Review: So Sand DIY Satisfying Sand Case

AD/Gifted. We were sent the So Sand Satisfying Sand Case for review purposes. All images and opinions are our own.

It’s been a long old year, what with lockdown and home schooling. The last few weeks I’ve felt like I’m all out of ideas. My boy is about as against doing anything educational as it’s possible to be right now, so all our activities have to be overtly fun and any learning or educational benefit has to be hidden. Thankfully the So Sand Satisfying Sand Case comfortably ticks all of those boxes; being FUN as well as bringing some creativity and sensory play to the table.

The So Sand Satisfying Sand Case is a handy carry case with a selection of cutting tools, bags of sand and decorations. The instructions are easy to follow, you make up your own brightly coloured kinetic sand.

If the kinetic sand craze has passed you by, Kinetic Sand is made from 98% sand and 2% silica oil. It behaves a bit like playdough but without the sticky horror if it gets walked into your carpet. You can clump the sand up together like a ball, then watch as it melts through your hands almost like a liquid. It’s strange, but in a good way and making your own is super fun.

Review: So Sand DIY Satisfying Sand Case

There are three colours to make up; yellow, pink and blue, and there are a selection of glitter packets which you can add to your kinetic sand creations. My son, with his love of being extra extra, added glitter to all of the sand. He quickly shot down my suggestion if having half plain, half glittery sand.

If you making the sand isn’t enough for you, the So Sand DIY Satisfying Sand Case contains a selection of tools for you to roll, shape and cut your sand into all different shapes. The instruction leaflet has a number of kinetic sand serving suggestions, but why follow convention? My son started to follow a couple of the suggestions, then the urge to freestyle took over and he made all kids of fun shapes.

Review: So Sand DIY Satisfying Sand Case

The storage case makes great storage for the tools and the sand too. It even includes a play tray to keep everything tidy. Playing with kinetic sand and this So Sand DIY Case is really relaxing and a great sensory activity. It’s suitable for ages 6+ and costs around £20.

My son really enjoyed playing with this sand kit; and after months of stressful home schooling, he relished the chance to play with something pretty darn restful and creative.

Review: So Sand DIY Satisfying Sand Case

The So Sand DIY Satisfying Sand Case is available from a wide range of retailers, including Amazon.

Sensory Play: Kinetic Sand Beach Sand Kingdom

Kinetic Sand has been incredibly popular for several years now. It’s one of those things you can’t help touching and playing with if there’s an open box nearby. It’s incredibly tactile, which makes it perfect for sensory play; and if you drop it on the floor it is easily swept or vacuumed up, it’s no mess sensory fun!

Kinetic Sand is made from 98% sand and 2% silica oil. It behaves a bit like playdough but without the sticky horror if it gets walked into your carpet. You can clump the sand up together like a ball, then watch as it melts through your hands almost like a liquid. It’s strange, but in a good way.

Sensory Play: Kinetic Sand Beach Sand Kingdom

The Kinetic Sand Beach Sand Kingdom is a brilliant set for anyone who wants to bring the beach into their own home. It comes in its own beachy box, but it would work equally well in a high sided plastic box, like I used for our sensory play activities. The set comes with 3lbs of kinetic sand and 6 castle-themed moulds to create walls, bridges, towers and more. There are also 2 multi-use tools which can be used to cut, dig, rake and shovel the sand.

The beauty of the Kinetic Sand Beach Sand Kingdom coming in its own play box, is that once you’ve finished playing with it, it’s all easily packed away back in the box for next time. You build sandcastles and other structures, which stay in position for a while, then eventually melt away into a heap of sand.

Sensory Play: Kinetic Sand Beach Sand Kingdom

Kinetic Sand Beach Sand Kingdom is great for sensory play, you can use it to fuel your imagination too. I especially like the set because for me, sand is always about the beach. We’ve enjoyed playing with various Kinetic Sand sets over the years; but the simple joy of doing what you would do on the beach, but in miniature, and at the kitchen table is so much more fun.

Kinetic sand isn’t just great fun to play with, it also has a number of sensory benefits.

It can help to develop and hone fine motor skills, which in turn can help with writing and drawing.
It can encourage creativity, imaginative, creative play which in turn can help speech and language development.
Focusing on a task, such as creating a sandcastle can help increase attention spans. It gives something to focus on and can encourage calm play.

The Kinetic Sand Beach Sand Kingdom costs £19.99 and it’s available from a wide range of retailers and online. It’s suitable for ages 3+ and if you’re wanting to create a miniature beach at home, this is just the thing.

