Toymaking has made its way from whittle and wood to hi-tech CAD renderings and space-age materials. But when it comes to today's designer limited edition art toys, apparel and accessories, Kidrobot takes the cake in fun factor. Now you too can learn the ways of the toymaker through a Skillshare class led by Kidrobot's founder, Paul Budnitz.
For $19, the beginner level course will walk you through the process of designing and making your own toy—from sketches to finished art. For this particular class, you'll gain access to three instructional videos on October 16th after paying the entry fee. There's no expiration on your access to these videos—you can go back to them long after the download date.
But why a class on designing limited edition toys? Paul Budnitz gives his thoughts:Designer toys live on the razor's edge between art and commerce. So, it's important to know why someone would want to buy your design. Every time someone makes the decision to buy something, whether it's a piece of fine art, a ticket to see music at the local club, a pair of sneakers or a designer toy, there's a reason that they make that decision. We call that the "hook," just like that line in a pop song that keeps running through your head and makes you either want to dance or kill yourself. Every design needs a hook, even if that hook is there isn't a hook! Otherwise you may make something beautiful, but nobody will relate to it and nobody will buy it. Of course if you are making a limited edition toy your risk is relatively small and you only need a few people to see what you see. If you're trying to sell millions of purple dinosaurs to little kids, that's another story and you may need to brainwash people to think what you've made is actually good, and not a piece of ugly purple fluff.
By taking the course, you'll get a look into the history of designer toys and what makes a toy design work (and not work). Budnitz will walk students through the process of choosing materials, working control drawing, prototyping and choosing colors. Students will have a chance to post their designs online for peer reactions and response.
Win a free pass to the class by tweeting your favorite childhood toy to @core77. We'll choose a random winner Friday at noon EST.
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