In March 2020, Jon-Paul Wheatley was preparing to launch a tech startup in St. Louis. The pandemic swallowed the world. His investors bailed. His career imploded. As the world entered quarantine, the Bournemouth-born Wheatley wanted something to occupy his time. He purchased leatherworking tools and began teaching himself how to cobble. On a whim, he tried making a soccer ball. “The first one was terrible, but I had a good time making it,” Wheatley says. “I looked at it and thought, If I did that again, it would be better.” Four years later, there are hundreds of balls bouncing around his apartment, many of which have gone viral thanks to Wheatley’s artful storytelling on social media (@jonpaulsballs). He’s parlayed internet fame into a new startup, 12 Pentagons, which was included in the latest cohort of Arch Grants recipients. Wheatley’s company will sell soccer balls as part of a series of limited-edition drops throughout the year. These are among his favorites from his burgeoning ball-making career.
1. GLOBE
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This ball was inspired by the parallels of latitude and meridians of longitude that you would expect to see on a globe. It features 125 unique panels and natural materials sourced from every continent.
2. MITRE HISTORY
Using slivers of old Mitre brand balls, Wheatley gifted this ball to the Lost Lionesses, the first women’s team to represent England.
3. THE 92
It was the first ball made by Wheatley that he actually loved—and the first that will be released in a limited supply through 12 Pentagons.
4. PREDATOR
Made from parts of recycled adidas Predator cleats, Wheatley was invited to adidas headquarters in Germany to test the ball with the German National Team.
5. ORANGE PEEL
This is what happens when a fondness for citrus fruit and soccer collide. Wheatley spent three days hand-stitching this ball to resemble a peeled orange that has been reconstructed.
6. THE IMPOSSIBALL
Wheatley and his wife, Allison, collaborated to create this ball based in part on the illustration featured prominently on road signs outside stadiums in the U.K.
7. SAINT LOUIS CITY
The soul of the city is baked into this ball, which Wheatley spent time stitching at various St. Louis landmarks. He soaked the thread in the Mississippi River and used 20 red triangles that are meant to represent the keystone shape of the Gateway Arch.
8. BADLY-DRAWN BALL
The idea was simple: a (poorly) hand-drawn ball built to look like it bounced out of a comic strip. Each of the 160 unique panels fit only in one place on this ball.
9. BALL COMBINATION
What’s better than one soccer ball? Two balls in one! Wheatley fused together the designs of two pentagonal balls to create a design featuring 119 panels that are completely unique.
10. THE HAT TRICK
Based on a recently discovered Einstein tile, this ball features one of the newest shapes known to man. Fused together, the shape creates an aperiodic pattern—in other words, one that never repeats.
For more, visit 12p.com.
