Calico Critters Deluxe Village House
The Calico Critters Deluxe Village House is one of the most popular Calico Critters houses.
It is larger than the townhome but smaller than the Cloverleaf Manor so ideal for those who want a medium sized playset that doesn’t require a large space or price commitment.
A unique design, with six rooms and three floors along with various outdoor areas to play in the house entertain kids for hours at a time.
Timeless Durability
Like the other sets and accessories in the Calico Critters range the Deluxe Village House will last children through a number of ages and stages of their childhood, because of the product’s durability and timelessness. As children grow bigger they will still be drawn to the house’s charm and attention to detail .
As a parent I am keenly aware of the number of plastic doll houses on the market that do not stand the test of time. Things break easily or the appeal wanes within months. Wooden doll houses are wonderful alternatives but often do not offer the level of detail. For me the Calico Critters range is a compromise I am happy to make.
The greatest seal of approval is a child’s long term interest in a product and one that you can continue to accessorize through the years, adding value to the original purchase.
Unique Design
The Calico Critters Deluxe Village House (known as the Oakwood Manor in Sylvanian Families) is a three storey house and the split-level storeys are staggered.
The ground floor has the largest floorspace area while the second floor has less area it butts out on a landing area while the top floor resembles an attic with dormer windows. In addition around the side of the house are two smaller room areas for close and cozy play. The house measures approximately 18.2 x 19.5 x 19.5 inches.
It really is a well-though out design and quite different from the open plan style of the Cloverleaf Manor, with a number of discrete play areas for children to separate the family figures. There is a ladder connecting the second and third floors while a spiral staircase winds around to allow critters to move form the first to the second floor.
All the doors and windows open up to let in the fresh air of the Cloverleaf country side and mother and father critter can chat on the sizable porch while the little critters wreak havoc sliding down the balustrade.
It really is a fun house and you can see why this is the most popular of the Calico Critters Houses. Little girls (and boys) will relish this house for years and so will the rabbits, mice and whichever cuddly family chooses to call this home.
Deluxe Village House Overview
Our Rating:
Size: Perfect size, not too small not too big. Allows high degree of frustration free playability without taking up too large a footprint or breaking the bank.
Style: Very intelligent design that allows for separate areas of play for more than one child to play at the same time or for a child to absorb themselves in play by themselves. The separate rooms, landings, porch and staircase are standout features.
Durability: Made from the same thick and sturdy material that Calico Critters are known for, the plastic does not bend easily and just feels more sturdy than most other types of doll house. In terms of interest level you can expect this to span a number of childhood stages.
Amazon currently has the Critter Townhome at the best price including shipping.
You can access the rest of the house reviews via our Calico Critters Home Reviews page.
Rating
You know…this series of toys sounds suspiciously akin to one of my favorite comic books, Silvania families. Anyway, on with the review.
It’s a very fun toy, though pretty much plain without the accessories. Be prepared to spend a small fortune for your little ones. It’s educational value is in it’s lovely architectural design, as well as inner fixtures, etc.
Get at least one or two families and 2 sets of accessories and I guarantee that this house will entertain for years to come.
Rating
I used to have this set when I was a child. I am now 20 years old the only differnce is that this set was called Mapletown. I loved this toy and I actually still have the majority of the peices.I am planning on buying this for my neices for christmas. I recommend this set. After all these years I still want to play with it and how amazing the pieces held up amaze me.
Rating
This is an amazing value.. not only do you get the house, you get a kitty cat family, dining room, nursery and a bathroom set.
Pretty cool.. I wish they would’ve told me though, so I wouldn’t have bought the accessories!!
LOVE IT
Rating
This house is really great. One of the few doll houses I do own, and I much rather collect miniature figures. Its massive, for one. Trying to find a place to put it was a little awkward (for kids, its easy. It goes on the floor in the middle of the room ^_^) Also, as both the editor & manufactuer mentioned, its highly detailed.
On other notes. This series IS Sylvanian Families. They are put out by EPOCH (the company that still sells sylvanian Families under their real name, oversea’s in Japan and UK) Due to legalities (their old distributor, Coleco, went bankrupt & lost its assets in the 80’s )they have been re-introduced under the new name of Calico Critters of Cloverleaf Corners in USA and Canada. As a note, they are totally unrelated to maple town. WHile similar, Maple town is a knock-off produced by bandai to snag some of Epoch’s sales in the 80’s. Bandai is notorious for that, unfortunatly.
