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Designer Based in LA

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Zoodles

A Construction Plush Kids Toy

SUMMARY

We designed a sustainable plush children's toy inspired by the classic Balloon Animal

TIMEFRAME

2023- Current

TYPE

Licensed Product

SKILLS LEARNED

Licensing, Prototyping, Rhino 3D, Packaging Design, Manufacturing, Focus Groups, Pitching

INSPIRATION & THE PROBLEM

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INITIAL IDEATION

We wanted to reinvent the classic balloon animal making it...

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INVITING & INTERACTIVE

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SAFE

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SUSTAINABLE

We thought to make it soft, cuddly, fidget-friendly, and fully customizable, allowing kids to enjoy their "balloon" animals anywhere—whether in the car, classroom, or at home!

SKETCHES

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proposed accessory attachment method:

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ball connected to ring & socket connected to accessory

ball and socket joint allows for maximum rotation

flexible ring fits snugly onto Zoodle

PROTOTYPING

1.0 GETTING STARTED

1.1 DIFFERENT FABRIC, WIRE, FOAM

1.2 ENDCAP CONSTRUCTION

1.3 FIRST ACCESSORIES

1.4 ACCESSORY PACKAGING

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Looked phalic, unforgiving twists, fabric too loose, felt wire, not sturdy

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modeled and 3D printed different accessories packs that could be purchased separately

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prototyped “end caps” allowing users to secure their creations

1.4 PACKAGING PROTOTYPES

2.0 THE PERFECT HAND FEEL

2.1 PROGRESSIVELY CUTER CREATIONS

2.2 ACCESSORY REVAMP

2.3 EXPANDING ZOODLE TYPES

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Tested different foams, wires, and fabrication methods to get best combination of hand feel, pliability, plush, & durability

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Made 1 Zoodle multiple colors to help know where to twist and loop

Finalized “Mini” & “Pocket” versions

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Expansion pack low-fidelity prototypes

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Adults excited about Zoodles too-- expanded demographic to “Kidults”

Parents concerns about the internal wire subsided after feeling Zoodles

Widespread love of reusing same tubes to build something new

Kids 5-6 = simpler creations and loved accessorizing

Kids 7+ = easily followed tutorials & explored complex creations.

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To include everybody in the fun, we labeled animals with different difficulty ranges so builders can be challenged if they choose while also remaining successful with their creations.

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Zoodles follows a design system, like Lego, to ensure each creation can be made with the same set of standard parts.

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