Pinocchio yo-yo

The Pinocchio yo-yo is a wooden yo-yo whose face is painted in the likeness of Collodi's puppet: round eyes, black fringe, red smile, and a long wooden nose sticking out in the middle. Slip the loop of the string over your finger, let it drop and bring it back up with a flick of the wrist; Pinocchio's head spins at full speed at the end of its string.

It is made in Italy by Mastro Geppetto. Two discs of turned wood, one varnished natural with the painted face, the other bright red, and a white string. No mechanism: this is a classic yo-yo, the kind you learn on.

To start out, shorten the string to navel height and tie a knot. Keep the painted wood away from water; a small chip in the paint will not stop it spinning.