Sylvanian Families

Sylvanian Families (シルバニアファミリー, Shirubania famirī) is a line of collectible anthropomorphic animal figurines made of flocked plastic. They were created by the Japanese gaming company Epoch in 1985 and distributed worldwide by a number of companies. Several animated adaptations have been made: Sylvanian Families (American TV series from 1987), Stories of the Sylvanian Families (British TV series from 1998), and Sylvanian Families (Japanese OVA series from 2007.) Epoch also made several video games based on the figures, for Game Boy Color and Game Boy Advance. There have also been a Sylvanian Families themed restaurant and theme park attractions in Japan. The word sylvan means 'of the forest'.

History

Beginning and growth

At the beginning of production, on March 20, 1985, Sylvanian Families were created and released in Japan by Epoch, which uses the concept of dollhouses and anthropomorphic animal figures. The first releases of the dollhouses and other playsets were made of porcelain and the furniture was made of wood. However, later releases replaced the materials with plastic and metal in the production. The toys were later released in North America the same year, but with different packaging and minor differences to the characters themselves. The toyline was originally titled Pleasant Friends of the Forest Epoch System Collection Animal Toy Sylvanian Families (森のゆかいな仲間たち エポック社 システム・コレクション・アニマルトーイ・シルバニアファミリー, Mori noyu kaina nakama-tachi Epokkusha shisutemu korekushon animarutōi shirubania famirī). However it was changed to its current name.

Calico

Calico (in British usage, 1505,AmE "muslin") is a plain-woven textile made from unbleached and often not fully processed cotton. It may contain unseparated husk parts, for example. The fabric is less coarse and thick than canvas or denim, but it is still very cheap owing to its unfinished and undyed appearance.

The fabric was originally from the city of Kozhikode (known by the English as Calicut) in southwestern India. It was made by the traditional weavers called cāliyans. The raw fabric was dyed and printed in bright hues, and calico prints became popular in Europe.

History

Calico originated in Kozhikode (also known as Calicut, from which the name of the textile came) in southwestern India during the 11th century. The cloth was known as "cāliyan" to the natives.

It was mentioned in Indian literature by the 12th century when the writer Hēmacandra described calico fabric prints with a lotus design. By the 15th century calico from Gujǎrāt made its appearance in Egypt. Trade with Europe followed from the 17th century onwards.

Critter

Critter or critters may refer to:

Critter

Critter may refer to:

See also

Family

In the context of human society, a family (from Latin: familia) is a group of people affiliated by consanguinity (by recognized birth), affinity (by marriage), or co-residence (as implied by the etymology of the English word "family") and/or shared consumption (see nurture kinship). Members of the immediate family includes spouses, parents, brothers, sisters, sons and/or daughters. Members of the extended family may include grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, nephews, nieces, and/or siblings-in-law.

In most societies, the family is the principal institution for the socialization of children. As the basic unit for raising children, anthropologists generally classify most family organization as matrifocal (a mother and her children); conjugal (a husband, his wife, and children, also called the nuclear family); avuncular (for example, a grandparent, a brother, his sister, and her children); or extended (parents and children co-reside with other members of one parent's family). Sexual relations among the members are regulated by rules concerning incest such as the incest taboo.

Lego Friends

Lego Friends is a product range of the Lego construction toy designed primarily for girls. Introduced in 2012, the theme includes unique "mini-doll" figures, which are about the same size as the traditional minifigures but are more detailed and realistic. The sets include pieces in pink and purple color schemes and depict scenes from suburban life set in the fictional town of Heartlake City.

The Friends product range replaces Lego's previous female-oriented theme Lego Belville, which had been in production since 1994, and featured dolls that were much larger than both the mini-dolls and minifigures. Other related product ranges have included Homemaker (1971–1982), Paradisa (1991–1997) and Scala (1997–2001).

Background

Launched January 1, 2012 in North America (and December 15, 2011, in France), the line includes 23 sets and features five core characters—named Andrea, Emma, Mia, Olivia and Stephanie—in various suburban settings. In the initial wave of sets, the larger sets include bricks that can build a veterinary clinic, a malt-style café, a beauty salon and a suburban house; smaller sets included a "cool convertible," a design studio, an inventor's workshop and a swimming pool.