Boys Are Creative, Too!

"Specifically for boys … our experience shows that themes including bugs, transportation and sports have been successful." — Ann Shade, Dimensions/Perler Inc.

No longer are crafts just for girls. People in both established toy and craft companies are brainstorming ideas that will tap into the creative side of boys’ minds. To lure them in, crafts glow in the dark and deal with insects, monsters and dinosaurs.

In general, boy-geared crafts focus on the finished product and require little time and effort. This appeals to the shorter attention span of young males.

Betty J. Morris, president of K & B Innovations, Inc. (ToyDirectory) — the maker of Shrinky Dinks since 1973 — is a strong advocate of expanding the arts and crafts market to include more items for boys. “Creative thinking is the basis for all innovations and problem solving,” Morris told TDmonthly Magazine.

However, Morris knows that finding craft ideas that boys will latch onto isn’t easy. She admits that she still sees fewer craft kits directed toward boys compared with those for girls.

“Unfortunately, the industry seems to perceive crafts as a girls’ activity,” she admitted. Her company, however, started looking toward the boys market by working with Spin Master Inc. to create kits for the Shrinky Dinks product line for both girls and boys. It was simply a matter of finding the right product to match with the boys’ market. “We had Spiderman kits that were incredibly popular for a while,” said Morris.

Shrinky Dinks and SpinMaster have since parted ways, but Morris stressed that there are still plenty of products that appeal to boys. “Most boys love to trace team logos. We also have kits, including airplanes, dinosaurs, race cars, etc. — anything that they are interested in. Usually, they create key chains or magnets. Lastly, we have a Kooky Comics pattern book, where kids can learn how to draw crazy cartoons.”

Finding the hook for boys in the craft market is also a focus for Ann Shade, sales support manager of Dimensions/Perler Inc. The company manufactures and sells bead kits in which the finished product can be heated to create a permanent piece of art.

“We frequently hear the need for ‘more products for boys,’ or at least product that appeals to both girls and boys. We have boy and gender neutral kits in our current mix and will continue to offer new items in this segment,” Shade told TDmonthly. “The sales on girls’ kits will almost always be higher than boys’ kits. However, we have identified themes such as ‘Glow-in-the-Dark’ that have a strong appeal for both sexes. Specifically for boys, though, our experience shows that themes including bugs, transportation and sports have been successful.”

Some craft manufacturers are trying to remove the gender differences in their products altogether by focusing, instead, on the creative process. Creations by You Inc. (ToyDirectory) is a company that has deployed this strategy.

“Our kits are not gender specific,” noted Nan Thomas of the Colorado-based company. “We focus on drawing pictures, writing stories, taking photographs, etc., so we have boys and girls equally completing our kits. Because we add no content whatsoever in our kits, each child is free to let their imagination run in any direction they choose when they create whatever keepsake they are interested in. The free-form aspect of our kits seems to be very appealing to both sexes.”

The following are a few examples of gender-neutral or boy-specific craft kits: