Handmade toys express the creativity of the people and culture from which they come. Often crafted with scraps of wood, textiles, metal and household items destined for the garbage, handmade toys reflect the resourcefulness and imagination of their maker (be they an adult or a child) and the time and place in which they are made. Inspired by vernacular objects, Katrina Tompkins has endeavoured to create place-based designs, through research, experimentation and play, with the goal of reviving the production of homemade toys by people of all ages, and celebrating the remarkable, resourceful and playfully crafted toys of Newfoundland’s past.