Toy Project: Adventures at Home Depot

since the deadline for the Toy Project has turned this into a major priority and i still dont have a concrete idea, i have resolved to pursue a plan A and keep plans B thru ZZZ in mind

today is March 14
the deadline is March 26


so the problem is clear

factoring my personal lean into it: i will not produce a toy that is just eye-candy

it needs to have some sort of functionality


producing something without functionality is a violation of some sort of code i subscribe to

so i wouldnt be able to do that and sleep comfortably (or enjoy it)


so:
i am letting the project take its own form:

- something simple
- something functional
- something interactive
- something that allows people to be creative themselves


i am sticking with the alien theme

i am still aiming at making a series of small alien figures but the idea is now refined:
- so it will be less time consuming - i am going to make a cookie cutter so i can have a consistent size for the figures, and will let them have differences based on their colors and poses

also - i have decided to have them double as a platform so that when they come together - they can hold something (like those scenes in the cartoons where ants carry away a person's picnic lunch)

Toy Project

if you click on that image you will be taken to a series of images which show the supplies i picked up:

- some vinyl, cork, and felt guards so that the figures can be put on delicate surfaces with no problem
- the figures will have a wire (paperclip) structure so i had to pick up some wire cutters
- Home Depot did not have any Sheet Metal ribbon strips, so I found what I needed on a lumber shipment that they had received and asked if they could cut a piece off for me - they said no so i snapped a piece off anyway


the sheet metal strip will become the cookie cutter

i have a set of pliers at home that i will use to bend it into the shape i need


so - next step is to put the cookie cutter together - and start churning out a couple of these little dudes

and if it dont work - then move on to plan B


the objective is to have the toy basically done by the weekend so i can put the package together next week

(PS - it makes no sense that this project is due before the skate tag project)


costs so far:
Paperclips: $2
Clay: 13
Sculpting tools: 3
Duct tape: 3
Wire cutters: 5
Pliers: found at home (approx 5)
Paint: can't remember right now - will find the receipt at home
Vinyl/Cork/Felt Guards: 7.50


Time: formative and sketching - 3 hrs
Research and supplies: - 2 hrs
Trial runs with clay: - 2 hrs


should have the cookie cutter up here to-nite



also got a idea how to fit the collage in on the box shape (and the theme for the characters i create)

and the skate tag assignment is similar to this in that there will be transparency layer used on the packaging


more later