Golden Ticket Number Two – Boxy

Time has passed and another niece is turning ten which means it is time for our second Golden Ticket.  As previously mentioned, the Golden Ticket is a way for us to announce to a niece or nephew that their birthday present for that year is one week of extravagant fun at our house.

I don’t think I’ll ever change the design of the ticket itself but I hope to be able to customize its enclosure for each recipient.  It is exciting to me because everyone at my brother’s house knows that a Golden Ticket is coming but most, if not all of them, are assuming it will be identical to its predecessor.

I tried to incorporate her fondness for girly stuff and her love for animals.  The resulting “box” is very soft and squishy from the foam-covered ears to the baby blanket material.  I’m particularly pleased with the feline cues.  They are bold enough to be obvious but not overbearing.  I didn’t want this box to be seen as a toy that happened to house a Golden Ticket, but rather a container with stuffed animal characteristics.  The big breakthrough that got me thinking on the right path was scaling it down from baby doll or pillow size to Golden Ticket container size.

The following is a gallery of concept, in-process and finished product images with notations.

Initial Collection of Supplies

Initial Concept Sketches – Too Toy-like

Sketches to Work out Mechanics of Final Design

Green Foam Cut to Size

Hard Plastic Parts Provide Structure

Plastic Buttons cut from Scrap Polysterene

Hard Plastic Softened by Layers of White and Pink Sheet Foam

Magnets Provide Strong Clean Closure System – Keep Away from Electronics

Back of Hard Plastic – Magnets and Ribbon Epoxied in Place

“Sewing” Hard Plastic to Green Foam with String

Foam-Covered Plastic now Attached to Green Foam by String

Plastic Buttons Prevent String from Pulling Through Green Foam

Pale Green Baby Blanket Fabric Cut to Size and Sewn Along Four Edges – Raw Edge will be Folded in and Tucked Under Plastic

Finished Product – Open – Inside View

Final Product – Beauty Shot

Finished Product – Front View

Finished Product – Side View

Letter – Front

Holographic Back of Letter