The Story Path bookend engraved with a child's name, on the Oak & Sprout playmat

The Story Path bookends, Personalised: the first page engraved “Once upon a time, there was…” and a child’s name, and The End, in solid oak on the Oak & Sprout playmat.

The Story Path bookends, Unpersonalised: the first page engraved “Once upon a time…” and The End, in solid oak on the Oak & Sprout playmat.

The Story Path bookends: a personalised name gift in oak

Their name on the first page, and The End to bring them home

£19.95

First page:

Variant

24 characters maxTheir name, as it should be engraved

Engraved in our script on the first page: “Once upon a time, there was…”. Longer names go onto two lines.

Free UK delivery on orders of £20 or more

Made to order in our Wiltshire workshop. Posted from 1 December, in time for Christmas.

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Heirloom quality. Backed by our Multiple Lifetime Guarantee.

Montessori-aligned. Designed for independent, focused play.

Every story needs a first page and a last.
Theirs, with their name on it, and The End to bring them home.

Play the game Put their name on the first page

Lay the first tile and see where their story goes.

Begin their story

Start their own set. Add the tiles you choose; every tile joins both bookends.

£19.95 with their name, or £14.95 reading “Once upon a time…”. £10 less with any tile in the basket.

Posted from 1 December, in time for Christmas.

What's in the bag

The first page: “Once upon a time, there was…” and their name (Personalised), or “Once upon a time…” (Unpersonalised)
The End
Our cotton drawstring bag, which is also the pile you draw from

How it's played

The bookends are where every story starts and stops: their name, a path of tiles, and The End.

The Lucky Bag. Lay the first page and read it aloud. Draw a tile without looking, join it on, and say what happens there.

The Forked Path. Draw two tiles and choose between them. The other goes back in the bag for another day.

Choose the tiles here, one at a time, or play the game on our page and the story you lay becomes the set, bookends included.

For more ways to play, and how story stones, story dice and story tiles compare, read our storytelling guide.

How it's made

The first page and The End are solid oak, 13.5 mm thick, made the same way as the tiles: planed, sealed with shellac and engraved with the words, their name in our script. Iron and vinegar ebonise them so only the engraved lines turn black, and Osmo hardwax oil finishes them. Each has an arrow joint, so any tile joins it.

The engraving

Personalised: tell us their name in the box above, and we engrave it in our script on the first page: “Once upon a time, there was…”, then their name. Longer names go onto two lines. Up to 24 letters.

Unpersonalised: the first page reads “Once upon a time…”, for any storyteller. The End is the same on both.

Posting

Delivery

Posted from 1 December, in time for Christmas

The Story Path is made to order in our Wiltshire workshop. Orders are posted from 1 December, in the order they were placed, so every set is under the tree in time for Christmas.

Delivery is by Royal Mail Tracked 48, free on every UK order of £20 or more; orders under £20 are charged £1.95.

Returns

90 days to return, with free return postage

We are pleased to offer 90 days from delivery to return your order, and we will provide a prepaid Royal Mail Tracked 48 label at no cost to you. Personalised and engraved pieces are included.

You may choose a refund, an exchange or a gift card. Refunds are made to your original payment method once your return is back with us and checked. How returns work

Multiple Lifetime Guarantee

Covered for life, whoever owns it

Should a piece ever break, develop a fault or go missing, we will restore or replace it free of charge, for the life of the toy and for whoever owns it next. Read about our guarantee

Caring for your toys

Everyday care. Wipe with a damp cloth and let the wood dry naturally. Please don’t soak it or put it in the dishwasher.

Where to keep it. Away from radiators and direct sun. Wood moves a little as the air grows drier or damper through the year, which is quite natural.

Refreshing the finish. When the wood begins to look dry, rub in one thin coat of Osmo Wood Wax Finish Extra Thin (1101), the finish we use ourselves, and let it dry fully before play. Once dry, it is food-safe. For babies who mouth their toys, ideally wait two weeks. Or let us make it easy: our Toy Care Kit has everything you need.

Our guarantee. Every toy is covered by our Multiple Lifetime Guarantee, and caring for it yourself never affects it.

More about our finish in our FAQ.

The Story Path bookends: a personalised name gift in oak

£19.95

A beginning, a middle and an end

The Story Path opens with “Once upon a time, there was…” and closes with “The End”. Between the two, the child lays the tiles in a line and tells the story along the path that runs through them, in through one arrow and out through the next. Every arrow is an “and then”.

It is designed around the way stories are taught in nurseries and Reception: an opening, a problem, a resolution and an ending. The line is laid and read from left to right, like a line in a book, and it supports the early learning goals for inventing, adapting and retelling stories.

Build a story with their name

The story tiles and both bookends are solid oak, finished with Osmo hardwax oil. No paints and no dyes: the picture is engraved and ebonised, so only the lines turn black. The magic tiles are cut from rarer woods, and their path and stars are gilded by hand in 24ct gold leaf. A new wood arrives each week in November.

Oak

Every story tile is solid oak, 120 mm square and 13.5 mm thick. Planed, sealed with shellac, engraved, then ebonised with iron and vinegar so only the lines turn black.