THORNEWOOD TREASURES – not a business.

We are not a business. We are a family: a mom and a dad who creates by hand toys and hands-on learning material for our own four children. We do not just sell toys. We handmake childhood TREASURES with love and care and then package them up and send them out to other families all over South Africa who share our values about play and joy and family and our vision of creating the most beautiful childhood for each of our children.

Our emblem is a tree. It speaks of safety and rootedness and stability. We as parents have the indescribable privilege to shape for our children childhoods that are like solid, life-giving trees in which they can play and grow strong, explore and expand and develop into their full potential. Then, when the day comes for them to fly, they can stretch their wings wide and take to the skies with confidence and strength and joy! But they can also look back fondly at that magical childhood tree and cherish their time in its beautiful branches.

We are here to help you create such a childhood. We make beautiful toys from natural materials and use only non-toxic, lead-free, water-based paint, stains and sealants on all our products. Our toys are open-ended and multi-dimensional, inviting creativity and problem-solving, cooperation and communication. Our hands-on learning materials originate in our own family’s ongoing homeschooling adventure: we have been educating our children at home from the start (going on to 7 years now) and know first-hand the value of teaching from concrete to abstract. We only make and sell what we use ourselves.