Archive for September, 2009
Frank Arnett talks about the many joys of the toymaker’s life.
Frank Arnett has been a toymaker most of his adult life and it has kept him young and excited about life and toymaking. He accidentally fell into toymaking while recovering from an illness in the hospital when he was a young man. I think that you will find his story enlightening and inspirational. However, I wish [...]
Rootin’ Ridge toymakers celebrate over 30 years in business.
In 1975, Paul was a carpenter and Georgean was a data processor. We had been married for five years, were hand-building our own house in the hills northwest of Austin, Texas and were looking for a way to start “Living the Good Life” we had read about in the columns written by Scott and Helen [...]
Hakone-Odawara region in Japan is proud of their local toymaker Nakagawa.
The Hakone-Odawara region in Japan is proud of their local toymaker Nakagawa. He creates beautiful, high quality toys using three-dimensional patterns with 4 different kinds of wood that include keyaki (a Japanese Zelkova), teak, walnut, and white ash. His works are original and many of his creations are one of a kind. He is a master toy maker who is dedicated and passionate about [...]
Rockler offers safe Toy Maker’s Finish for clear-coating children’s wood toys.
Submitted to Rockler by Susan Klein, from Port Jervis , NY Customer Rating: “My dad had some black walnut in his garage, it was given to him buy my grand father when he cut wood from his land in Georgia 40 years ago. My dad held on to it waiting to make something special with [...]
New Swiss Bilibo toy is deceptively simple and fantastically fun.
Kids go wild with their imagination when playing with this simple and well-designed toy. It has a play value similar to a cardboard box while being infinitely more durable and fun to play with. There is still a place in the world for toys that are simple, safe and that provide opportunities for play that [...]
Toys for blowing bubbles? German firm says there are no limits to the possibilities.
Did you blow bubbles in your childhood? Blowing bubbles is still wildly popular world-wide. This German firm has built a mini-empire from this simple toy concept. If you stop and think about it, the possibilities are endless for hand-crafted bubble blowers. Posted by John W. Lewman toy designer www.toymakerpress.com Publishers of fun to make wood [...]
Toy Shops are growing in popularity with pre-teens and young adults.
These fun videos visit a toy shop in Abbotsford and the Tokyo Toy Store opening party in London http://tokyotoys.com. Each video is an example of how the youth and young adult toy business is taking hold in the retail market. Toy stores are the new place to hang out? Posted by John W. Lewman toy designer www.toymakerpress.com Publishers of fun to [...]
Japanese Senior Citizens talk about their love of toys.
Natalie Tourret: “In Japan, elderly people have become a lucrative market for the entertainment industry, especially for toymaker. Competition is rising between them to seduce elderly people.” Natalie highlights entertainment first and then toys in the second half and the interview is enlightening. Seniors love toys as much or more than kids and young adults and are a [...]
Cutting wood toy wheels with the Proxxon MF70 CNC offers great opportunities for precision creativity.
The Proxxon MF70 offers a lot of creative opportunity for the advanced toymaker. By using aftermarket easy to understand and implement CNC software the automated tool can be controlled with tight precision. You can operate a complete mini-CNC shop with this pint-size machine for as little as 1200 to 2000 dollars. There is a lot of info [...]
Plan Toys kitchen playthings are innovative and fun.
The Plan Toys line of pint-size kitchen and laundry wood toys are designed with a charming sense of humor. The playful aesthetic and fine workmanship gives these carefully crafted toys real appeal. Kids love the toys that reflect the real world of adults and will love the imaginative play opportunities these wonderful toys provide.http://www.plantoys.com/ Posted by John [...]
