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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 18, 1983)
o 'e: o ■MMMMiaiauiHiMN La O co cS 3 by Angel Stokes Battalion staff Toys, toys and more toys. The "wishbooks" have pages and pages of toys for today's children. Along with such old favorites as Barbie and Ken, GI Joe, Tinker Toys, Crayolas and Play Doh are arcade games, Star Wars figures, E.T. and electronic games. But even the stand-bys aren't quite the same. For example, Barbie has a townhouse, a swimming pool, a Corvette, a wardrobe to die for and even a McDo nald's (Barbie has to eat). You also can buy a Barbie for every occasion — Malibu Barbie for the beach, Dream Date Barbie by Lauri Reese Battalion staff It's almost Christmas time again and, when it comes to buying gifts, many college students have low budgets and no ideas. This Christmas, do some thing special — make your own Christmas gifts. Still don't have any ideas? How about miniature yam baskets, or sparkling orna ments? Miniature yam baskets are good presents, even for peo ple who don't collect minia tures, and may be special gifts for those who do. Materials needed are: • Yam (baby yam or any fine yam is best) • Tiny colored glass-topped pins (found in department stores or craft/hobby supply shops) • White glue • Acorn caps (wide acorns have little caps which resem ble brown baskets) Instructions: 1) Roll three miniature balls of yam in whatever color you prefer, tiny enough to fit in side your acorn basket. 2) Place dot of glue in cap and secure the balls of yam inside. 3) Let dry and take two glass- topped pins, which will re semble miniature knitting needles, and insert them in the yarn balls. Sparkling ornaments are adorable presents and can be used on your own tree as well. Materials: • Plastic cafe style curtain rings • Glitter • Miniature figures (deer, angels, ted< „ • Cotton, dried moss or any other materials for trims • White glue (must dry clear) Instructions: 1) Coat curtain ring with glue and cover completely with glitter; let dry. 2) Glue appropriate trim of cotton or moss to the center of the inside bottom half of ring. 3) Glue desired miniature in place on trim. For personal instruction in making creative Christmas gifts, you may want to take the two- to three-hour classes offered in the MSC Craft Shop, in the basement of the Memorial Student Center. In each workshop, you complete at least one item and learn basic principles that may be applied in many areas. Classes offered include: bandsaw boxes, bread dough art, cross-stitch ornaments, cutting boards, etched orna ments, holiday calligraphy, jewelry boxes, needlepoint ornaments, pinecone wreaths, silk flowers, stained glass ornaments, stockings, wooden puzzles and wooden toys. The classes will be taught on different nights, beginning Dec. 5. To find out when each class is offered, call the MSC Craft Shop at 845-1631. The costs range from $5 to $9 for students, and $6 to $10.50 for non-students. If you decide to buy your Christmas gifts this year, you can still get the personal touch of handmade items at a craft festival, sponsored by the MSC Craft Center, Nov. 29- 30. for Dream Date Ken and to keep Barbie and Ken single — Tracy and Todd Dolls get mar ried instead. GI Joe has everything for modern warfare, except the nuclear bomb (next year's addition?). His equipment in cludes a heavy artillery laser, an armored missile center, a combat jet and an amphibious personnel carrier. Tinker Toys are motorized, Crayolas are designing kits and Play Doh comes in a fun factory. For the Star Wars collec tor's, Return of the Jedi fi gures Jabba the Hutt and the EWOK Village, along with Battle Damaged fighters and Speeder Bikes are available this year. Everything is electronic. No simple toys for today's sophisticated children. Elec tronic gadgets are part of most board games — even Mono poly. For those who aren't chil dren but still enjoy video games, save your quarters. Miniature arcade games in clude Donkey Kong Junior, Zaxxon, Frogger, Ms. Pac Man and probably more to come. But along with technology comes higher prices. Most “big" toys range from about $30 for Barbie's Townhouse to about $60 for arcade games.