A couple of weeks ago I finished some circus paintings for a pediatric dentist’s office here in Portland. After they were done, I thought the designs would translate well to a circus themed Paper City. So here it is – Paper City Circus! My kids liked the idea too. Especially our almost two year old who loves roaring like a lion. Nice! All …
Ever since childhood, I’ve always enjoyed seeing the different Nativity sets displayed around the holidays. This year, I finally tried making my own Paper City style Nativity Scene to share with everyone. I had a great time playing around with different designs, and I think it will be fun to color in, too! So far the kids are really enjoying it, …
It seems like we’re always in the need of more kids activities for restaurants and travel. Shortly after I made Paper City Paris, I wondered what a miniature version would look like. Finally, this week I had the time to try it out. It was really fun redesigning and simplifying the folds and structures. For example, the people in this set are so …
I’ve been so busy for the last two weeks, I haven’t had time to make many new crafts, so we printed out the Paper City style trick-or-treat scene from last year. The fall leaves were so nice in our yard today, the kids took the paper people outside to practice up on their trick-or-treat lines. So if you want a little Halloween project, feel …
Voilà, Paper City Paris! I’ve been working on this for a very long time now and had so much fun creating it. My kids have been watching me draw and sketch for two months, and they’re now huge fans of the city. They kept asking me, “When are the buildings going to stand up, Daddy?” And now every time they see a radio tower while …
Disney FamilyFun Magazine asked me to create a design for their Badges of Fun summer activity game. I did the road trip badge, which just came out in their August issue. Below is a printout for the interactive version of the badge. You can also add it to the rest of Paper City Road Trip here!
Disney asked me to make a road trip illustration for a project of theirs. (More on that in a few weeks.) So I thought I’d turn some of the illustrations into a Paper City “Road Trip Pack.” I made road pieces, like train tracks, so you can build your own road. My son was very focused in this task, and ended up with a really great track. …
The votes are in ~ Paper City Paris won! If any of you have ideas about what you’d love to see in the design, please let me know! Feel free to leave comments and even upload your favorite photos of Paris (to the Made by Joel Facebook Page) that capture what you love about this enchanting city. Thanks for sharing in this process! And I look forward …
I was struggling to decide which city to select as our next Paper City and thought, “Why not put it to a vote?” As soon as I did, I was amazed at how quickly the votes started coming in. In fact, over the past several days, we received nearly 300 votes on over 35 cities around the world. Thus far, Paris is in the lead. But Rome, Barcelona, …
My sister Lori has a new album of original songs entitled “Outside My Door – Songs For Children Of all Ages.” I did the artwork for it, which some of you might recognize since I used the Paper City and added some color and a few extra details relating to her lyrics. The design layout by our friend Paul Johnson turned out so fun that …
I was asked to create a Paper City addition for Art Month Sydney. To launch the festival this year, Sydney’s National Art School hosted an ‘Art Month Art Adventure’ event for kids. The project (named Itty Bitty City) was driven by LMNOP magazine, and was based on my Paper City, but also included many other decorations and various …
I was asked to take part in the 2011 Play! Design for Kids calendar. My copy just arrived from Hamburg yesterday! It is a project initiated by EIGA and it’s filled with amazing contemporary children’s design – on the theme of play. I’ve looked through it a dozen times already. So many cool and inspiring ideas. If you …
The beautiful alex and alexa store from London recently asked me to design a Halloween craft to repurpose their great packaging boxes. I decided to create a Paper City style trick-or-treat scene for them. They were really fun to make! If you want to make one yourself, you can use any box you’d like. Then print out the template below and …
Yet another request for an addition to the Paper City. A helicopter! And what a great idea, too. I poked a hole and strung some thread through the top so you can fly it around. Then I made a landing pad, so you can fly on missions and then return for a smooth landing on the circle. We had a great time putting the city people in places (like the fireplace …
I’ve had a lot of requests (including from my son) for some cars and trucks for the paper city. So here they are! There’s a template below if you want to try them out. Just cut on the black outlines and fold. Cool! Template: Click on the image below, then print.
I was drawing these little people on the train to Seattle last Saturday (to see the Alexander Calder Exhibit), and thought it would be amusing to turn them into little paper dolls. So I sketched some buildings for them and made a happy little paper city. Yes, you can join in on the fun. There is a template you can download and print below. It might …