Creativity Through Motherhood: The Birth of Purposeful Play by Meaghan Laaper
A common thread runs through all creatives: the desire to bring an unknown into existence. For Aimee Hughes, that need can be filled numerous ways, but woodworking currently keeps her hands busy.
Aimee stumbled into woodworking after purchasing a house with her wife in Ottawa. “We really wanted a big, beautiful farmhouse table, but could not justify the price.” After some online scrolling, the two found a feasible plan and built one themselves. It went so well that they built another, and another, and opened a side business making custom furniture. At the time, these furniture sales helped offset some of the costs associated with the couple’s fertility treatments — treatments that eventually paid off. “After 6 long years, we finally got pregnant with our son Theo.”
With a new son and a move to New Brunswick, woodworking was put on hold, but Aimee’s creative desire never went away. Inspired by her son — and with some pandemic time on her hands — she found a new place to take her woodworking: wooden handmade toys. “I decided I wanted to make him some quality toys that would last a lifetime,” and as it is, Canada is severely lacking in the local handmade toy department. Aimee found a space for her creativity that could help her son and other children too. Purposeful Play was born.
“Making toys is so different from — and way more difficult than — making furniture, but it is something that I am truly enjoying.”
From Wooden Stacking Gems — wooden blocks with multiple sanded sides — to Rainbow Stackers, building blocks, and more, Aimee’s handmade wooden toys help develop fine motor skills, hand eye coordination, and are just plain fun.
On top of being locally made, Aimee sources materials from local lumber yards and maps out her pieces so she can reduce her waste. Like any local business, she puts all her heart and energy into every toy, checking over each piece multiple times before shipping it out.
Aimee’s business has been beneficial to her own creativity, but more importantly, her work is giving space for another generation of hungry creatives. “My main goal is to allow children to be able to use their imaginations: let them get out into nature, be creative, and see what they come up with. For my rainbows, customers have shown me pictures of their children using them as car ramps, bridges, tunnels, the possibilities are endless!”
Creativity is tied up in imagination; the same drive that inspires artists to bring their art into the world seems pretty similar to the desire in children for innovative play. For Aimee, her toys give children the space to be inventive and to play creatively.
“I think that in order to enhance your creative side, you really have to look inwards at yourself. Let your mind relax and let it take you to places you haven’t been before!”
Since opening her shop in October, Aimee has had nothing but positive feedback. She has even started taking custom orders. “It is so much fun to be able to work with a client’s idea and be able to make it come to life.”
It just goes to show where creativity can take you, and between you and me, let’s just say I’ve seen some of the balancing acts people do with her Rainbow Stackers, and I can’t help but think I’d love one for my office. Who says imaginative play needs to end when we’re kids?
Writer: Meaghan Laaper