This series is REALLY going strong in Japan. There are gameboy games, advance games, real restaraunts, and shops deticated entirely to sylvanian families. You know what that means, eventual popularity spill-over into the USA. I really do think this series is going to have a popularity explosion, once word gets around. ^_^
Rating
This is a gorgeous, well-built house, with windows and doors that open and close and other beautiful details like a spiral staircase and dormer windows. And the furniture and accessories sold separately are also adorable and well-made. I love the fact that the inhabitants of the house are animals — they give it such a storybook quality.
My daughters (3 1/2 and 5) can’t stop playing with their house and critter family. Sure, some of the accessories are tiny, but that’s what seems to capture their attention and imaginations the most.
At first, I thought I’d buy a wooden house for them, but they hardly play with the one at their preschool — it seems the boxy, generic furniture and accessories for those houses don’t hold their interest for long. Not so with the Calico Critters house. They play for hours putting their critters to bed, giving them baths or setting up little picnics for them.
If you aren’t sure which type of house your kids might like better, take them to a toy store where they have both houses set up. My daughters were drawn to the Calico Critters house in the toy store like magnets, so I could tell that was the one for us.
It’s true, like another reviewer noted, that not all of the bathroom pieces will fit in one bathroom. Santa just took out the extra pieces that didn’t fit! LOL! Also, Santa purchased some of the living room, bedroom and garden furniture from overseas because the Sylvanian Families line available there has more to choose from, including smaller room groups that seem to fit in the house better and are even cuter than what is available in the states. I hope Calico Critters expands their line in the U.S. to offer more of what is currently available under the Sylvanian Families’ name.
The only complaint I have is the ladder included with the house to help the critters get to the third floor attic/nursery could have been designed better. It always falls down with even the slightest nudge because there is no way to secure it in place. Putting a lip on the ladder and a slit in the third floor where the ladder could “snap” in would be a nice touch.
Otherwise, the house is really perfect.
Rating
The house is very sturdy. I can see how this could be handed down to others in my family. The house itself is simple. (What you see is what you get) The house is open on two sides with plenty of room for the large amounts of furniture that come in the different critter sets. This is not for 3 and four year olds unless they excellent fine motor skills. My 57 month old has a difficult time with some of the very tiny items in the sets that you purchase to fill the house; lip sticks, brushes, pencils but she loves all of them.
Rating
This is much better than the Calico Critters Townhouse. This is more sturdy and easier for small hands to manipulate the furniture. If you are buying Calico Critters, this is the only house you need to buy. The townhouse is not worth it.
Rating
My daughters 7 and 9 have everything from DS games to American Girl dolls and this has been their most loved pass time. I bought the house when they were 1 and 3 and they STILL play with it for hours on end. The little animals have their fur rubbed off from handling. Friends come over just to play critters with them. We keep the house in the living room so all of the furniture doesn’t get lost, this year their letters to Santa asked for ALL critter stuff. Amazing. Love this toy.
Rating
We purchased this for my daughter’s 4th birthday after looking at several dollhouses (including Fisher Price’s Loving Family Dollhouse, Melissa & Doug, and many wooden kits) and we are so pleased we went with this one. It is perfect for a child her age. It has plenty of rooms, a detailed porch, and it’s easily accessible due to the open back and open side. It has lasted several months without breaking, and with my 5 year-old son in the house, that is a minor miracle! The only assembly required was popping on the railings, so it was very much an open-and-go gift. Although it is plastic, it has the look and feel of a “real” dollhouse — especially compared to the other plastic models I considered. You can make it even more realistic by downloading wallpaper at the Calico Critters site, or by downloading free dollhouse wallpaper from other sites. Use tissue paper to draw templates, and spray adhesive to stick it on, and make sure you print the wallpaper on a thick paper. After some trial and error, that’s what worked best for me.
I wouldn’t recommend this for a child under the age of 4 because as another reviewer said, the sets that are made for this house have extremely small pieces. It is definitely a toy for ages 4 and up. If you keep the age guidelines in mind, you will most likely find this to be an appropriate, durable, appealing toy.
Rating
Our two year old daughter plays with the house multiple times a day for the last 3 months and she has never been into these kinds of toys. She has long prefered things that bang or make noise. Lets just say this could be some quiet time for you all!
I also still have this village. Mapletown it was called. Me and my sister used to play this all the time. We are in our 30’s now. I have little girl of my own and plan on giving it to her. I want to get some new pieces to add to it.