Grapat
Meet Grapat. We're so proud to welcome this Spanish brand to our store with a wide range of open-ended wooden toys that shine in their simplicity and are close to nature.
Grapat is a Spanish family business that still makes its wooden toys entirely by hand. The dyes used are all natural, safe for your child and the environment. They offer a wide range of open-ended toys that shine in their simplicity. Use their Nins, rings, bowls, and discs to learn sorting, counting, and subtraction. Use them in your role-playing game (e.g., as coins in your shop), or use them in a wonderful little play world where the Nins can be anything your imagination can create. Grapat also offers individual elements, such as green or orange cones, water droplets, flowers, coins, and more, to create the most beautiful mandalas or figures. Grapat is a brand we at In den Olifant are very proud of!
The story so far...
When their first child, Lola, was born, the Grapat founders realized she didn't really need ready-made toys to play with, and that she used her ingenuity to transform everyday objects into whatever she wanted. Seeing how happy she was, they realized that being present, observing her needs, and offering everyday objects to fulfill them was all that truly mattered.
After the birth of their second child, Tomàs, the couple behind Grapat moved from the city to the countryside. In Jordi's former family home, they were able to integrate the slower way of life they had longed for. They began creating and playing with wood, and slowly but surely, the family home transformed into a fully operational workshop.
Grapat means "a handful" in Catalan, and that's precisely where the simple idea behind this humble project originated: to carry a handful of individual pieces with the utmost care in our hands and offer them with the same love to the hands of children. Grapat has grown significantly since its founding in 2015, is immensely popular across Europe, and requires more production space every year, but it is and remains a family project. It is the manifestation of a way of life and a vision for the future; it is their baby. They still create new pieces and prototypes from clay or beeswax, they still communicate with the world with their own authentic voice, and they continue to color each piece by hand.
Living to the rhythm of nature
Nature is both our clock and our muse. We live in rhythm with it, with respect for it, and it is our design inspiration for every new piece we create. Our true, most important source of inspiration, however, is children. Our own philosophy is to be at the service of childhood. With Grapat, we want to ensure that every child has a free and respectful upbringing, filled with playtime without expectations or judgment. The pieces should invite and encourage their own, genuine sense of creation. That's why we offer play materials without instructions or limits. It is our duty as parents to protect this sacred moment, without interfering, simply observing and being present. Our motto is Be free, play open.
Toys with a soul of Grapat
Grapat has a lifelong love affair with nature. We have no control over it, so we simply observe and respect it. The goal is simplicity itself – when creating a product, they draw inspiration from its true, natural form and strive to reduce it to the essentials, freeing us from the superfluous and unnecessary, to offer materials that are truly open, ready to transform into what a child needs during every playtime.
The Imperfection of Wood Makes Each Piece Unique
Wood is our element. It's warm and vibrant, soft and robust at the same time. Its irregular shapes and incomplete patterns make it unique and a gem to behold. The texture holds a wealth of information and hidden stories waiting to be discovered by every child's senses. The imperfection of the wood makes each piece unique – just like us humans. Over time, the wood will develop subtle dents and scars, signifying that it has fulfilled its purpose: to allow children to play freely and carefree for hours, and we cherish that deeply. Grapat wooden toys are produced using traditional manufacturing processes and sustainable materials sourced from the EU.
Color appeals to the imagination
Color has the power to capture the imagination, evoke a mood, and be engaging. That's why all Grapat dyes come directly from nature. Each piece is dyed by hand. The choice of 100% safe, natural pigments ensures a gentle and refined connection with the wood and its grain. The dye penetrates deeply into the wood's surface without obscuring its beauty, creating a lasting effect. Depending on temperature, humidity, and wind, the dye is absorbed into the wood's surface in different ways, a seal of authenticity because no two pieces are identical. No assembly line, but handcrafted. The elements are finished with waxes and oils of vegetable origin.
Fan of the local short chain
Grapat also stands for a short and local supply chain. This way, you can be sure that the toys are produced responsibly. Social responsibility is part of Grapat's way of life, which is why they collaborate with foundations that care for people with physical or mental disabilities to package their products.
Grapat represents open-ended play in its purest form. Open-ended toys encourage free, autonomous play and creativity in every child. Grapat's premise is to let children play at their own pace, without time limits, without boundaries. Materials that encourage, invite, and stimulate the creation of various fantastic, realistic, and imaginary little worlds. They are handmade in Spain using traditional processes, high-quality, sustainable materials and natural dyes. They are therefore completely safe for your little one. The products are hand-painted, surrounded by land, fire, rivers, and of course... children ;-)
