Grapat Nins® Wooden Peg Dolls

Welcome to the world of the Grapat Nins®.  A beautiful collection of Waldorf style wooden peg dolls that children adore.  The Nins® come in a range of colours, styles and some are made using different types of wood.  They’re lovely and tactile and pleasing to hold in your hand.  These simplistic wooden pegs dolls have no expression, gender or clothing which allows children to imagine them to be whatever they like without the constraints put in place by many other toys available.  This makes Grapat Nins® a popular choice for parents looking for Waldorf and Montessori toys for their children.

What does Nins® Mean?

What is a Nin®, who are these little peg people who bring joy to your home?  The word Nins is a Catalan word with a few meanings in different dialects;

• The direct translation is “little child” or “children” probably best translates to the word “kids” in English
• Nins® also means Wooden or fabric figures or dolls used by children to play with
• Another meaning is the pupil of your eye with a romantic connotation

What makes Nins® special

Grapat is a family run company based in the Pyrenean mountains in Catalunya and each and every toy is hand made with love and care.  Grapat believe in the freedom of play and the freedom of a child’s spirit.  Free from a rigid structure children create their own games, their own play ideas and their own worlds that are only limited by their imaginations.  The Grapat Nins® can represent any person or child , they can be happy, sad, playful, active, still, they can be boy, girl, man or woman.  Pop your Nins® in a bag and take them with you on days out and combine with other toys in the home such as building blocks or Grapat play sets.

Grapat Nins® Sets at Babipur

12 rainbow Nins®. A classic set of stained Nins® in a rainbow of colours.

Nins® Mates & Coins.  6 coins, 6 mates (cups) and 6 Nins®.  Also pictured are Spools and natural coins.

Nins® in the woods.  This set is a little different and includes 3 Nins® with felt hats and 3 Nins® with top hats all in beautiful woodland colours.  We love the little mushrooms.

7 Moons Calendar.  7 Nins® with unusual hats that fit perfectly inside 7 cups. When hidden inside the cups the Nins® looks like they are part of the structure.  Each Nin® also represents a day of the week providing children with a physical representation of the passing of time and the 7 day week.

The Natural Nins®.  A set of 3 Nins® each made from a different wood that gives them a different texture and colour.  These little wooden Nins® are so satisfying to hold and will happily slot into any toy set.

If you haven’t yet discovered the world of the little Nins® then we think you should invite a few into your home. Open-ended play with many years of use ahead of them. We love Nins®!

Photo Credits: Big thanks to our friends at Eventual Mother, A reusable life blog, 2 Brides to 2 Mummies and Nature loving mama blog.