What is Creative Play... And Why Do I Care?
A few random essays on Creative Play that I have written through the years... gathered in one blog post! -Eppie
What is creative play?
Definition of Creative Play: Creative play can be defined as play that involves the imagination and creative expression, combined with stimulation to develop manual skills.
*Creative play is a goal for all parents. We want our children to have toys that serve as platforms for hours of imaginative exploration in pretend worlds with pretend adventures. This is what spurs our children toward creativity. Today they may be figuring out how to provide enough horses for their enormous army of carrots, a problem that we adults don’t anticipate effecting us but, that same thought process, if nurtured throughout childhood, may prove integral in solving the waste management problems of the future… or future health issues… or simply in helping our children become thoughtful, problem solving citizens, assets to their community.
*We offer creative toys and patterns to aid you in the nurturing of those precious imaginations. We have worked hard to design rag dolls and toys that inspire children to imagine. They are not specific creatures or genders, colors or races. They are not designed specifically for boys or girls. We try, as we make design choices, to create toys that will help children to accept uniqueness and create their own worlds without prejudices or limits. We strive to create patterns that will be challenging enough to teach children basic sewing skills while not demanding their technical skills override their creative process. Each pattern, we hope, is flexible enough for children to add their own unique vision to the base we have designed for them. And hey, EVERY rag doll is a friend. Let us know what you think about our products and how we might help you to inspire and motivate your children to think creatively!
*Our goal is to design toys for your children that make creative play effortless!
*Remember playing outside for hours with your siblings, cousins, or friends? Remember playing alone in your make believe world with your favorite stuffed animals and toys? Remember visiting your grandparents and exploring the basement or attic? Remember when we all used to play? Help your children build childhood memories by providing opportunities for creative play and creative living!
*Your children are more creative than you think! Everybody jokes about the toddler having more fun with the box than with the toy that came inside the box. Did you ever think why that might be? Children appreciate toys that leave a little, and sometimes a lot, to their imagination. Children like to explore their world and sometimes a toy just gives a little too much information. Think about it. Nobody likes a ‘know it all’.
*The Professional Bohemians offers designs that partner with children in play. Designs that are simple and naive and interesting enough in their uniqueness to pique a child’s interest. We design to encourage children to take charge of their play world. We want them to ask what these creatures are and where they come from, what they eat and how they live, what powers they might have and if they are dangerous or friendly…
We design simple toys so that children might learn complex ideas. We want our designs to compel children to become more engaged in the play process. Toys should tell a story, but not the whole story, that is up to the child. Some children do not do well with blank slates but some children do. We design for those children.
*We adhere closely to the Waldorf school of thought where toys are concerned, ‘toys should be simple and open-ended, letting children fully engage their rich imaginations’.
Though our color philosophy pulls us outside of the Waldorf school of thought, we design toys that are colorful, to help children grow accustomed to color. White walls are beautiful but not the only option and children should be confident. We want to empower children with the knowledge that diversity is beautiful, color is not scary, and that we all come in a variety of shades. Color is a valuable tool for expression and one would be hard pressed to find or imagine a color that is not represented somewhere in nature. Many of our color palettes are drawn from undersea creatures, fall landscapes and various moods of the sky.
*Through the years we have imagined and created many colorful characters, Woolie Babies, Warmblies, Moon Fairies, Tooth Fairies, Color-ed (Like Rainbow) Babies, Mustache Monkeys, Flatties, ZA Doodles, RagdOlly People and Creatures, Beasties, Urban Gherkins, Muses, BabydOlly Bunnies and Babies, and more are all samples of our rag sculptures, little one of a kind cloth creations. A lot of our designs have been pattern free and one of a kind. Inspired by our amazing friends and family and by our own individual inner worlds, we use our combined experience and lifetime of observation and study to create designs that stand on their own and apart from the crowds.