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I will try to keep this review short, however, I want to be sure I cover everything. First, I have to say that any "negative" is SO WORTH IT for his product. That's why I gave it 5 stars. But I WILL be covering what some of the struggles are with it along with some things I think could have taken it to the next level.
COLOR
The color on my screen matched the color of the product I received. Of course, screen settings may vary, but you are going to get an aqua/robin's egg blue shade. It's not a "simple light blue". There is a nuance to this color that gives it a distinct retro feel, like there is a SLIGHT hint of mint mixed in with your light blue. It's really just the most charming color. Ever.
QUALITY
These are solid-wood pieces. This was probably better quality than some of the adult furniture in my house. The paining is clean and there were only 2 small chips that are not visible when assembled that were around screw holes. The shipping packaging is well thought out to keep the item from being damaged. Have a garbage bag on hand to deal with the pesky Styrofoam, though!
WHAT'S INCLUDED
JUST the kitchen. No pots, pans, utensils, or play food.
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR ACCESSORIES
If you want some recommendations, they are as follows:
Pots, Pans, Utensils: Melissa & Doug Let's Play House! Pots Pans Set
Food: Hape, Playfully Delicious Garden Salad set, Hape Playfully Delicious Hamburger and Hot Dogs, Learning Resources New Sprouts sets (we did Health Dinner, Healthy Lunch, and Healthy Breakfast), Learning Resources New Sprouts Waffle Time, Plan Toys Breakfast Menu.
Dress Up: KidKraft Tasty Treats Chef Accessory Set
ASSEMBLY
This is a time-consuming task. I really doubt it can be assembled in an hour, but hey, maybe you are faster than me. This took me 2 hours, maybe 3? At first I was thinking, this is pretty easy, but as you go on, you start to be like... what the heck? Suddenly you need different kind of pieces, and it's jarring. But those pieces are absolutely needed and could not have been replaced with anything else that I can think of. Keep in mind, there are NO written directions. Pictures only.
I did encounter a few problems with assembly. Some were my fault.
Problem 1) Although I started at image 1 for about 10 minutes, trying to be sure I had the board facing the right direction and the was putting the plastic piece on correctly, it wasn't until near the end when I was attaching that piece to another bigger piece that I realized I actually put the plastic piece on the wrong side of the wood! Not only that, but when I was first assembling, I wasn't sure if they wanted me to screw from both sides, as there were what looks like more than one set of screw holes on the plastic. So I tried screwing from both sides, couldn't, and as a result, when it ended up being on the "wrong" side, and I moved it to the correct side, you could see two spots where I ruined the wood. So, here's what you need to know: At no point do you need to screw a hole into the wood. All the holes you need area already there. I've assembled a lot of furniture and sometimes you DO need to screw the wood yourself in certain spots, so this was the cause of my confusion.
Problem 2) Getting the "legs" of the kitchen on takes some serious man hands! I have bruises on my hand from the task. It was VERY resistant, an perhaps one of the most frustrating and time consuming tasks in putting this together. I actually had doubts I could even get the back legs on correctly because it seemed impossible for my hand to push that allen wrench while holding the leg still despite the resistance for the screw to go in. But alas, I did it. It sucked, but I did it.
Tip 1: At one point, you need to screw these little clip things on. "R" I think. The first time or two, you only need one clip. So I didn't notice as I went on that some of the pieces require this clip on either side. So when I caught on, I had to unscrew and redo.
Tip 2: Make sure that when you put the little "nuts" on that you put the wrenchable-side flush against the wood. This will make it easier to hold the nuts still while you screw in the bolts for those pieces. For some reason, I was putting them on upside down at first, which made things more complicated than they needed to be...
Tip 3: Have someone help you put on the doors. It makes things a thousand times easier. My 6 year old with autism helped me.
Maybe you have more brain cells than I do and my problems never would have been a problem for you. But if, like me, you have "mommy brain" and aren't always working at full capacity, these tips may save you a few troubles.
FEATURES
The doors "snap" open and closed; I like that they can be securely shut but without needing too much force to open. Seems they found the sweet spot in this delicate balance.
The product comes with an anchoring kit so that you can anchor this safely to your wall, if you so choose.
"Spinnable" microwave.
Removable "baking tray" in the oven.
Stove/Oven knobs "click" when you turn them.
Phone with "cradle" ... this is my 2 year old's favorite part so far. She keeps picking up the phone and "babbling"... which is pretty amazing since she is speech delayed and doesn't babble normally :)
SIZE
It wouldn't hurt if it was a TAD taller to prolong the length of time (age wise) it can be played with standing, however, it's really a great size for a 2-4 year old, and beyond that, kids can either hunch over a little or sit up on their knees to play. This is what my 8 year old has been doing. Our 2 year old is the perfect height for this. It's on par with the height/size of most play kitchens.
STORAGE
I was hoping I would be able to store more in the fridge and cabinets, but overall, I can store a few things at a time. For example, I keep the salad kit on one shelf, and the waffle kit on another. Then I have room at the bottom that I could probably stack 2 baskets filled of things. There's another cabinet under the sink where I keep utensils, and in the "open cabinet" under that I keep the apron and chef's hat. I would recommend getting some small baskets (measure to see which size would fit best) so that you can store the playfood in the basket inside the fridge. Or get a container to keep all the playfood in. You can also store a small bowl of fake fruit next the microwave, as you see in the stock image. Finally, we keep the Melissa and Doug pots and pan set above the fridge, and then a toaster and mixer above the microwave/shelf.
IDEAS FOR IMPROVEMENT
I would LOVE to see them upgrade the fridge to have a fake ice dispenser. We almost got a different set that had this feature, and that was really the only thing that almost swayed our decision. I think we like this one more than we would have liked that one, but it was hard to let go of the ice dispenser, which seemed like such a fun idea. It dispensed wooden ice cubes. Anyway, if they DO make this upgrade, PLEASE (please please please) a) make it fit into the current "drink dispenser" location b) offer it for sale separately so people who want to upgrade can do so affordably c) send out an email to those who have purchased this so they know it's available. Seriously, if they added that, this would be BEYOND perfect!
OVERALL
We are extremely pleased with our purchase and the kids LOVE it--and that is the most important thing. I think this is one of the best purchases we've ever made. Also, my husband saw it and assumed I must have spent "at least 300 on it" and didn't believe me the price was half that until I showed him the product on Amazon. It's really an impressive toy!
