Review: Badge It! from Bandai UK

One of the reasons that Badge It! is so popular must be in the no-mess, no-fuss way it engages children in a craft activity  without making parents silently swear.

Well, almost silently swear, because despite its ease of use, sometimes a badge does go wrong, leaving you to try and remove its twisted carcass from the machine’s entrails.

But even with the odd badge resigned to the reject bin of the Raggy Dolls, this machine is great fun and produces some pretty good badges.

As well as being a great gift for children over four years, it’s perfect as an activity for after school clubs, support groups and other small gatherings of children.

After the initial pay out of £19.99, it’s £8.99 for a refill pack. Charge a few pence per badge at a school fair and you will soon have covered the cost of the refill pack. Some savvy net shopping will most likely bring the cost much lower.

With the long summer holidays coming up, Badge It! is an ideal investment for those long afternoons when the I’m Bored song starts to be trilled.

The key to the successful operation of the machine is to read the instructions well before first use. Then give it your full attention each time you do a badge. Distraction = mangle. And never get them to produce a work of art to be badged. That’s pretty much asking for it to be squished.

We loved the Badge It! We made badges for three year olds who were mightily impressed. And, we created badges with the hindrance help of a 4, 6 and 8 year old.

8/10

Available from The Entertainer and www.bandai.co.uk