What we play with matters. Toys help to shape our view of the world and develop important skills.
Building toys have been one of hottest categories, and I just wasn’t seeing a lot of options that are engaging for girls. So what I did was combine several things girls have historically loved.
Build & Imagine StoryWalls are like building blocks meets dollhouse meets dress-up dolls. It’s a unique mashup featuring adventurous female characters and rich illustrated details that inspire girls and boys alike to build and imagine.
In the past, toy companies designed their construction toys almost exclusively for boys. Thankfully, they are now starting to invite girls to build, but many are doing so by taking their existing construction sets and turning them pink. I call it “pink think”.
We can approach toy design in a more thoughtful way, and doing so is important. Building toys develop important spatial reasoning, problem solving, and design skills that are prerequisites to succeed in fields of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). These are fields in which women represent only 24% of the workforce.
Toys can make a difference.
Thank you for your support on this fun journey.
Grown up kid, toy inventor, mom & founder, Laurie Peterson
Grown up kid, toy inventor, mom & founder, Laurie Peterson
Magnetic building sets that spark storytelling.
Build & Imagine StoryWall play-sets contain illustrated scenes that children
can build, decorate, and use as a backdrop for imaginative play.
can build, decorate, and use as a backdrop for imaginative play.
We call them StoryWalls because it’s like building a
storybook setting in 3-D and then jumping in to play!
storybook setting in 3-D and then jumping in to play!
Sets include doll(s), illustrated building panels that
combine magnetically to create endless combinations,
and dozens of magnetic accessories to customize your scene.
combine magnetically to create endless combinations,
and dozens of magnetic accessories to customize your scene.
“When we launched at the beginning of the year, we knew that building would be empowering for girls,” said Build & Imagine founder and mom Laurie Peterson. “We hadn’t anticipated how powerful the storytelling would be. Unlike a traditional dollhouse in which the setting is fixed, with Build & Imagine StoryWalls play sets, children direct not only how their characters interact in the scene, but what the scene itself looks like. The imaginative play that results is immersive and inspired.”
I could not wait to receive our set!!! I chose the Pet Portrait Studio for my kiddos, knowing both my son and daughter will LOVE it!!!
Pet Portrait Studio
Build a scene and imagine countless stories.
Woof! Meow! Squawk! Help Anna and Ethan prepare the local shelter pets for adoption day by providing each pet with a special portrait. Build a studio with the illustrated magnetic panels, then dress the pets in crazy outfits and arrange wacky scenes for the dolls to capture with their camera and paintbrushes.Winner of a Parents' Choice Gold Award!
LOVE the packaging!!! So bright and colorful!
What Comes in the Box?
Includes Ethan and Anna wooden dress-up characters, four wooden pets, 10 dual-sided building panels (6 squares, 2 right-angle triangles, and 2 isosceles triangles), and more than 40 magnetic accessories.
Features:
Painter’s studio
Photo Lab
Pet Lounge
Treats
Smocks
Art Supplies
Grooming station
Adoption Fair
A dozen pets
What you see when you open the box. How FUN!!!
Each wall for each piece is both magnetic and interchangeable. There is no "Right Way" for this to be built. The options are literally endless!! You can stack them, you can make it one long studio, you can do anything your imagination comes up with!
This Dog!!!! He is on the box and one of the pets in the studio. He just makes us smile!!! My son named him Pickles!!!!
It can even be folded in for a more "house" feel if they so choose!
Open-Ended Building
Kids aren’t limited to one design—they can quickly reconstruct the structure into whatever design suits them. They can also change the context of their story with magnetic accessories that stick to the floors, walls, and dolls. Or, combine multiple play-sets to build a larger scene. All Build & Imagine play-sets are compatible, so your child can grow their story alongside their budding building skills.
Will the scene take place inside the portrait studio or outside at the adoption fair? Will it be one or two stories tall?
Will Anna wear a smock as she paints or a beret as she takes photos?
Should a dog and cat fight over who gets to wear the top hat?
Should Ethan reward Bruiser the dog with a treat after his bath?
The building and storytelling possibilities are endless!
Since they so easily be built together, you can add on and grow your child's story with additional sets!!!
There is also the
WANT IT?!? BUY IT!!!!
is available ONLINE and is offering Free Shipping
on all orders over $75 right now!
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Thank you so much Michele! These photos are great. And I shared with out illustrator how you named the dog pickles. :) Warmest regards, Laurie from Build & Imagine
ReplyDeletehehehehe. The 5 year old boy gets all the credit for that name =)
ReplyDeleteThanks for the awesome set! The kids LOVE it!!
~Michele