We challenge you to:

Draw a Child's Toy

If you are new to Inkscape, feel free to keep it simple.

Multiple entries are welcome, and please do stick around for the chat!

All abilities are invited to get involved. The complexity of your entry is down to you.

Please post your finished artwork below. 

IMPORTANT: If you would like to know what you could do to improve your artwork, add the phrase to your comment: "Brutal Feedback" --- only for those with nerves of steel! (Please include a brief description of your process, difficulties you have experienced and your desired outcome).

Because of limited resources, moderators may not always be able to give feedback. However, other participants may be able to offer advice.

Please spread the word!
#inkscapechallenge

Please see CHALLENGE RULES before submitting your artwork

Instructions/Information

• To submit your artwork, scroll to the bottom of the page and while logged in, click the paperclip (bottom-left) to upload your image, add a description in the text box (optional) and click "Submit Reply".
• If you'd like to post work-in-progress artwork, create a thread in the "Work in Progress" section of the forum, and post your images there, with the title "[Month] [Year] [Challenge Title] WIP - [your artwork title]" (you are welcome to ask for help there if you get stuck). When finished, post the final graphic to this thread.
• There are no winners (HOWEVER, WE MAY SHARE ARTWORK WHICH STANDS OUT WITH THE INKSCAPE COMMUNITY). These challenges are intended to inspire, to encourage you to share your work and to build a supportive community.
• If you post your artwork here, you agree for us to share your artwork and use your artwork to create a banner for social media - to opt out, add "Please don't share" to your post.
• Please don't post artwork containing AI generated graphics or 3rd party images. as it can be hard to see what you (the artist) has produced using Inkscape.
• You're encouraged to discuss and offer feedback/constructive criticism to others, but please be respectful.
• Most importantly, be creative, give your best, and have fun!

We look forward to seeing your entries!

Challenge entries (so far)

Dolls

My first toy that I remember.

boy on a tricycle

An old one.
 

Thank you Pacer for this challenge. It is something that I plan to work on: flat drawing to make 3D toys or dollhouse items, stuffed or using paper and cardboard.

This one was a pattern for a stuffed toy I designed two years ago. I really made the toy for a little girl.

Here's mine. A small isometric toy. At first, I just wanted to draw a few building blocks, but then I came up with the idea of ​​making it playable at the same time. So here's the result, it's colorable and -I think- quite playable. Let's play freely. ;)

Based on a known brand that makes such figurines, meet "Bill".
This is something I made about 4 years ago and still needs some work to refine it.
"X-rayed" 

Little update. I dressed the blocks up with a wood pattern. I also fixed some small details. I think it turned out pretty well, so this is the final one. ;)

Hi, I am a bit missing due to health problems with a family member. But I did not want to miss the challenge and in my moments of free time this has come out. I recycled Tux from another challenge 😊

@mrks9 I'm sorry to hear that. I wish a rapid and mild recovery for your relative.

Thanks, @Inkonic 💙

Robby the Nu-Retro-Future Toy Robot.
255 objects consisting of shapes, strokes and text.
X-rayed

@Inkonic I like the monochrome style and the small details!

I'm very glad that you liked it. Thank you @razr !☺

The style is similar to the previous one. At least it's the same wood material. Another wooden toy.

I was never very good at this childhood game.

Lalla the rag doll.
For the cloth/felt effect I used the Cross Noise B filter.
For the hair: I first draw a rope and coppied. Then with the Pencil Tool at Bend From Clipboard function I shaped the hair.
X-Rayed

Teddy bear. I have made several attempts and decided that this is as far I get with making it fluffy this time around.

One last item from me for this month.

My teddy bear :)

Teddy bears, dolls, trains, puzzles...What more could the kid  in me want. Thanks to all who gave me joy by sharing their Inkscape creations.

Perhaps marbles?

Inspired by one of my favourite toys as a little kid. I worked almost every day for my daily dedicated hour (sometimes up to four!) of creativity learning/work for about three and a half weeks straight - give or take a day or two, I challenged myself to understand more about negative space, gradient shading, and that using stroke-to-path is sometimes very much your best friend. I struggled with, and still do, keeping the parts of each section in layered folders so as not the disrupt the hierarchy level of shape placement since moving one shape up or down seemed to affect the other parts elsewhere. The picture has over 550 paths that formed the complete tricycle. This has been by far the most time intensive work I have done and one of my favourite ones. I hope everyone enjoys! I'd appreciate any Brutal Feedback.

@Spwiggles My first starring role in theater was when I rode a tricycle like that around the stage with a little girl my age standing on the back and I sang "Bicycle built for two."

Very nicely done @Spwiggles !
Yes, strokes are great and can generate some magic. I work with those all the time.
Plain strokes, strokes to path, taper strokes (LPE), power strokes (LPE), regular strokes, spiro strokes, Bspline strokes, combined strokes, blured strokes...

Hey @Gaillycool
To make it more fluffy, first try to create "brushes" like Lazur: https://inkscape.org/forums/competitions/inkscape-challenge-may-2024/#c71152 and Maren: https://inkscape.org/forums/competitions/inkscape-challenge-may-2024/#c70874
Then copy the "brush" and set the Pen tool or Pencil tool to: Shape > From Clipboard or Shape > Bend From Clipboard.
I used the same principle to create the rope-like hair of my rag doll.

@Inkonic thank  you for the tip. I will try it!

@Gaillycool Here's another technique by Adam Belis who's also an Inkscape contributor: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lasbu9hHN7w

@spwiggles And it's a banger ! Your chrome and gloss is neat, it will be difficult to find something to enhance. The only things I can detect are 2-3 shadows spill over outside some parts.

To constraint blurred shapes to stop on edges, I use this trick :

1. Make a clone (B) of the 'container' path (A) and cut it

2. Select A and group it (Ctrl + G), then paste B on place (Ctrl + Alt + V)

3. Select both A and B, then set clip

4. You can now edit inner group by double-clicking on it and start to add shapes for shadows and highlights. All elements in group will be stopped by the clip.
Bonus : as B used for clipping group is a clone of A, modify nodes on A will automatically affect the same on the clip.
 

Some gorgeous works of art submitted in this challenge... I love them! Thank you everyone for taking part. The next challenge is now live... See you there!

https://inkscape.org/forums/competitions/inkscape-challenge-december/

@Inkonic thank you again 

@m1981 - OOps! You caught me out on the shadow/blur overstep. I forgot to do this last crucial step before submitting. But thanks for the reminder and tip for us all! 😁