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Outstanding quality, bright and colorful, good for fine motor skills
This is a bright and colorful set of 5 lacing toys in the shape of farm animals: a cow, a rooster, a sheep, a pig, and a horse. The animals are quite appealing to look at, and the laces are colorful as well. This is a good toy for practicing fine motor skills, and children enjoy it.

These are made with the usual outstanding quality of Melissa and Doug toys. We have had this set for several years, and they've been used by my preschoolers, and even lower elementary age children. Considering the quality of this toy, the price is quite reasonable.

While this is not a "must-have" toy, I would recommend this set to parents of preschoolers.

Quiet Time Fun Learning Tool
Needs better box lid to storing away.
Good solid materials, colorful, big enough holes for a 3 year old to manage.
Great repetitive learning skills with a proud "I did it!" when child is done.

I like it - DS hates it
I got this to help my then 2.5 yr old son with his fine motor skils. He got bored very quickly and did not really play with it - ever. I tried several times but it just wasn't his thing. The figures are well made and the laces are of good quality. I have played with them for a while now (relaxing - go figure!) and the plastic covered ends are holding pretty well. I wish they had made a full box to store the pieces, because they come in an open wood crate. Would recommend for kids who enjoy quiet down time.

The quality I expect from Melissa & Doug
These are real wood, and they come in a nice wooden box. (Though, as with other Melissa & Doug items, there is no lid to the box. That would make it 5 - or 6, if it were possible! - stars for me.) The cords are high quality and haven't unraveled or aged despite the fact that my three-year-old daughter uses them as ribbons and jewelry - they get a lot of abuse and still look brand new. Plus she likes to lace these and the animal ones partially and then pull them behind her, pretending all of them are dogs that she's walking. If they're held up to four months of that without any visible wear or tear, they'll last for the long haul!

And, yes, she does lace them in more traditional ways too. They are really helping her fine motor skill development, which was an area in which she was struggling a little six months ago. After playing with these a lot, she is better at other things, like putting on her shoes.

HUGE improvement over cardboard and paper, but some minor problems
I bought the M&D Lace & Trace Farm AND the Lace & Trace Pets for my almost-4-year-old. As I type, she's having a ball with the pets set. I can see hours of enjoyment coming, and I can certainly see that it's going to be a challenge for her hand-eye coordination skills -- something all kids need to develop.

Speaking as an adult, I am absolutely tickled pink to have found sets of cut-outs that are made of something that's not going to bend or tear, like the ones I had when I was a kid. These cut-outs are sturdy, 1/8" thick wood. It's going to take a lot more than general wear and tear to ruin these puppies! In fact, I can even see getting them out for my grandchild(ren) to play with one day. They're that well-made. On that score, I give them a full five stars and would give more if possible.

The laces, though, are rather another story. After less than an hour's play time, they're already showing signs of wear. They're made of some sort of braided nylon-type material that snags a little too easily on just about anything (including the pre-drilled holes in the wooden cut-outs), so I'm already reminding my preschooler not to let the cat play with them. Though they're color-coordinated with the edges of the cut-outs, my daughter hasn't noticed and probably wouldn't care if she did; I'm sure I'll be able to replace the laces pretty easily if they get too snagged and ratty. Still, it would have made more sense to make them out of something less "snaggable."

One last thing would have made this a fully five-star item in my book: Some sort of lid on the box, or perhaps a soft-sided carrying tote. These sets come in a flat wooden box with two compartments -- one for the cut-outs, one for the laces. While the laces and cut-outs do fit back into the box with little trouble, there's nothing to KEEP them in the box -- no lid, no straps, nothing. If it had come with some sort of lid, problem solved, but I think I'm going to have to buy some sort of tote that zips or snaps shut, so my daughter can keep everything in one place easily.

Still, as I said before, this is one heck of a durable set of cut-outs. I am very happy with the purchase and, more the point, so is my daughter!