Tic Tac Toe Dolls, $28 from Ten Thousand Villages. Handmade in India.
A quick word about some new legislation that may affect handmade toy production. The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008, designed to protect American consumers from harmful toys, seems to have a major oversight in its wording, leaving out the guidelines for handmade toys. The Act requires stricter testing of imported toys and those made in the United States. I’m no lawyer, but I would suspect that the CPSC would not have the time, money or inclination to go after small toy makers for violation of safety standards. Nevertheless, it would be nice to have the language clarified. Here’s a link from Cool Mom Picks about how you can help.