S is for Snowboarding Santa, Snowman, Snotty-nosed Kids and err . . . Polar Bears!

This is one of those things you just can't believe you're returning-to, especially when it's fair to say 15 or 20-years ago you wouldn't have found a snowboarding figure anywhere on the planet! Skateboarders' yes (they appeared in the 1970's, courtesy of Gem and the odd key-ring), sailboards . . . maybe . . . and Britains did a sand-yacht I think; in that late line of 54mm extreme sports, but snowboarders are a new thing!

Got a mixed bag from a charity shop a few weeks ago and with a couple in the 'waiting to be sorted' pile tried to have a competition, but the camera's flash washes-out the 'slope' and it just looks like they've been strewn about on an old hankie! I can assure you it was the Devil's own job getting the bears to stop sliding down, long enough to get the shot in.

The newest additions to a collection which you'd be forgiven for thinking has less and less to do with 'Toy Soldiers', but that's more to do with my blogging more esoteric stuff, rather than endless box-tickers of figures most people are familiar with!

I suspect these two are from a board game, probably aimed at the 5-11 age bracket? But they might be from something more 'teenage'; there's a certain street-edge to their styling, I wouldn't be surprised to find their profile sprayed on the side of Underground rolling-stock!

This guy too is aiming for cool and trendy, but he's marked with the current Kinder 'K', although as he's far too big for one of their pocket-money eggs and doesn't seem to come apart (I've pulled him every-which-way!) he must be from a Maxi-Egg, which - I noticed in Debenhams recently - are more common that they used to be over here, being more of a Continental treat in the past.

He's also incomplete; that spigot is a pretty standard Kinder thing, and is usually either a locating stud (into something else) or a handle to be held by something/someone else. Also, while he's too big for the standard eggs, he's a bit small to fill a Maxi-Egg?

Cakeboards; I've picked up a few of their pieces recently; they seem to occupy the place of Gem/Festival (although there are a couple of other players), albeit only in the dwindling number of independent cake/craft shops or online, and working in poured vinyl-resin.

Seen before, but waiting in the TBS bag, so he was dug-out and included in the 'photo-op'!

While we saw this guy a while ago, and while I can't remembered who was responsible (possibly own-branded to a supermarket?), I only started the Poly-clay tag for that Culpitt's soldier the other day, so I can add him in, while I try to find the original post!

It's an irony - which may be keeping dentists in work - that Polyclay figurines look exactly like sugar-craft figurines!

Snowboarding - it's strapping yourself to a tea-tray!