Step2 Play Up Picnic Cottage Review
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We recently received this new Play Up Picnic Cottage from Step2 to review. I couldn’t believe it when the delivery guy took it off of the truck- the box was almost bigger than I am! I was a little worried about where we would put it! But surprisingly the Play Up Picnic Cottage turned out to be the perfect size! This cottage is a rectangle shape which makes fitting it inside a bedroom or playroom much easier than the large boxy shaped play houses I’ve seen.
My husband put the Play Up Picnic Cottage together and it only took about 20 minutes. It was very simple to do-although I’m sure it would have been quicker if we didn’t have little feet running in and out of the house frame as we set it up!! The box came with easy to follow directions. The hardest part was keeping the kids out of it long enough to put the frame together!
The Step2 Play Up Picnic Cottage also came with fun decorative stickers that I placed on the cottage after my husband had put the cottage together. With these stickers it really brought the cottage to life. We were able to “plant” two gardens, decorate the door, place house numbers on the front, add a mailbox, “install” lights, and spruce up the front of the house a little bit.
You can see below how the stickers do a great job of adding a reality element to the cottage. My son was so excited about the numbers on the house believe it or not! It made the house more real to him since it had an address.
One of my favorite features to the Play Up Picnic Cottage is the doorbell! It is a real electronic doorbell (needs 2 AAA batteries)! In fact, the first day that we put the cottage in my boys room I kept thinking that someone was at our door every time my boys pushed their play doorbell! When we first set up the cottage both boys fought like crazy over this silly doorbell! Thankfully the novelty of having to ring it first wore off after the first day!!
Another really cool feature of this cottage is the mailbox- you can actually put mail through the slot in the door! We quickly scurried around making pretend letters and cards. The kids then grabbed them all and ran back to their mailbox passing letters, cards, and anything else that would fit in the slot along!
Another fun feature for the kids is the play sink area! Last year we bought our kids a play kitchen with tons of play food so my kids thought it was a blast to have not only a play sink in their new cottage, but ALSO a picnic seating area!! The boys expected to eat all of their meals in there which I quickly debunked that idea!! My youngest, however, did get clever and brought their drinks in there!
And believe it or not there is even a pretend fireplace! How clever! I don’t think I’ve seen a pretend fireplace in a cottage before! It was amazing to see their imaginations come alive with a few simple neat features in the cottage. After the boys were done fighting over the doorbell and begging to eat dinner in their new cottage, they immediately started up a whole story line centered around the fireplace! My oldest told my youngest not to touch the fire because it was hot and would burn him. So then both boys started screaming that they were on fire……well….it got a little crazy!
My boys had an absolute blast in their new play cottage- and still are having a ton of fun in it! Step 2 is a great company that I think every parent in America knows! Although some of these bigger items are pricier, they are certainly worth the investment! The quality of this Play Up Picnic Cottage, and other products from Step 2 is just superb and will last for years! To be honest my kids will probably outgrow this cottage before it breaks!
I absolutely love the open design in this cottage. I don’t have to worry about the kids fighting inside the house or be concerned that they are being sneaky about something since I can see right through the house! I know how my kids are! They’ll sneak off with a snack or something they aren’t supposed to have and hide somewhere! This cottage by Step2 is a very attractive looking house and makes a nice addition inside your house or in your backyard. Since it is made of plastic it is easy to wipe down and clean. I love the rectangle shape because it is so much easier to put it in the children’s bedroom. It doesn’t stick out in the middle of the floor like I thought it would. It would also be an awesome cottage for the corner of a daycare as well!
I loved sitting back and watching my boys play so easily together! They really worked together to start the fire, cook dinner, and other fun adventures in their cottage! Having this Step2 Play Up Picnic Cottage is more to them than just having a new toy, it’s about being brothers and building new memories together!
You can purchase this Step2 Play Up Picnic Cottage from Step2 on Amazon.
Overall we love the Step 2 Play Up Picnic Cottage! I added in the pictures from Step 2 here so you can see all side of the house. It was a little difficult to get a full photo in the kids bedroom to justify all of the fun features on each side of the house! Our family loves the Step 2 company. They offer quality products from children’s furniture, imaginative play, baby toys, ride ons, wagons, and even adult items such as mailboxes and garbage cans!
Disclosure: I was not compensated for this review. I did receive a product to try in order to form my own opinions. All opinions are my own.
Very cute! I love it. Looks like the boys had a blast too!
How AWESOME for your boys!!<3
wow- that looks like a lot of fun!!! love the doorbell 🙂
That's so cute, and a great design! I love Step 2! Their stuff last forever. Even with my two boys doing their best to test the durability!
-Catherine
Oh how adorable! I bet the kids will really enjoy that one this summer!
My boys would love this! And Step 2 is such a great company!
My little ones would LOVE this! They like to have houses that are just their size. I have always loved Step 2 products!
I love the added things like the mailbox and doorbell! Looks like a really fun cottage. I want one!