Are Qurkies compatible with Duplo®?
Qurkies are 100% compatible with the original Duplo®. We have taken extreme care in the fitting of the blocks. Duplo® can not be broken, even not by nature. If you have plastic blocks, use them or recycle them. No need to throw them away. Qurkies are not compatible with the smaller Lego parts.
Qurkies are certified safe according the EU toys standard (NEN-EN71) for the age it is intended for 3+. Qurkies natural material is completely harmless. Qurkies are not suitable for our smallest children (under 3 years), as they tend to put toys in their mouth which might cause breakage of pieces and potential choking hazard.
Cork has antibacterial, antifungal and anti-allergenics compounds by nature. To clean Qurkies; just soak them in lukewarm water or wipe them with a wet cloth. It is not recommended to put Qurkies in the dishwasher or to boil them. Cork shrinks when washed in hot water, this affects the fitting.
Qurkies are great fun in the bath. Cork is a natural material that absorbs and releases water. When it absorbs water, the material will expand and get spongy. It is possible to use Qurkies in the bath, but it is recommended to keep them in for a short time and to dry them afterwards. Please note the some discoloration (darker) can occur from bathing.
Qurkies can be used in the garden, but note that cork is a natural material. Leaving them in direct sunlight for a long period will make them shrink which affects the fitting. Note also that some discoloration (lighter) can occur under the influence of UV light.
Are Qurkies available in colors?
Qurkies likes to emphasize the natural beauty of cork. We also understand that colors are an important factor in toys. That is why we are working on different pieces with all natural colors. In the meantime, you can color Qurkies yourself with felt tip pens.
Cork is an amazing material. To harvest cork, the bark of the Quercus Suber (the cork oak) is taken off like a jacket, which then grows back due to a unique natural process. The tree is not cut down. Harvesting cork is a very delicate process and completely done by hand. A cork tree can be harvested for the first time at the age of 25 years, and after that only once in every 9 years. A mature cork tree grows about 2 Qurkies per day.
Cork is one of the most eco-friendly materials on this planet. The cork bark is like a sponge for CO2. Stripped cork trees absorb 4x more CO2 because of the harvesting. The annual CO2 absorption by the cork forests is equivalent to the emissions of 3.000.000 cars. Cork forests are therefore called 'The lung of the Mediterranean'. One Qurkie saves about 68gr of CO2 compared with a plastic block.
Cork forests are one of the few examples of fully sustainable forestry exploitation. They are economically sustainable, due to the high market value of cork. Qurkies help the preservation of cork. In the wine industry natural cork stoppers are more and more replaced with plastic. Qurkies does the exact opposite; replacing plastic with cork.
Cork can be very well recycled. Qurkies are made from the waste and leftovers from the cork stoppers production. Also recycled cork can be used to produce Qurkies. Cork recycle points vary per country. In The Netherlands these collection points are scarce.
From the cork bark, everything is used. Harvested cork is first dried in the Mediterranean sun and cleaned. The virgin core part of the bark is used for natural stoppers. The outer layers and leftover material get grinded and pressed together to form a new cork block again. This is called agglomerated cork. All the dust particles remaining from the machining is used as a source of energy to heat the factory. Qurkies are made of agglomerated cork.