Average Price: $49.00
Official URL: http://www.sok-o.com
Age Range: 3 and up (small parts)
Rating:

Bu-Lou and Hooligan are not sock puppets despite resembling them. They are sock creatures. Overstuffed lovable empathetic sock creatures, each with a story of their own. Bu-Lou is a floppy-limbed blue striped dog with a shy smile, and Hooligan is a happy-go-lucky chicken-esque sock toy with a laid-back attitude.

Bu-Lou, to use the words of his makers, is “a kind soul who is often tripped by his own clumsy two feet. He is always daydreaming about other places and other things. He’s a accident prone & things never go his way”.

Hooligan, on the other hand is “playful and knows how to be funny and have fun. He works hard to do impressions and sound effects to make other’s have a good time. He has a magically contagious giggle that can make others laugh for no real reason. When in doubt “smile”, he says. He lives by his motto: The fun starts here.”

These toys appeal to the same senses as sock puppets, but carry the added benefit of being very huggable.

FEATURES

Sok-O toys are 100% handmade and produced in limited runs (So get the characters you love while you can). They are designed around the individual characteristics of the socks that they are made with and your child will have a blast picking out what parts of the sock make up what features of the animal. Bu-Lou’s shy smile is the inner seam of a sock, and Hooligan’s cocky comb is made from the toes of a sock. This imaginative use of something that children see every day encourages them to look at things in new ways and even experiment with slightly less artistic sock creations of their own.

MATERIALS & DESIGN

Bu-Lou is made from a single pair of socks in a stripey blue-brown-pink and yellow color scheme. He has floppy arms and legs an adorable set of floppy ears, button features (and belly button). His mouth is made of the seam of the sock. He has a wonderful soft overstuffed feeling.

Hooligan is made from a different sock that has a light gray and yellow pattern. His round belly and his posture come from the heel of the foot, and his cock’s comb is made of three of the toes of a glove-like sock. His tail is made from the other two toes. his arms are sewn out of the sides of the sock and creative use of stitching is suggestive of pockets where Hooligan’s non-existent hands are shoved to further suggest his laid back confident attitude. Hooligan has a firmer feeling and is slightly less huggable than Bu-Lou. But then, he doesn’t need hugs as much as poor Bu-Lou!

I love how the entire Sok-O line has a very distinct aesthetic despite the wide variety of materials that they work from.

DURABILITY

The Sok-O line seems to lean slightly more toward the “decorative” end of the spectrum, but withstands moderate play very well. The buttons are sewn on well and hold up to quite a bit of tugging and pulling, but would be choking hazards for any child under 3 years of age. These pets make great nursery decor, office pets, or playthings for an older child that knows how to be a bit more gentle.

PACKAGING

The packaging of the Sok-O line is beautiful. Both Hooligan and Bu-Lou came in their own box which is made of heavy cardboard and which is suitable for display uses. The box is a beautiful light yellowish brown and is adorned with prints of buttons, toadstools, thread, rainbows and clouds and skulls & crossbones as well as other items. The box has two windows that are made of high quality plastic sheeting: a rear window that takes up about 1/3rd of the width of the box, and a front full-width window. The front window swings open and is held in place by a thick blue cord.

The front of the box is printed with “Sok-o” and “100% handmade.” The rear is printed with “Today, tomorrow or yesterday, Sok-O are her to be with you forever. Feed me with LOVE and extra kisses but never say never that my spirit never embraced you. No two sok-o are alike, their own spirit, soul, special look and personality will only bring you cheer and never make you shed a tear.”

Every Sok-O comes in the same box with a tag attached to the blue cord that talks about the individual toy. Bu-Lou, for example has a tag that reads “He’s a kind soul who is often tripped by his own clumsy two feet. He is always daydreaming about other places and other things. He’s accident prone and things never go his way. ”

Each Sok-O comes with a birth certificate that goes so far as to have a “footprint” of the toy. Which appears to be an actual inked print of the character’s foot (Not your toy’s foot, so don’t worry about ink stains.) The birth certificate lists the date that character was born, and a characteristic such as Hooligan’s “Born to Laugh Forever” and Bu-Lou’s “Born to be booboo free”.

BOTTOM LINE

The “story” and personality traits accompanying these toys are very endearing and can be used as discussion starters with your children, or they can be simply used as another way to connect with your particular sock-pet . These toys are wonderfully imaginative and have made me look at common every-day things with a different perspective. If they can work that magic on an adult, imagine what food they provide for a young child’s imagination.

Because these sock pets are so beautifully made and packaged they make a wonderful gift item. My only complaint is that their slightly higher price point will likely keep me from being able to collect them all.