if you’ve already heard about the website, made by joel, you’ll understand why i’m sharing it here. it’s a blog written by a dad, joel henriques, who creates toys and games with and for his kids, mostly using simple objects.
cereal boxes
paperclips
rocks
the beauty of this site is in its simplicity. unique ideas that result in hours of imaginative and explorative play for all ages. gorgeous photos (and really cute kiddos!) too.
his ideas and projects inspire you to do more with what you have, whether you have kids, work with kids, or don’t have kids in your life at all. take a look around you… what could you create? how could you look at something differently?
when i approached joel about sharing his site here, he was more than willing to share his sources of inspiration, something i always wonder about people who create. he said:
Watching how my kids play is very inspiring of course. I also get a lot of inspiration from modern art.
joel has a book coming out. a modern craft/toy making book that focuses on interactive and imaginative play. “It’s going to be pretty fun,” and it will be published fall 2011.
til then, you can visit his blog, made by joel.
and learn more about the artist behind the blog here on his art site.
he also writes regularly for lmnop (laugh, make, nurture, organize, play), a free, downloadable magazine full of ideas and inspiration.
thanks joel.
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Oooo so glad that you shared this! :) my brother is a child care worker (you probably realise how rare this is haha) and he’s totally against normal toys because they aren’t imaginitive enough! May have to buy the coming book for him. :)
Hi Ana,
Oh my, how did I not find your blog before? I love all the things you are doing with your beautiful family – so inspiring!
All the best,
Erin
I don’t have little ones, but I think it is so rare these days that you see a dad taking time out with their children. This is awesome!!!
Thanks so much for introducing us to Joel, he’s a creative genius, what a lucky family he has too….very very cool!
Thanks for directing me to Joel’s site. I don’t have kids but I love making games and toys out of everyday objects. I recently saw a book in the library about this very subject and I didn’t check it out because I thought some parent deserved it more than I did. Silly, huh? I guess I’ll just wander about Joel’s site instead. Cheers!
i’m glad you all checked out his site. pretty cool. i had a feeling you might like it :)
nancy~ you’re such a thoughtful library patron!
Oh, such great ideas! I’ve already printed out a few to try with my daughter in the next couple of weeks and am keeping some more in mind for when we’re on holidays. Thanks for introducing us to Joel, Ana!
you’re welcome sarah! spread the word. i love anything that helps us connect with kids. so creatively too!
oh, irony is me. The first one (the cereal box one) is SO MUCH like my first ever project at design school, lol. Ours was closed though, and we had to put “obstacles” in the run, so the marble would make noise on its way down.
It was something about the rythm and stuff. Don’t ask, I still don’t get it : P
Ana, thanks so much for coming over to my blog and directing me to this. I loved this profile of Joel and am happy you wrote this! Very inspiring.