Attention to the environment

The magnetic board "The games of the big wheel" dedicated to the teachers of the classes visiting the Mulino Village

by Graziella Carbone

2012 – Nature Cards of Friends of the Mill

From January 10 to March 4 of 2012 in the packs of Flutes and Chocolate and Apricot Saccottino it was possible to find the new Nature Cards: 48 cards organized in four different sections – Vegetable Garden, Wheat Field, Orchard and Flowered Wood – with 12 subjects each. Each packet contained four different subjects. Some cards had particular effects:

Catastrophe: they lowered the score, and had a glossy effect.
Special: they increased skills. But to do so the children had to answer correctly to a question. To find the solution you had to rub the card … and the answer, as if by magic, appeared with the warmth of the fingers.
Lagna the Sorceress: metallic card that allowed an opponent to steal a card
Book of Knowledge: worked as a Jolly, with metallic appearance

To get to the right game rules, I practically burglarized a shop in Milan (near via Larga) specialized in card games. But then, as usual … I did my own thing. The rules for playing Explorer wins All, Watch out for Lagna the Sorceress and the Friends of the Mill Quartets were written on the snack packs. But many other games could also be invented … The card holder was also printed on the packs of Flutes and Saccottino, to keep the deck neatly, while on the website www.amicidelmulino.it (active only for the promotion period) by entering the code printed inside the package, it was possible to continue playing with the Friends of the Mill. To collect all the cards, we created the Explorers’ Album which, in addition to the spaces for the cards, illustrated the tricks for reading a map or following a path and tips for observing animals. There were also pages to keep the diary of the explorations made, as well as tests and games.
It was possible to have it immediately as a gift – from January 13 to April 9 of 2012 – in the supermarkets and stores participating in the promotional initiative by purchasing two packs of your choice from Flutes, Pan Goccioli, Tart, Trancino, Cornetti and Nastrine. By purchasing an additional pack, you received a box of eight soft-tipped coloured pencils from the Friends of the Mill as a gift.

2013 – First Semester – The interactive videogame of the Friends of the Mill

With the development of technologies, the Little Surprises entered the world of interactivity. In 2013 the first interactive video games of the Friends of the Mill were launched linked to the website www.amicidelmulino.it (active only for the promotion period, by entering the code printed inside the package), in four different versions – one for each character – included in the packs of Flutes, Saccottino and Pan Goccioli.
Augmented reality – which characterizes these video games – is an interactive graphics system that allows you to experience a new game mode, more dynamic and full of elements, in 3D.
To play it was necessary to use the separators and the trays of the packages, activate your webcam, position the character in front of the webcam and literally see it animate on the screen. At the end of the game, to complete the mission, it was necessary to enter the code printed on the Book of Knowledge.
Furthermore, by purchasing two packs of snacks in the supermarkets participating in the promotion, it was possible to immediately receive the Book of Seasons, the GameBook n. 7 of Mulino Bianco.
By purchasing an extra package, you could also have the puzzle pen holder that turned on itself, separated into pieces and reassembled into four different subjects, one for each character.

2013 – Second Semester – The SecretKeepers fo the Friends of the Mill

The SecretKeepers of the Friends of the Mill were tin boxes containing a stationery object. There were eight different boxes (2 for each character: Milk, Ciock, Goccio and Cocca) each containing an object useful for school: stencil ruler, pencil, crayon, map of the Mill Valley, post-it notes, stamps, clips for sheets and stickers for notebooks.
To complete the series there was also a special tin box shaped like a Mill with a lace to hang it. Inside, the Friends of the Mill were represented, around the Book of Knowledge. The colours of the boxes respected those of the characters and it was necessary to prepare prototypes for a presentation to the trade. So I visited the Bergamo paint factories to find spray cans of the right colour. The most difficult was the pink colour for Cocca. Fortunately, I found the owner of the paint shop where I always supplied myself with colours who prepared me a special spray can with the right colour. I came to the company and spray painted the prototypes on a window sill that goes from the offices to the canteen. Despite all the newspapers arranged to protect the windowsill, a halo of colour remained. And it is still there …
The collection was completed by the special eraser of Lagna the Sorceress, made of material capable of lighting in the dark.
The SecretCarriers of the Friends of the were included in the packages of Flutes and Saccottino from August 12 to October 20 of 2013.
From the Pan Goccioli packages it was possible to cut out a bookmark from the separator in four different subjects, one for each character.
To complete the operation, in the supermarkets participating in the initiative, it was possible to find the Big Notebook of the Mill, notebook covers in four variants, one for each character and the very useful Friends of the Mill school set.
In 2013, the Little Surprises turned 30 years old and had an area reserved for them in the making of the Mill Village. Benches and chairs were shaped like matchboxes. An unprecedented success! Four games, in maxi format, of the most famous Surprises were offered to adults who came to visit.
On that occasion, all the teachers of the visiting classes were given the magnetic board The Games of the Great Wheel.
This large size magnetic game was the most complex I’ve ever designed. It could stand on a desk or be hung on a wall / blackboard. One part was hand-wrapped with post-its that hid the correct answer.
The tour started from Turin and the supplier was in the province of Varese. I arrived in Turin, with the first games, 10 minutes before the opening … but we made it!
Meanwhile, the initiative Vote your Little Surprise of the heart was launched on the Blog of the Little Surprises. The cake-shaped rubber plate won the challenge.