Santoosha
have a look at some "steiner toy" type sites, to get ideas of toys for your child
winterwood, dragonflytoys, ecotoys.
some steiner sites also sell craft books, to make toys out of felt. i am getting the drift that in STeiner schools, in primary school, the kids are taught knitting, handsewing etc, to make basic projects. anyhoo, i reckon an adult (maybe you) could make those early primary projects too.

i'm trying it, i buy squares of felt at spotlight (some are synthetic, some are wool blends, some are wool, read the little stickers), and am having a go at making some myself. i got some patterns for felt fruit and veg off ETSY, but if you are crafty enough, i'm sure you could draft your own. All you need to be able to do (skill wise) is cut up felt and do blanket stitch. I've got no embroidery skills but blanket stitch is something i can manage.

Buy a few metres of muslin at spotlight, dye one metre green - you have a green playcloth for your child. that can be a pretend lawn for their toys, it can be a pretend forest.

Next time you have a big box, help your child turn it into a toy. add wheels, cut out holes to peer thru.

Make a cubby house by putting a blanket over a table.

dye one metre blue, you have a blue playcloth for your child, that can be a pretend river (scrunched up), it can be a pretend sea.

So these are some cheap steiner toy ideas.

and cheap BOUGHT toys, Like wooden handmade cars at the bonsai palace site.

here are some more sites with lots of natural toys (even if you just use the ideas, it's worth it).
row of ducks
artiwood toys
tree frog toys
bonsai palace
ecotoys
bumblebee
dragonfly
gofairtrading
sendatoy
winterwood
sarah's silks
anklebiters
the toy bug
growing up green

join their newsletters, then you get sent an email when they have a sale on.

some are mainstream toy sites, with a good range of natural toys
some are pure natural toy focussed

What i'm doing with my child, who is now 3, and on the list to start at a dual stream STeiner school in 2012 (it's only $100 more per year, than the normal primary school fees):
- limiting her exposure to tv (we still have tv)
- not giving her access to remotes
- not having battery operated toys in our home
- have donated most of her plastic toys to charity
- make a conscious effort to buy wooden, cloth, tin toys at birthday/xmas (quality not quantity)
- i've just started MAKING felt toys for her, she loves them to my surprise, she's very impressed that mummy made them
- i'm really failing in the natural environment part, we have no backyard for her to play in, so i'm sending her to a childcare cnetre that has real grass, chickens, wooden play equipment, lots of opportunities for messy play.
- dressing her as much as i can, in natural fibres.
- avoiding franchised stuff, so her clothing/bedding etc is plain (to foster her imagination)
- dressing her in clothes that are easy to move in, easy to play in,
- we put on cd's and play along on basic percussion instruments
- any free musical events i find out about, i try to take her along to expose her to live music
- avoiding giving her fast food and fizzy drinks, trying to avoid additives and food colorings. i meet steiner parents who make all their families food "from scratch", bake the bread and all that. i am nowhere near that stage, but would love to be.
- lots of reading. Steiner schools teach actual reading later, but they have alot of storybooks, especially ones about fairies it seems, encouraging that sense of magic and wonder in a child (i'm just a beginner at finding out all about STeiner)
- bought a bag of old macrame beads in an opshop, kept some old shoe laces from her dad's boots - great threading game for her
- like any parent, love them, delight in them, play with them as much as possible, your child will flourish with your love. i have to keep reminding myself about this one!
-

i have found natural toys that i don't think are exxy, you just have to keep looking.