free from a restaurant buddy (Percy looooves to shred cork), plastic bottle caps free from my milk and juice (I've drilled holes in them) used in foraging toys.
Beads and spools from a toy shop - somewhat pricey but the beads can be used over and over. Percy destroys the spools.
Not the best pic quality but these are beads and buttons from the fabric shop and craft store. I often buy pretty buttons and just drill a hole through them to fit my rope. I also drill holes through beads that have too small a hole for my purposes (you may be able to make out examples of this in the yellow beads on the right and blue ones at the top). Note that drilling through acrylic beads is really tough on your drill because the friction sometimes causes the plastic to melt onto the drillbit if one isn't careful. The only remedy then is to shatter the bead with a hammer! You will see that there are some tiny beads in there too but they are for Jack, my budgie's toys. I also keep my solid SS rings (from the leather shop) and quick links (from the hardware shop) in this container.
OK, that's most of my 'raw materials'. All of it was bought locally and most of it is very cheap.
I will post some toys I've made with these items in the next post.
thanks!
