Great Knight Gift Ideas for Boys and Girls
Present Suggestions for Knight Costumes, Accessories, and Play Areas
Dec 4, 2008
With the popularity of the recent Disney movies based on C.S. Lewis' book series The Chronicles of Narnia, as well as the movie versions of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings and Christopher Paolini's Eragon, many boys and girls are interested in dressing up and role-playing fantasy adventures as knights. Excellent presents for children who love knights include costumes and dress-up accessories and medieval-themed play areas.
Knight Dress-Up Items
Some roles children pretending to be knights could play include:
- crusader knight
- king crusader
- medieval lord
- medieval knight
- dragon knight
- Renaissance king
- musketeer
Imaginative gift-givers can seek out costume sets specifically themed for these roles or supply children with the clothing and accessories needed to create their own costumes, such as:
- plastic, cardboard, or leather knight's helmets
- hoods with cowls
- foam, plastic, or wood shields (emblazoned with dragons, lions, crosses, fleur-de-lis, or other heroic symbols)
- toy weapons such as foam, plastic, or wood swords, daggers, axes, maces, lances, or crossbows
- sword and shield sets that make actual battle sounds by brands such as Reeve + Jones or Disney
- sword sheaths and belts
- tunics
- chain mail
- body armor
- silk pants
- gloves
- boot covers
- capes
- waist sashes
- crowns
- flags and banners
- rocking horses, stick ponies, or horse riding toys from brands such as Melissa & Doug or Plan Toys
- items named after legendary characters, such as Lancelot costumes or Excalibur swords
Some excellent knight dress-up manufacturers include:
- Creative Education of Canada's Great Pretenders line of kids' costumes, which are on the expensive side but are very well-made. Standout items include beautifully detailed velvet-covered foam shields and swords, a tunic that reverses between being a king costume and a knight costume, and a reversible cape with a silver side that looks like metal.
- Sarah's Silks, whose products are all made of natural fiber silk and non-toxic dyes. Standout items include silk swords, a simple knight costume with a chain-metal pattern woven into the tunic, and reversible capes and crowns that come in both boy-friendly and girl-friendly color combinations.
- Disney, whose officially licensed Narnia costumes include Sir Peter (including a shirt with chain mail sleeves and a knight's helmet with a movable visor) and Prince Caspian (including a tunic with chain mail sleeves, a chest belt, and pants). Other knight costume accessories offered by Disney include a plastic Peter's sword and shield, a Prince Caspian sound sword, and shiny silver cloth boot covers and gloves.
Thoughtful gift-givers seeking unique and well-crafted knight dress-up items can also check out websites such as A Toy Garden, Willow Tree Toys, or Chasing Fireflies to find handmade and/or imported knight and royal accessories such as wooden and leather swords, shields, and bows (and crossbows) and arrows; felt swords; detailed leather knight's tunics; and cardboard and leather knight helmets with feather plumes.
Knight Play Areas
To set the scene for creative role play, a heroic knight might enjoy environments such as:
- an inflatable castle bouncer
- a secret castle bed tent
- a knight's play tent
- a knight's tent canopy
- a castle play canopy
- a castle pop-up tent
- a giant castle tent that includes a tower and a tunnel
- a Squashblox Construction Set combined with the Squashblox Castle Accessory Kit
Some great manufacturers of medieval knight-themed play areas include:
- Pacific Play Tents
- Haba
- Sarah's Silks
Once a knight is dressed and the stage is set, he or she needs things to play with. Shoppers interested in knight toys can check out More Great Knight Gift Ideas for Boys and Girls for suggestions for specific toys and games a knight might enjoy and Gift Ideas for Knight Books for Boys and Girls for books that boys and girls who like to read about knights might like.
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