T is for Two - Davies & Langs

Here are a couple of companies formed in the nineteen-forties, so both in their 80th decade, and perhaps set-up with the post-war grants or ex-service gratuities, which were available at the time, and led to several toy companies being formed in the same era? Both shot at the 2025 Gift Fair in Birmingham's NEC, back in February. 

 

I don't suppose Davies Products started (1947) with much poured resin, but that's one of the materials they are carrying now, Davies are an importer specialising in Christmas decorations, and work closely with The Garden Centre Association, where you will find piles of this stuff at the moment.

 

And we're looking at the perennial favourites, nutcrackers, in three styles and another of this year's clear trends - retro' pulp-rockets and/or/with deform NASA astronauts, that's about eight, or ten times they've been on the Blog since this time last year, and there's more in the queue!

 

While Richard Lang ('Langs', established in 1949) describe themselves as "Wholesale Gift & Home Decor Suppliers", so I don't know where these glass ornaments actually came from, but they are very well done, and would make good cake decorations, now the chalkware and plastic ones have all but disappeared? The shot's not brilliant, but unknown to me the camera's lens was probably already failing, by February?

S is for Sifcon International / SiL Interiors . . .

. . . and Temerity Jones, and if there really is someone called Temerity, I hope they punished their parents somehow! Another stand which caught my eye at Birmingham, back in February, was the Sifcon International / SiL Interiors / Temerity Jones stand, which was more about cats, than anything else, but cats, or big cats, as tree-hangers, and nutcracker tree-hangers at that, were an absolute for getting the camera out!

 

They appear to be pressed copper or, more likely brass-sheet (although they could just be edged-card?), litho-printed with a Victorian or early Edwardian'esque artwork, which is then given a deep domed lacquer effect coating, which looks like clear enamel glaze, but is probably a two-part epoxy polymer. Available as standees in two sizes, along with smaller tree-hangers, there were domestic animals, and four of the 'big five' wild animals - no elephant!

 

The nutcracker designs - as you can see - are carried over to soft furnishing, cheeseboards, bottle gift-boxes, jars, mugs, and no doubt, if they prove successful, other items of interior decor? Sadly I haven't seen them about, as I'd get both the smaller cats, for the tree!

G is for Gardiner, Alison Gardiner

Another one shot in passing, back in February, at the NEC gift fair in Birmingham, these were both on the Alison Gardiner (who specialises in advent calenders) stand, but may both be imported from Coppenrath, (since 1768!) in Germany?

 

Nutcracker soldier tree-hangers.

 

Victoriana'esque nativity scene.

S is for Shuedhill

Shot at the Gift hair in February at Birmingham's NEC, what i liked about these was the traditional styling of the larger baubles, and the blown-glass trees, and for someone pushed for space in a bedsit, or student accommodation, putting one of these on a shelf, or the top of the mini-fridge, will bring a bit of Christmas cheer in a small space!

 

Shudehill - what's not to like? Probably the price!

M is for Meet Stiggy the Coo!

Mentioning both Highland Cattle and the Spring fair, as I was in the previous post, how about a bit of high-art! This sculpture was just on display, and while not promoting a business, one assumes the Artist - Meg Hawkins - was hoping for a corporate commission or two, from all the rep's wandering around?

 

He's actually Stiggy the Half-Coo, as his hindquarters are hidden in the boxed RSJ, and I forgot to take a close-up of his story, well, I didn't actually notice it until I was cropping the image, five minutes ago! But, he's figural, and I thought he was rather nice!
 

T is for Tilnar Art

Something completely different now, chunky 'arty' aluminium, but we don't get many chances to get the Aluminium Tag dusted off, so it's overdue! I saw these Tilnar Art products, at the Spring Fair in Birmingham, back in early February, and loved the fact that they had the same deep, metallic lustre as those Jada figures I like, so here they are!

 

Various products, including dinosaurs and penguins.

 

Longhorn Cattle, or not so shaggy Highlanders!

