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Struggling to choose the perfect gift for a child?

Rachel Kenney gathers expert advice.

T

he huge box that my husband’s friend proudly presented to my son was beautifully wrapped and ribbonned. Full of excitement, we ripped the paper off to see what was inside. It was a very big, very shiny, very high-tech remote control car. It was a fabulous present – but not for my one-year-old, whose proudest achievements at that age were squishing his mashed-up dinners and banging saucepans with a wooden spoon.

While most of us are a little more clued-up about our gift-giving – and avoid glaringly obvious mistakes like giving marbles to a baby, or a rattle to a ten-year-old – it can still sometimes be a challenge to get it just right. We all want the presents we have put a lot of thought – and money – into, to be a success. We want to give the sort of gift a child will treasure, not one that will end up as a mass of homeless plastic bits that are never quite reunited, or one that they didn’t manage to get to grips with so it lives in the back of the cupboard, ignored. But when you walk into a toy shop and are greeted with an array of identikit Barbies, Bratz and Ben 10s, it’s not always easy to hit the jackpot in originality and longevity.

Someone who has plenty of advice for gift-givers is Narguess Sousi, owner of petit bazaar*. She selects toys

60 Playtimes