Mini Golf and Android Robots

This year's crop of 3D printed items.

Little Boxes

This was the first time that we had students 3D print materials to put in their own diorama boxes. I think it was a success.

Campfire Scene

 African Animals

 Dinosaurs

Symbols of India

Native Americans

Animals in love

 3d sea creatures

 Forest Animals

 Fantasy Box

NYC Skyline

Ocean Animals

 Pokeball

Titanic

My Bedroom

New Printers

We got a $1,200 grant for three new 3D printers. I don't want to mention the company, but it has been a struggle to get these new printers working.  Meaning:  They aren't.

Grieving For a Lost Dog

My friend Jenny was really sad when her senior dog went over the rainbow bridge a month ago. I wanted to do something personal for her, but I am not the Pinterest-craft type. So I thought about what I could make for her... a 3d printed design.  I designed a doggy bone with her dog's name on it and a heart.  Shapeways.com is a good place to get your designs printed.  This is made from a plastic frosted material.

Those Who Can't Do....Teach

  I am the daughter of a very talented painter. He is not a famous painter, in case you were wondering. However, as a little girl, I would watch him create magnificent paintings out of oil. Then I would look at my own paintings and they wouldn't be as good. So I stopped painting very early on. My father did everything he could to encourage me, but I just got it in my head that I wasn't going to reach his level of expertise so I would stop trying.

This summer, after guiding a hundred students and adults to completing their 3d printing projects of their own, I decided that I should embark on a project of my own. So starting in July, I began a design project in Sketchup. But crippled by fear and insecurity of art, I haven't been able to make much headway. If someone in the class decided to do the same project, I could teach them the tools to execute their designs. If I wanted to do something to show technique, I can get it done quickly. If I wanted to design something based on functionality, I could also do it quickly.  But for myself, I just can't seem to get it done. I am not sure why. I think it has something to do with that 7 year old girl thinking she will never be good as her father in art. 

I have confidence in my technical ability, but when it comes to the art aspect of 3d design, I just crumble. Which is part of the reason why I always stress painting . I want participants in 3d design to appreciate the artistic aspect of design. Even if I am still grappling with my fear of art (which is very real to some people.), 

New Technique

When I watch a YouTube video, I am not always able to follow all of the directions.  However, there is always something that I can learn from each video.  This video features a way to use the scale tool to bring in only one face of a 3D object that has just been push/pulled.  This creates a smooth angular appearance for your object.

Different Kinds of Printers

So far, we have a Makerbot Replicator 2 and an XYZPrinting DaVinci Model 1.0. I went through my professional development wishing that I could know more about other brands of 3D printers.  It's not a Coke vs. Pepsi world out there.  There is a huge market for 3D printers and I need to learn about all of them. Challenge accepted.  Jennifer Feldman will learn about the different kinds of printers and post about them in the next year.

  However, I bought a book called 3DPrinting: Build Your Own 3D Printer and Print Your Own 3D Objects. By James Floyd Kelly.  I bought this book becausse I wanted to learn how to build my own 3D printer. What a waste of money.  The company he mentions doesn't even offer DIY kits anymore.  Also, who titles their book "build your own" and then only writes one chapter about it!? It should really be called "3D Printing: Briefly Discussing a 3D Printer DIY and Mostly Discussing Software." So I didn't get my money's worth that way.  I did, however, get get the names of two other 3D printing companies and a good chapter on TinkerCAD tutorials. Bah.