 

Deer.

 

Also drilled for keychains.

 

Love these, deep, almost glassy-red Elephants, in various sizes!

 

Art Deco'esque Elephants!

A blue family of the other design, just visible in the background. 

 

Puffins.

 

relief-flat Angels.

 

I had a chat with the chap behind Tilnar, and it seems to be pretty-much a one-man band, although there were staff, so a growing enterprise, and by using recycled aluminium, helping to try and save the planet!

Obviously aimed at the gift and tourist markets, expect to find them in little bijou boutiques about the place, or gift-shops, while on your travels.

NW1 is for Novelties, Wot-wot!

Heay, there's no rule which states your titles HAVE to make sense! This (NW1) was a new name at this year's Birmingham Gift Fair, back in February, presumably named after the postcode of the location of their warehouse or offices?

 

Most of what they carried was really kitsch, really shite, or way outside the vague parameters of both this Blog and/or my/your collection/s to be worth photographing, but as an addendum to the tourist stuff of Elgate, a reminder that other brands make, or import this ephemeral stuff!

 

Fridge magnets, the guard would go in the novelty collection if I found him, cheap, and I'm sure there must be both London Bus and Telephone Box collectors out there! And there was an 'architectural miniatures' Blog, probably still is, in the Blog list, but it hasn't posted anything, since some-time before the Pandemic?

 

Poured resins, possibly from two sources, and very similar to some of the Elgate stuff, but not quite the same, and one converted to a bottle opener, note the card 'craft' stuff behind, and more expensive laser-enhanced glass lump of keepsake, to the right.

L is for Legami

Mentioned twice recently, and both products make a reprise in this post, the Italian (Milan-based) Legami is a new name in stationary, or new to me at least, and as a follow-up to the previous post, continuing with the theme of pencil tops and etcetera!

 

Pencil Tops - We've seen the Panda here at Small Scale World

 

Foam Unicorns!

Definitely a theme at the moment! I'll have to look out for the [scented? really?] eraser, and the light-up pencil-sharpener, although both are cartooney, it doesn't stop us buying them/shooting them so you don't have to! There's also a spaceman on the three-colour highlighter, with an ariel on his helmet, like the Stingray crew!

 

Clingers and moulded finials

 

Looks to be the same as the ones I found in WHSmith, a few years ago now, during the height of the Iwako (and clones) moment - although they are still everywhere; I think the initial flood has retreated from the doorstep! So could they have been re-badged Legami all along?

 

All the above shot at the 2025 Spring Fair at the NEC in February.

KTL is for Kandy Toys Limited - 2025 Spring Fair

Funny, isn't it? I had a good rhythm going, got a bit of a head-cold and some writer's-block on the previous post, and then, when I'd finally posted it, went down with something far worse, on the details of which I will not regale you, just in case it's breakfast-time where you are, but it took me out for nearly a week, and I was really quite ill, in a way I haven't been for many years.

 

Probably not since I was delirious with Gastroenteritis as a teenager and the motorcycle posters on my bedroom wall, started chasing me round the room, while the GP was trying to take my temperature! My 61st also slid-by in the last few days, strangely more of a milestone (mentally) than the round 60, last year?

 

Anyway, this is the second of the Kandytoys posts - they write it both ways and seem to be building KTL as a brand mark, presumably to compete equally with the rival HGL and HTI marks, although they are pretty freindly rivals for the most part, and always stall-out near each-other at these big trade shows.

 

Pretty much the same stuff as last time, but there's a load of new space items in this post which weren't in the inventory two years ago, and everyone likes new images!

 

Not 100% sure on these, some confusion on photo-order, but I think I shot them on the way back down the other side of the aisle, however someone else definitely had them, and they will be in another post, they are 3D printed stock, in both (?) cases being bought-in from a/the same 3rd-party?

