If it isn't already obvious
enough, this an unofficial
Sylvanian Families fan site

The links below will direct
you to the official sites for
Sylvanian Families and
Calico Critters:

Click here to visit the New Collector's Guide.

There are many great Sylvanian Families sites, official and fan-created, to check out on the web! Click here to visit the links page.

**To read news of the newest releases, visit the New Releases page. The following portion contains only general information and will no longer be updated.**

The Sylvanian Families line made their debut in Japan in 1985. Over the next two years, they were also released in the US, UK, and Canada. The original distributors were Epoch in Japan, and Tomy elsewhere. Sylvanian Families won the toy of the year award multiple times during the late '80s (no surprises there!). In 1990, the US company dropped the Sylvanian line, though the figures remained popular in the UK and Japan.

Three years later, in 1993, Tomy reintroduced Sylvanian Families under a new name "Calico Critters." We're not quite certain why the name-change came about, but there are rumors that it had to do with the Sylvanian lightbulb company copyrighting the "Sylvanian" name. During this time, the Calico Critters line put out several semi-rare figures (including the Billabong and Meadows mouse older children) along with a host of figures already for sale abroad. In 1996, Calico Critter distribution in the US was discontinued...until...

1999! At this time, International Playthings reintroduced the Calico Critters line. After enjoying mild success for a few years, many toy stores have obviously tired of carrying them. In my area, the three stores that used to sell Calico Critters have now stopped stocking them. They are, of course, still available online. International Playthings has faithfully released new items every year, including some original items (namely the Fishers cats, although I believe the Dalmation family might also have originated in America). In contrast to the UK families that typically have 2 standing babies, the Calico Critters line has crawling/sitting twins (with the Billabong koalas being the only exception to this).

Sylvanians have remained popular in the UK. Some new English family sets include the re-released Wildwood rabbits, and the Hawthorn white mice. Flair has recently released several UL-look-alike figures in their Family Life series. Please note: American collectors looking to purchase sets abroad should be forewarned that pound-dollar exchange rates are really obscene right now, something like 1 pound to $1.90.

On the eastern front, Japan has just released a darling new sheep family. They also have some new sets exclusive to the SF Forest Markets. For more information, see the New Releases page.

For more information on Calico Critters, you can visit International Playthings online at:

http://www.calicocritters.com/critter.htm

As I said before, Sylvanian families continue to prosper in Great Britain and can be purchased online at the official Sylvanian webpage:

http://www.sylvanianfamilies.com

A lot of collectors are happy to sell their duplicate figures or trade if you have anything to offer. I currently have several items available to trade or sell. Visit my Trade/Sell page for more information. If you have anything off of my wanted list and would be willing to trade, that is also a possibility.

*Sorry to say I don't know much about Sylvanian Families not part of the US-UK-Japan ranges. For more information on Australian, New Zealand or Continental European releases, please visit Benjamin's Knowledge Base.