Paper Punk

They’re here!!!!!! Paper Punk’s new COLOR+BUILD My Life as a Fashion Designer and COLOR+BUILD Graffiti Happy Blocks Kits are now available for purchase at Target and here online! 

We are so psyched to share these two new products with you, your friends, and family. The Paper Punk play pattern just added a few new dimensions of coloring, story telling, and dream making with these COLOR+BUILD kits. We just know you will love making your mood and planning your fashion empire with us! In our tech driven lives, it’s too easy to get caught up in too much screen time. That’s why our kits are designed to feed your imagination and build your brain through hands-on play —all while spending quality time with loved ones. So… put down that iPad, turn off the TV, and allow your inner artist and dream of being a fashionista become reality.

In light of the launch, we’ve started a fun campaign around the Graffiti Block’s kit specifically and would encourage you to #PaperPunkItForward! All of the details are below! Enjoy :)

Like most people:

There’s something about the big city, bright light buzz of Times Square or even the pure bliss of riding your bike through Central Park that is convincing/motivating enough for anyone to consider a move to the Big Apple.

As we’ll be making my way to New York in a week, we can’t help but be excited to not only enjoy the sights (Street Style) of New York Fashion Week (NYFW), but also to debut our new Color + Build kits at New York Toy Fair.

Some of our favorite looks from last year’s NYFW street style edition include: 

Besides the educational value and downright fun Paper Punk provides when constructing your kit, the end result can be both gratifying and visually stunning.

You may be wondering, ok what now? What else can you do with your Paper Punk after you’ve made your masterpiece aside from basking in the afterglow of neural stimulation? What about turning your smart into art by displaying it in your work or living space?

Accessorizing your space with Paper Punk provides a “pop” for any room, dinner table, or office space. Show off your creation at home or work — the family room, bedroom, and office are great spaces to do just that and here’s why.

Family Room:

The family room is usually home to your TV, bookshelf, family portraits and guests. Accessorizing this room with the things you love like your Paper Punk creations will add to the narrative of the room and provide a little insight on you. Not only does Paper Punk provide great abstract art for the room, it also is an awesome activity for all of your guests to join in on the fun and leave a piece of them with you.

Bedroom:

Minimalist bedrooms make for the best rooms for Paper Punk to provide a splash of color while still keeping decor to a minimum.

Office Space:

For your office space, don’t be afraid to show off your most creative designs. Be prepared for conversations to ensue around your creations because co-workers will definitely ask about them. We still have up our Punkolantern from Halloween and it’s garnered a lot of interest. Many people put their graphic art piece on their desk or in common areas to share their eye-candy creation.

You’ll find accessorizing your space with Paper Punk as easy as it is to make it!

#MakeSomething and accessorize!

What the punk is Paper Punk?

Ultimately, Paper Punk is the love-child - the “Best of both worlds” between origami and Lego. Using the urban definition of “punk” which means “trick”, Paper Punk literally means to play a trick on paper. While paper is ever-present in our everyday lives, with Paper Punk this commonplace material is reimagined and transformed into a tool for creativity and education. A sheet of paper literally becomes a paper building block for your imagination with a few simple folds.

It all started in a creativity course I teach at Stanford’s d.school where four years ago students were assigned a simple dimensional thinking exercise. It took us about 1.5 years to prototype the patented interface and another year to get to market in a meaningful way.

The most distinguishing aspect of Paper Punk is the super smart fold-to-build play pattern and eye-candy outcome. While other contemporary construction paper-based craft kits create a sense of volume through slotting flat pieces into each other, nothing fully encloses space into modular building blocks like Paper Punk does.

One of the most rewarding aspects since starting Paper Punk has been knowing that I am helping people. Through my research project, I know empirically that building a Paper Punk can help to rewire your brain and increase your creative capacity, and that especially makes me very happy. 

I am Grace Hawthorne. Mother, artist, author, educator and creator of Paper Punk. #MakeSomething