 

You can find plenty of YouTube, TikTok and 'Reel' type shorts of this stuff being printed, it's clever, but it's automated and after some interest/involvement in the original conversations on the HäT forum, back in 2007/8, I will not post much on the subject, as it's almost limitless in its scope, whether one is talking about subject mater, plastic type or scale.

 

Indeed, one of the points I made in those distant (and long-ago deleted by 'H') threads, that it would eventually end the toy industry, seems closer to the truth. Literally it's infinite, and while I like seeing the odd bit, I'm not going to look at it here with any regularity, maybe the odd figure/vehicle, occasionally?

 

But these are quite clever, in that the fully animated model is printed in one piece, and with a few twisting clicks of the moulding, becomes the modern equivalent of those old wooden snakes or alligators which were glued to a central strip of leather, or the hinged, tin-plate fishes.

 

Timeless classic, I grabbed a couple more the other day somewhere, and they went straight to storage, but we have looked at them before, and there has been a follow-up brewing in Picasa for a few years, with contributions, so at some point . . . ?

 

Pulled-together under the Star Voyagers branding, there would appear to be the products of two or more lines here, and while the figures are a bit cartoonish or infant-toy in style, there are some useful vehicles and accessories in the sets. And with Padgett (A-Z) carrying a similar range, it's clearly a trend!

 

The traditional 'army men' are a bit thin on the ground these days, but they do turn-up from time to time, the upper ones are Matchbox copies (green) and those seen over the years in Poundland and the defunct 99p Stores, which Mark (Man of Tin) works his magic on (orange/charcoal), in both cases 35/40mm types. While the lower set is a more conventional 'battle in a bag'!

 

I had mixed-up images back in 2023, and only realised when sorting these out just now, so I've whipped a section out of the '23 Padgett post and added it to the previous (below this one) KTL post, also from '23, and now it all makes more sense! The additions are the upper-shot, Transformer knock-off T-50/60/70-somethings which convert into Autobot types!

 

Mostly larger size farm stuff, I know there's little interest in these from even loyal readers, but it all needs to be recorded for posterity, and to help ID the stuff when it comes in loose, a huge series of jobs awaiting me in my final home, with be the naming of the farm, 'Zoo' and Dinosaurs!

 

And, speaking of Dinosaurs . . . 

 

. . . smallies!

 

Biggies, seen before here, under several brands,

singly (boxed and in counter display boxes), in pairs and triples!

 

Biggies with eggs!

 

These will be in a forthcoming post, held-over as the last of the catch-up sequence from February, because I knew Kandy was coming! I'd bought a set, last Autumn, out-and-about, and then Peter Evans gave a couple more to the Blog, so there's a nice overview of them, next post, probably. Medium-sized.

 

Larger, and older/vintage mouldings by the look of them?

 

Tubbed playsets, medium/small.

 

Medium-large, just the three?

 

Another set of smallies, different to the widow-set above?

 

I haven't seen these out-and-about yet, but I have a feeling we may have seen them loose, so it's a case of retuning to them one day, fully ascribed!

 

Pretty sure I bought all four of these, just as I was moving into the flat, ready to sell the house a couple of years ago now, hard to believe this crap's been going on for four years-plus now! I don't know if I Blogged them, pretty sure I shot them, so, I'll have a dig. Each set has a subject-related head moulded-on to the toob's cap!

 

Various selections/formats of wild/zoo animals, sea-life and more species-specific stuff (lizards, cetaceans), including streatchies, jellies, insects, and a few dragons at the bottom.

 

Definitely the set which includes two of the creatures sent to the Blog by Jon Attwood, one of which I had a duplicate of, with the wings set at a different pose/attitude, seemingly deliberate, possibly a change made in order to allow more units per counter-display carton? There seem to be five to collect, but it could be ten, if they all got their wings moved!

 

Finishing up with the huge 'soft-play' squeezy, but not squidgy dinosaurs, I think I've previously shelfied such stuff in TKMaxx or B&M stores? And as mentioned a closer look at the blister-carded Dino's next, and hopefully I'm back posting again, for a while!