Sensory Play: Kinetic Sand Beach Sand Kingdom

If you would like to read other reviews of Kinetic Sand products, you can find some here:

We were sent Kinetic Sand Beach Sand Kingdom for review purposes. All images and opinions are our own.

Toy Review: Kinetic Rock 3-in-1 Loader Set

Kinetic sand has been incredibly popular for a few years now. It’s great stuff, kinetic sand is 98% sand and 2% silica oil and behaves a bit like playdough but without the sticky horror if it gets walked into your carpet. We play with our box of kinetic sand regularly, it’s really tactile and great for building and moulding. But what about the newly released kinetic rock? We got our hands on the new Kinetic Rock 3-in-1 Loader set to see what it was like.

Kinetic Sand is the leading sand brand in the UK. It’s a perennial favourite and kids and adults love the feel and texture of the magical mouldable sand and rock. You just can’t stop playing with it!

The Kinetic Rock 3-in-1 Loader set is suitable for children aged 3+. When I gave it my 7 year old he went completely nuts for it. The set comes with a loader with three changeable attachments (a bucket loader, a jackhammer and a drill), it also comes with a poseable construction figure and shovel, pick, wrench, lunchbox and a bag of the gold kinetic rock too.

The set itself is great, really well thought out with lots of tools included. The way you can change the attachments by clipping them on and off the front of the loader is very clever and really simple for children to do. The construction figure is about the same size as a Lego minifigure and slots together easily.

Kinetic rock and kinetic sand are great for hands-on, imaginative play. My son has played with it very happily every day since we opened the box. He creates all kinds on construction scenarios and plays them out. He’s got a lot of construction toys, so sometimes extra diggers come along and join in the fun!

The kinetic rock is made from natural rock and it somehow, magically stick together. It’s really tactile and mouldable, so great for this construction site. We use a plastic tray with a deep lip to keep everything together, it helps to stop accidental rock spillages. Though even though the rocks will stick together, they won’t stick to your carpets, you can pick them up or vacuum them if you need to.

If I were to criticise anything, the bag of kinetic rock included is a little on the small side. If I were buying this again I would buy an extra bag of the kinetic rock to go with it, especially if more than one child will be playing with the set.

The Kinetic Rock 3-in-1 Loader is a great play set with the potential for lots of creative, imaginative play. My son really enjoys playing with the set and I actually prefer it to the kinetic sand, I think I prefer the slight chunkiness of the rocks. The small boy thinks it’s brilliant!

The Kinetic Rock 3-in-1 Loader Set costs £16.99 and is available at all good retailers nationwide. For more information, visit their website.

Disclosure: We were sent this kinetic rock set for review purposes. All images and opinions are our own.

Review: Kinetic Sand Build – Crash ‘Em Cars

Working in a toy shop I’m very aware of the allure of a box of kinetic sand. It’s been one of the biggest sellers since before Christmas and people are fascinated with how it feels and behaves. It’s 98% sand and 2% silica oil and behaves a bit like playdough but without the sticky horror if it gets walked into your carpet. It’s a real winner for me and the small boy can’t keep his hands off it when he visits me in the shop.

kinetic sand

We were sent one of the newer kinetic sand products to try out, the Kinetic Sand Build – Crash ‘Em Cars. The kit comes pretty much ready to go and contains moulds to make the cars and cones, two car bases, a couple of ramps and two packs of coloured sand – red and blue. Always tough colours to choose from in a Mancunian household.

We opened the box, the inside of which is a colourful track and we began to build our vehicles. You press the sand into the plastic moulds and then put them onto the chassis. This takes a little bit of time, but it’s fun to do because you’re playing with the colourful and tactile sand.

Once you’ve “built” your cars and made your cones then it’s up to your imagination to run wild with it all. The boys raced around the track smashing into the sand cones and crashing into each other. There was lots of giggling and fun being had.

kinetic sand

The kit had them thoroughly engrossed building and racing their cars for a good hour or so, and they’ve gone back to it several times since, though the different colours of sand are all mixed up now. I think kinetic sand is brilliant. It’s nice to have a kit to play with and do something more than build and shape with it. Kinetic sand continues to be incredibly popular and you only have to play with it for a few minutes to understand why.

The Kinetic Sand Build Crash ’Em Cars set is priced around £14.99 and is available in toy shops and online now. To find out more about the Kinetic Sand range, visit the Spin Master Toys website.

kinetic sand

Note: We were sent a set of Kinetic Sand Build – Crash ’Em Cars for review purposes. All images and opinions are our own.