Depending on your age, you will probably have played with Lincoln Logs, Tinker Toys or LEGO bricks at some point in your childhood. Remember how much fun they were? Artist Patrick Martinez wants to bring the same kind of joy to a new generation and in a pretty wonderful new way.

His creation is called Linx, and it’s deceptively simple. Linx are just little pieces of plastic that connect drinking straws together, allowing you to create all kinds of shapes from basic to strikingly complex. Use them flat to create simple shapes or snap them together to create complicated geometric objects.

Martinez wanted to use drinking straws to create his new play system because they are readily available, cheap, and mostly air. They can be easily modified by cutting, bending and mixing lots of different colors.

Besides the obvious fun potential, Linx could be used in classrooms to teach kids about geometry and spatial relationships. Physical and occupational therapists could use them to develop patients’ motor skills. The Linx system has a Kickstarter page where it is gathering funds for the initial manufacturing run. We can’t wait to see them in a toy store someday soon.