A couple of years ago, I was building stuff from paper towel and toilet paper tubes with my two kids, then 3 and 4. We assembled a bunch of random sculptures using tape, scissors, and lots of glue, then I had a light-bulb moment, “If only there was a way to easily connect these things.”

So playtime turned into a product brainstorming session with my kids, then 2 and 4. Over the following weeks, I couldn’t stop thinking about tubes. Everywhere I looked, I saw cardboard tubes that needed to be connected. I regularly pulled them out of “recycling” bins and trash cans with a view to giving them a new life as a cool new sculpture. At first, I thought an eco-friendly set of connectors would work. But tubes are tricky: they come in different diameters and thicknesses and injection molds aren’t inexpensive.

Continued…

I explained to my father that my tube connector project was stalled – that I was toying with a cardboard disc as a solution to my initial pipe connector designs. He said matter of factly, “Oh, I could make that for you over the weekend.”

Cardboard runs in the family. My dad has been in the cardboard business his whole life – just like his father and his father before him, who has started the family paper box business. My career interests had taken me in other directions.  And yet, here I was, on the brink of getting into the cardboard business. Blood is thicker than water, but cardboard is thicker than blood it seems.

The last project we worked on together was a model car kit over twenty-five years ago. I was excited by the prospect of working on something together as adults.

So I sent him this:

And it became this:

Let’s just say it took more than a weekend.

My dad and I had tons of design, marketing, production, and packaging issues to work out. And with every little tweak, we got closer and close to a product that satisfied us both. But something else was going on as well: something that had nothing to do with cardboard, toys, or die-cut machines. A cool eco-friendly toy wasn’t the only thing that emerged from all this development, but also a closer relationship with my dad.

Without his expertise, patience, and hard work, Tubls would have never gotten past the concept stage.  If I wasn’t a dad myself, this notion never would have popped into my head.

Tubls made their public debut at my co-inventors’ classrooms this week.  The response was very positive from the kids, teachers, and parents. The website is public and the first orders have started coming in. I think these Tubls are in for a fun journey.

But, thanks to dad, I already feel like we’re in the black.  Happy Father’s Day Dad. Thanks for being a great dad and eco-construction toy co-inventor.

Tubls – An Eco-Friendly Construction Toy.

I love this idea. Our all time favorite toy is a simple cardboard box. And this is a really ingenious way to make cars, trolley’s, houses on wheels with your cardboard boxes.

Of course, kids are going to want to get inside it and wheel each other around, but that’s just not going to work, is it? (via Gizmodo)

Rolobox Puts Toy Wheels On Cardboard Boxes | Gadget Lab | Wired.com.

Designer Katherine Belsey has created this two story, eight room, totally foldable toy house – complete with a variety of papercraft furnishings. She offers several different ways to buy the templates for the rooms – from single rooms “a la carte” to an entire book with the complete plans for her foldable house. She also has free pop-up card templates on her site in case the two story house seems ambitious.

So, instead of buying another plastic barbie dream house, this is an easy way to make and customize one with your kid.

Printed house

Came across this very cool cardboard playhouse made by architecture firm Super Colossal based in Sydney.

This colossal cardboard play palace, isn’t built to last forever. You’ll want to recycle it after the first rain.

Still, what a fun piece of cardboard design.

Super Colossal.

I have been hearing about this design from a friend of mine for a while, who is involved with it in some way. The inventor/CEO is a very smart guy named Jason Foster who realized that most of our household liquid cleaners are made mostly of water. His revolutionary packaging reduces shipment costs and container waste by extending the life of the spray bottle. He took it all a step further and made it totally recyclable by removing the metal spring from the spray mechanism.

Love the design as well. Congrats Jason!

Replenish – Rethink the Bottle.

Some kids need that extra bit of privacy when learning to go all on their own. I say, “Hey, whatever it takes.” Stickers, stars, bribery – anything to get them out of diapers. And, if it helps, I’d even consider buying my child their very own private cardboard outhouse for encouragement.

Found this, like so many other great things via minor details

MA CACABANE by Pirouette Cacahouète Creator – Made in France – Recyclable > Home.

This d.e.Sellers lasercut flatpack desk is a brilliant and inexpensive solution for furnishing a schoolroom. Actually, if they have an adult size, I’d probably use it as well. And it looks pretty easy to assemble as well.

via (Minor Details)

d e SELLERS » eDesk.

For now, just a concept, but what a great way to harness your kid’s energy while they play. Rocco the Energy Pal is an entry in the Greener Gadgets design competition. Rocco teaches children about energy generation and conservation by converting kinetic energy created through rocking into electricity. The removable handles are a flashlight or a nightlight to stay up extra late – except, with all that rocking, they won’t be able to. Rocco 2.0 should include an iPod/phone charging adaptor under the mane.

They have a lot of votes, but need more to get to the top. You can see some other cool entries and vote for Rocco here.

]]> http://dadjunk.com/2010/02/the-greenest-rocking-horse-ever/feed/ 0 http://dadjunk.com/2009/08/splat-childs-chair-art-storage-unit-and-chair/ http://dadjunk.com/2009/08/splat-childs-chair-art-storage-unit-and-chair/#comments Wed, 12 Aug 2009 21:19:13 +0000 chad http://dadjunk.com/2009/08/splat-childs-chair-art-storage-unit-and-chair/

Recycled cardboard chair and art storage unit. So far, only available in the UK from what we can tell.

Posted via web from Chad

RC Nerf Tank. By travis7s  
   
While not for the beginning tinkerer, this instructable details the creation of  a badass Nerf gun mounted remote control tank. Now, if you could just add a live video feed, it might be the ultimate weapon in a Nerf war. 

Remote Remote Control. By Code128 
 
Tired of the short range on most remote control baby devices, Code128 has outlined a way to extend their range making it even easier to be a remote remote control dad. Why get up when you can just click?

The Silence of the Toys. By kelseymh  
 
The only thing more annoying than a loud electronic toy is one that doesn’t have a volume (or even a mute) switch. I’m sure that many of these devices were designed to torture parents. Thanks to kelseymh for coming up with this great hack. 

T-Shirt Folding Machine. By 246guy  
 
This one gets the simplicity award. It’s just a cardboard box with some strategic flaps. Nothing like making a game of a chore. 

How to Make Your Own Decomposable Baby Wipes. By lilybee 
 
Not only are store bought wipes expensive, but most of them are made with polyester. Easy to follow instructions for making your own wipes.