The story of bigstuffed
During Paris Fashion Week in March, we had the opportunity to visit BigStuffed at their studio space in Paris. The studio is situated in a beautifully quiet courtyard in the central part of Paris.
Dana welcomes me and excuses the creative chaos in the studio which I don’t mind - it is charming to see a space in action and the creative development of the creatures. Dana Muskat is the designer and owner of BigStuffed.
When did you produce the first BigStuffed creature and for whom?
Dana - I produced the first creature many years ago for a friend in Israel that just had a baby, and I didn’t have the possibility to visit her so I decided to make her an octopus, as they are apparently the best mum’s in the world. I continued making more of them as my friends fell in love with them too and so it all started.
What is your backround?
Dana – I studied fashion design. But as a fashion designer I got bored, and the fashion market is too crowded with brands, it feels like there is no space for more. With BigStuffed I get to work on a 3-Dimensional level too which gives me a lot more satisfaction, and I feel that there is definitely space out there for my creatures.
How does your creation and production process look like?
Dana - It all starts with collecting cross board inspiration from different materials, colours, animal types, objects and interiors. The sketchbook with simple drawings simplifies the animals to a certain extent. Afterwards I work with the patterns and the first mook-ups/prototypes, that will be sent to my factories in order to further work on the creature shape, material and filling. Depending on the shape of the animal, it can take several rounds until the final shape is created and put into production.
Which part is the hardest?
It is a different thing to design a fashion piece on a mannequin where you know most of the body shape in comparison to design the shape of different creatures. Still, the hardest part concerns the sourcing for materials.
Each creature’s personality and eyes are very impressive. Do you visit the animals you create in order to get the right emotional touch?
No, I find aquariums sad, studying pictures and watching movies is enough inspiration for me.
Are you working on new designs and further product launches for this year?
Yes, I am launching several new colours of the Beluga, Minis and Manatees. I am also finally beginning to design a new collection, but here I am only in the starting phase.
Waldraud Introduces - Toymail by Gauri and Audry
Toymail was founded in 2012 with a mission to keep families connected without putting kids behind another screen. Screentime is a contstant struggle for parents with children spending 8 hours a day in front of laptops, tablets, and tvs. So many devices for kids isolate them behind a screen. Toymail wanted to create opportunities for kids to play with the people they love even when they can't be together.
Toymail - Gauri and Audry, the two founders
Waldraud - What is the purpose of Toymail and the Mailmen?
Gauri - Our little devices Mailmen do just one thing, and that is to let you communicate with someone who actually matters to you. We could have housed our technology in any form factor, but we were always firm in the belief that it should be a toy. We want kids to play. We want them playing with with physical objects. When we were little, we our half dressed Barbies hitched rides from My LIttle Pony so as not to miss the pie eating contests going on at the county fairs we held in our front yards. That kind of experiential, open ended play is what makes kids' brains such incredible machinery. Our toys make that play even richer. While Toymail starts with messaging, what we have built is as intelligent as the Cloud. There literally is no limit to what it can say. Soon these toys will enable you to read your kid their favorite bedtime story, take them on a virtual scavenger hunt, teach them a foreign language, or sing them songs. Our technology animates toys in ways that we once imagined our own toys coming to life.
Waldraud - Who are you?
Gauri - Toymail was founded by MIT graduate Gauri Nanda (me), and my best friend, Audry Hill, a mother of three. At the age of 25, Nanda brought to market the alarm clock that runs away called Clocky®, as featured on the cover of Inc magazine. Gauri and Audry worked together for over 10 years on Clocky and a family of run away alarm clocks (Ticky, Tocky, and now Pop Clocky), selling millions worldwide.
Toymail - Mailmen lineup
Waldraud - What do you love most about your job?
Gauri - What I love most about my job is that I get to dream up a vision and see it to fruition. The creative process is a journey that can take many fascinating twists and turns. What I love most about my job is that I get to dream up a vision and see it to fruition. The creative process is a journey that can take many fascinating twists and turns.
