With an Oink Here and a Wikki Stix There… Designer Piggy Bank is Perfect Any Time Gift
Parents all seem to have stock phrases when trying to impart financial words of wisdom, like “money doesn’t grow on trees” and “you should save for a rainy day.” Couple those words with something fun and creative, and you have a winning combination. A piggy bank! No ordinary piggy bank, this is a Designer Piggy Bank ($24.95) that kids decorate and create their own way, providing a unique, personal connection to the act of saving.
Wikki Stix have been a hit in homes, classrooms and restaurants for the past 25 years. Moms love the “quiet play” aspect since there are no batteries, bells or whistles involved. Teachers like the hands-on element where kids can be creative using the wax-covered yarn sticks which stay put with just light fingertip pressure. No glue, no paste, no mess! Restaurants hand out a pack of Wikki Stix when families sit down to order, keeping little ones blissfully busy. But it is the sticky element that makes Wikki Stix truly magical.
As their website, www.wikkistix.com points out, the arts & crafts line is “made of hand-knitting yarn enhanced with a microcrystalline food-grade, non-toxic wax, the kind used in bubble gum and lipstick. They do not contain latex, gluten, nor peanut or other nut oils or byproducts making them an ideal creative activity toy for children with allergies.” Kids can’t tear or break Wikki Stix but can cut them easily with a pair of scissors.
Retailers who caught a glimpse of the portly designer pig at last month’s ASTRA Marketplace included it on their order sheet knowing their customers would purchase it as an any-occasion gift. Allowing children to decorate the piggy bank in their own artistic way was like icing on a cake! Best of all, if the child makes a “mistake” or changes their mind in decorating their piggy, Wikki Stix easily peel away and can be repositioned.
But stop for a moment and ponder how a squealing animal filled with coins came to be a common memento. Certainly people store coins and dollar bills in all sorts of odd containers — under the mattress, glass jars, and cigar boxes! According to the clever folks at mint.com, the phrase piggy bank comes “from the type of clay used for pottery making, which back then was called Pygg Clay. It wasn’t until the 18th century that the word pygg was associated with the hoofed and snouted animal. This came about when someone, (probably) a potter made a clay jar in the shape of the pig, which became very appealing in the 20th century.” Up until that time, “coins that were collected and saved in the homes were kept in pygg jars; these jars were known as the pygg bank.”

Mint.com explains further that piggy banks are popular around the globe. “In the United States, children are given piggy banks to teach them the concept of saving money for the future. However, in China, the piggy bank is considered to be a lucky charm. In some countries, when the New Year begins, people give gifts of little pigs in hopes of having a good year financially.”
Having a good financial year starts with getting those pennies, nickels and dimes out. In the days of Pygg Clay jars, someone had to break or smash the clay. Clever Wikki Stix has an easy-to-open rubber stopper that gets all the coins out and then easily re-inserted
for the next round of rainy day savings. Some youngsters use their bank to buy an anticipated item while others may save for a good cause to donate later. Whatever the nature of the savings, making good sense of their cents is a lifelong lesson that can start now the pleasingly plump Designer Piggy Bank.
Designer Piggy Bank • All Ages • $24.95
With a stopper for easy coin removal, this classic ceramic Piggy Bank is made of the highest quality and comes with 72 colorful stix. Using the Wikki Stix, kids design their bank to match their bedroom or perhaps reflect what they’re saving for … sneakers, movie tickets or jewelry? Wikki Stix adhere to the Piggy Bank with just light fingertip pressure, so kids can have fun being creative. Piggy measures about 9” nose to tail and about 8.75” in girth!
Wikki Stix are so popular and beloved by children, parents and teachers that they can be found on five continents! Here in the U.S. Wikki Stix can be purchased in activity sets, after school fun kits, Valentine and Christmas themed sets and more. Restaurants have been serving a pack of Wikki Stix to families instead of paper and crayons for years, making them the #1 tabletop toy for quiet entertainment. Discover the world of Wikki Stix at their website, www.wikkistix.com.
ABOUT WIKKI STIX
Parent company Omnicor Inc. admits they are best known, for the past 25 years, as simply the Wikki Stix Company. Their products have won several national honors from Parents’ Choice and Dr. Toy. Industry judges in the U.K. even gave them two top awards. Find Wikki Stix in upscale specialty toy stores, educational supply stores, craft and hobby stores, as well as some kid friendly restaurants. See all of their products at www.wikkistix.com.
