"Room to Play" Product #1
You may have heard me complain once . . . twice . . . or a thousand times about how, until the housing market turns around, our family of five is destined to live in this shoebox of a townhouse. One thing I have learned, since our family of three became five, is that we need to use vertical storage to maximize our storage space. This
Dress-Up Carousel from Guidecraft is the perfect example of using space wisely.
This wooden
dress-up tower rotates to reveal two full-length mirrors, 9 wooden pegs, 2 shelves, 8 cubbies, and 2 divided bins. The top of this carousel is a large flat surface that should not go to waste. We use ours to store wide-brimmed dress-up hats.
Because of the many compartments, you may worry that this piece of
children's furniture may be difficult to put together, but my husband assembled it by himself in about 45 minutes. He did say that it would have been much easier if there were two people involved. Once the unit is fully assembled, it is extremely sturdy, but during the assembly process, it did not appear to be because the backing that divides the two sides is a flexible piece of cardboard. Although we were a little worried while he was building this piece, we were extremely pleased with the final result.
The entire unit is just over 4ft tall and under 2ft in diameter. I was in awe over how much this carousel could hold. We took all the contents of a large canvas storage cube, one oversized drawer (approximately 2'x3'), two small shoebox-sized bins, plus a few things that were hanging in a closet and condensed it into a two square foot space.
I do think that Guidecraft could have gotten away with using less pegs. The pegs are a little close together so that, once you have everything hung up, the items are all overlapping quite a bit. This makes it difficult to take off what you need without having to remove one or two other items first.
The two full length mirrors are one of the features that make this product great. This is the first mirror my children have ever had in their bedroom. I was nervous to have a large mirror hinged to a dresser or having a mirror hanging on a door or the wall. There is no chance that one of these mirrors will fall on one of my children.
Even our 3yr olds can turn the carousel on their own. It has enough friction so that it does not spin easily. That was a main concern of mine. I was worried that my children might be able to enjoy themselves too much by spinning the tower with as much speed as possible. I am so happy that this is not the case. Occasionally, they are able to rotate the carousel fast enough so that a lightweight hat might fall off, but that is the extent of it.
I definitely think the
Guidecraft Pastel Dress Up Carousel would be an excellent addition to any child's bedroom or playroom. The space-saving benefits alone would make this a worthwhile purchase. Not to mention that this is a sturdy piece of furniture that would last from your children's toddler or preschool years right through their tweens.
To view the product details, assembly instructions, a product video, or the natural wood version of this dress-up carousel, visit Guidecraft.com . You can purchase Guidecraft products right on this website and from other select retailers of quality children's furniture.
Thank you to Guidecraft for sending us a sample Dress-Up Carousel free of charge to base this review upon and for providing a second one for our contest prize.
What you can win:
One lucky reader will receive a Pastel Dress-Up Carousel from Guidecraft (ARV $250).
Limitations:
This giveaway is open to U.S. entries only. You do not need to be a blogger to enter, but you must have a valid email address and be age 18 years or older. If you enter anonymously and do not include a valid email address in your comment entries, I will not be able to notify you should you win this random drawing.
How to Gain Entries:
Leave a comment telling me which Guidecraft Dramatic Play product (aside from the Dress-Up Carousel) would you have loved to own as a child. You MUST do this to be eligible to win this contest. Extra Entries:
1) For 5 extra entries, leave a relevant comment on one of my non-giveaway posts. Then leave FIVE separate comments with the name of the post on which you commented. You will earn 5 extra entries for each different non-contest post you comment on.
2) For 5 extra entries, enter one of my other contests. Leave FIVE separate comments here telling me which contest you entered. You will earn 5 extra entries for each contest you enter.
3a) For 10 extra entries, blog about this contest linking back to this post AND Guidecraft.com . Then come back here and leave TEN separate comments with the link to your blog post.
3b) If you helped me promote this event by blogging about it prior to June 6th, 2010 according to the directions in my Room To Play Event post, then please give yourself an additional 5 entries. Remember to leave a separate comment for each extra entry.
4) For one extra entry each, Friend me on Facebook and/or "Like" the 3 Garnets & 2 Sapphires Facebook page. Then leave a separate comment for each entry completed with the link to your Facebook profile.
5) For one extra entry each, "Like" Guidecraft on Facebook and/or follow Guidecraft on Twitter. Then leave a separate comment with the link to your Facebook or Twitter profile.
6) Follow me on Twitter. Then leave a separate comment with the link to your Twitter profile.
7) Tweet about this giveaway linking back to this post. Then come back here and leave the link to your tweet in a separate comment. You may do this once per day until the end of the contest.
8) Subscribe to this blog's feed. Or you can follow me through Blogger or subscribe via email (widget is on sidebar). Then leave a separate comment telling me you did so.
9) Subscribe to A Blog of Goodies' feed (the sister site to 3 Garnets & 2 Sapphires). Then leave a separate comment telling me you did so.
10) Add my button or blog link to your blog's sidebar. Then leave a separate comment with the link to your blog.
11a) Add my "Room To Play" Giveaway Event button to your blog's sidebar. Then leave a separate comment with the link to your blog.
11b) If you helped me promote this event by displaying my event tag prior to June 6th, 2010 according to the directions in my Room To Play Event post, then please give yourself an additional 2 entries. Remember to leave a separate comment for each extra entry.
(All entries will be verified prior to awarding this prize.)
Random Drawing:
This contest will be closed on Monday, July 5th, 2010 at 11:59pm EST. A random number drawing will be held shortly after. The winner will be announced here and will be contact via email or through their blog. If the winner does not respond within 48 hours, a new number will be drawn.
Good luck in the drawing!
