About this item

• This block set is the alpha and the omega of all foreign language sets. Literally
• 24 blocks made from sustainable wood, 44mm cubed
• Featuring letters, animal pictures and numerals
• Handmade in a world of mass created disposable toys
• Simple, creative, old-fashioned, and maybe a little quirky

Product Description

This block set is the alpha and the omega of all foreign language sets. Literally. Our Greek language set includes 24 blocks, andfeatures letters, numbers, and 24 different animal pictures. Made from sustainable Michigan basswood and painted with bright colours, it doesn't get any more iconic than this.

THE COSMOGONY OF UNCLE GOOSE: Uncle Goose sometimes feels like that eccentric yet eloquent friend of yours that seems to have stepped out of an O. Henry short story from the late 19th century. After all, ours is a company that stepped back over one hundred years in time to hand-manufacture classic wood alphabet blocks in an era of computer games and digital toys.

Top hat. Bow tie. Spats. Our Uncle Goose logo sports the affects of an upper class gentleman of the 1800's. Today, a top hat is frequently worn ironically as a symbol of an out-of-touch aristocrat. The garb of our handsome Uncle Goose character evokes a spirit of fun and mischief, slyly tipping his topper to the fashion sensibilities of a bygone era.

Like our logo, we, too, are throwbacks to this simpler time. And we also appreciate the irony. Not many can be sophisticated and silly at the same time. Uncle Goose manages to do just that.

We labour over our products with the work ethic and artistry of Midwestern elves from the 1800's. Other than Santa, very few people you know personally still hand manufacture wood toys. We seem to be pressing against an invisible boundary that lies between what is possible and what is practical.

As modern business people, we realize that hand-manufacturing toy blocks is seen as an unlikely and maybe even unfashionable thing to do. It's passe. It's outmoded. It's out of step with our fast-paced, high-tech world. But as artists, not creating blocks seems completely unreasonable... and maybe even dangerous.

We can't even imagine living in a world without alphabet blocks.  If Uncle Goose didn't bother to craft them, this iconic toy might very well become extinct.