Want to design your own earrings? I can print them for you!!

 Have you got a special occasion coming up that you need something SPECIFIC for, but haven't been able to find it?

Or have you had a design in your mind but haven't been able to work out how to make it yourself? Maybe myself and my adorable 3d Printer can help you!!

The process of making earrings is not as complex as you would think. There's a few steps along the way that can give you an understanding of what's involved, but the hard stuff is done by the software and printer, and not by me!!

Here's an example of an idea I had in my head and then turned it into a finished piece.

STEP 1 - DESIGN

Start with an idea of what you'd like to see the end product look like. You really need to have the image drawn instead of in your head, as the idea in your brain is never easy to print with!!

STEP 2 - CREATE ON SOFTWARE

This is the part where you can either DIY on Tinkercad (really easy for beginners,) or on any other CAD software if you're fluent in it. My son is studying Engineering at school and created some amazing pieces on Autocad that then converted to great 3d pieces. You'll need to save it as an .stl file here and then upload it to a slicer (that's something I can do for you!)

STEP 3 - PRINT

Pop your mini SD card in the printer and be mesmerized for hours (earrings only take less than 30 minutes as they're pretty thin.

STEP 4 - DECORATE AND ASSEMBLE

Get your creative juices flowing here - I used posca pens and glued some backs on these beauties before gluing them together

STEP 5 - STEP OUT IN STYLE

Voila! Doesn't take that long once you know what you're doing! I even added a glitter version to my collection (cause I frikkin love glitter!)

If you have an idea, why not get in touch and see what we can make together!!

The wonderful world of 3d printing

If you're a creative creature like me, you've probably spent half your life wandering around in, let's call it, a bit of a distracted cloud of glitter, no1?!! When you look at something made by hand, I bet you stare in awe and think about the process of how that piece was made. Whether it be wood, fabric, tiles, paper, plastic or metal, you've no doubt spent more hours than you should on thinking about the process instead of just buying the piece and supporting the artist (I often say to myself, "I can make that!," when what I should be doing is saying "thank you for making this," buying it and then heading off!)

I've been on this planet for over 4 decades now and much of my time was searching for the process that gives me the freedom to create anything I want. The only problem was that the product of choice hadn't actually been invented yet!! If you don't know what it is, come for a ride with this nerdy mum and find out what it's all about!

3d printing is the process of creating a three dimensional product on a machine that extrudes plastic through a tiny nozzle. The art is in the designing of the product and then uploading this to the machine that does all the work. Although the machine is 100% reliant on the coding entered in to create the pieces, watching it in action is something that I get tired watching! It's so COOL to think that something that was in my head as an idea can then be quickly and easily created into a fully functional piece in just a matter of hours! It doesn't always work out perfectly, and sometimes you can't break physics to make the product exactly the same as what is in your head, but when it does work out, there's a pretty cool atmosphere in the air!!!

Here's a few of my finished products that I've started working on. More details about the process of design and printing as well as resources in other posts......................

 If you like my work or want to find out more, check out my facebook page or visit me on instagram, where I'm currently running a year long #dottiwilldoweeklychallenge on self-care and love!!!

I'll also be starting at the Redcliffe Markets here in Brisbane for the month of October - you can find me there and we can talk about creating the ideas that YOU have for yourself or someone special in your life!