A private project developed in the eastern province of Las Tunas, which takes advantage of “the functionality, attractiveness and creative freedom” offered by wood, specializes in the production of toys, although it also works with a wide line of decorative items and souvenirs.
According to what Katia Leyva Mejías, Palitos’ creator, told the Agencia Cubana de Noticias (ACN) news agency, it is an undertaking that arose from the need to provide her son with some non-existent toys in the country’s commercial network, which suffers from a severe shortage due to the economic crisis increased by the pandemic.
Leyva Mejías materialized the project In association with a designer. The place also works as a store that has a Facebook page. From the beginning, she wanted to create toys that stood out for their functionality, durability, attractiveness and affordable prices.
The instability with raw materials means that, however, to date they cannot promote more than small productions, despite the demand for their products.
Palitos also promotes the sale of decorative and useful objects for the home, as well as souvenirs that reaffirm the Cuba image and speak of tradition and culture based on ecological sustainability, the source highlighted.
Cars, trains, airplanes, carts to organize tokens and colored pencils are part of the production of this private or non-state sector business, a small project that seeks opportunities to grow as a local enterprise and a guide for responsible education in the family, ACN added.
With an Art Instructor training, Leyva Mejías, 34, maintains that in raising children, playing is the most important activity, because through it they understand the world around them and acquire new knowledge, which is why she is committed to toys.
For her, wooden toys stimulate the sense of touch and smell by having a particularly “pleasant” smell that connects the infant with nature and gives them a feeling of tranquility and confidence.
In addition, being less structured and sophisticated allows the child to explore it with greater freedom, a reason for it to become an element that accompanies them in the different stages of their growth, becoming a family memory that can give happiness to other generations.
Wooden toys are highly valued around the world for their educational value.
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