What A Mess!

Hope it will turn into something good,,,

Post Production of 3D Prints #1

If you've stopped by to see what I am up to recently, you know that I wanted to try something completely new with the Alki Point project; making 3D printed items for the majority of the interior design. I have most of them in my hands, but now what do I do?

I needed to decide what I wanted the finishes to look like, and then do a little execution research. What type of adhesive should I use to adhere them to my wooden dollhouse walls? How about gluing it to one another? What kind of paint should I use? Can they be sanded? Primed? Filled? Do they melt like foam does if spray painted?

Several hours of research later, I came away from the Shapeways Forum on Post Production Techniques like most everything else I research. There is really no absolute. Try what works for you and then post your experience to the collective record in the forum. Okay, so I am going to experiment a little, and hope I don't ruin anything in the process.

I should point out that there are many, many different types of material available for you to have items printed in. Plastics, metals, precious metals, sandstone, ceramic, acrylic etc. I have only had them printed in three different materials so far:

~White, Strong & Flexible - Flexible, slightly gritty surface, bright white.

~White, Strong & Flexible Polished - Smoother finish, slightly glossy, bright white.

~Metallic Plastic - Grey with metallic specks, stiff and brittle.

So, until I am able to purchase things in other print materials, this post will pertain only to White, Strong & Flexible and White, Strong & Flexible Polished.

The forums pretty universally recommended that you wash all WS&F pieces thoroughly with soap and water. I filled up a Rubbermaid tray with hot, dish soapy water and used a washcloth to scrub each piece. After a good rinsing, I laid them on paper towels to dry.

The WS&F material is actually Nylon 12. It is pretty porous when not polished, so sealing it with a dip of Future wax or priming before painting was also recommended. I wanted to see how porous it would be un-primed as part of the experimenting.

I didn't have to buy any paint or sealer because I already had these on hand. The Krylon is supposed to be white paint and primer in one. The chrome metallic does not say to use on plastic. It says "for use on wood, metal and more". I hoped the "more" meant Nylon 12. I probably really need to varnish the metallic finish afterwords, so I'll give the gloss spray Mod Podge a try.  

The white paint took four light coats to reach this point. I just coated each piece lightly, letting each coat dry for about 45 minutes in between. One of the tile walls was printed in WS&F Polished. I noticed a more uniform coat of paint, and it seemed to soak into the nylon less. My conclusion is to pay the extra few cents when possible, and have the piece polished. Feels and looks smoother, as well.

The metallic paint is certainly more apt to soak in. I painted at least five coats, also letting them dry thoroughly in between. When I would go out to the garage to check on them, you could see the nylon white coming through in some spots. Notice the piece of wood I am using - the chrome looks promising!

The high temperature today was 39 degrees, so it is cold, but the humidity is low. I had a space heater in the insulated garage, so it was probably somewhere in the 60's in the airspace around the paint. I am going to let all of the pieces dry overnight, then I'll varnish the chrome pieces.

My next post on Post Production of 3D Prints will be about what I find attempting to glue the shower tile walls to the wood bathroom walls.

Until then, I am going put on some bigfoot podcasts, measure the bathroom and kitchen and start making the cabinets!

If you are planning to buy and finish any 3D printed miniatures in the future, here are a couple of helpful tutorials from Shapeways on glues and paint:

Gluing 3D Printed Parts

Painting 3D Printed Models

The code for 20% Off + Free Shipping this weekend is BFDEALS.

***UPDATE***
After drying overnight, the chrome painted parts were dry and looking promising. The bathroom faucet seemed to have some debris or badly painted bumps, so I sanded it lightly with 0000 steel wool. The sanding took a good deal of the sheen off, and left it looking like it had received a coat of watered down black paint. I guess if you are going for the well used look, this might be just fine. Sorry I forgot to take that photo!

These are test pieces, so I decided to go all of the way with them just to see how good or bad the results would be. I added the sinks and toilet to the metallic pieces ans sprayed them with the Mod Podge gloss.

I DO NOT recommend this! It seemed to actually dull and crackle the chrome finish, and now the sinks and toilet look like they have debris in the finish. :0( Not sure if it is just the Mod Podge, or the reaction that the chrome paint would have with any aerosol varnish.

Back to the drawing board... With the new pieces, I am going to try wet sanding, priming, white spray acrylic for the sinks and toilet, and the chrome again for the fixtures. Maybe I'll try Triple Thick to add the shine. More updates to come...

Not The Only One...

Apparently, I am not the only one longing to get back to my minis...

I hope this day starts going by faster. As soon as I am done with work, I'll finally be able to play! Rusty wants me to stop working, too!

Is It Really Thanksgiving In The Northwest?

View today from my back porch. And it's November 26th!

Wait a minute... Is it really Thanksgiving in the Northwest?


The sun is shining, daughter is in charge of cooking, I didn't have to drive anywhere and the boys are going to clean up.

Somebody pinch me...

Wait! Don't!!!

I'm going to enjoy this!

Quick Update...

I know we are all busier than a one legged man at a butt kickin' contest, but I got my next Shapeways delivery today (man they ship fast!) and wanted to share!













This is the first time I've gotten an order in a sintershell. That's what Shapeways does for you when you have a product with lots of little parts. It's a mesh of sorts, printed around the items so they won't get lost in production. In my case, it was the Brunch Set.




It's a tough bugger to open up - it's made of the same material that your items are getting printed in. In my case, White, Strong & Flexible I opened mine up with small wire cutters. My mind is still processing ideas for what I can do to recycle this sintershell. Basket? Dish rack?Shower caddy? Hmmm...






Here are all of the little wonders safely out of their shell! Square lunch plates, salad plates cappuccino cups, and vase (short enough so that the flowers don't block the guests from seeing each other at the table).











The rest of the bathroom tile came (changed design plans after I ordered and needed more) as well as the subway tile back and side splashes for the kitchen! Tomorrow is all about family, Friday I'll need to get some job work stuff done, but Saturday and Sunday ARE MINE! Alki Point is going to start becoming, my friends! Yippee!!!




Have a wonderful Thanksgiving, everyone! And Happy Black Friday shopping for those brave adventurers willing to go out to the stores. Any trinkets I buy will be done wirelessly and safely behind my front door!

Just Enough Time For...

Making stools for Alki Point!

Inspiration photo on the left, 3D rendering photos in strip on right.

Shapeways Store photo

I've ordered two ($13.90 ea. minus the 20% coupon this week). I'll let you know how they turn out, probably get them the second week in December!

Also, just a few words. Book holder words that is...

Now back to work! No, I promise! I'm working, I'm working!

The Thanks I'm Giving

Today I had an epiphany. Wholeheartedly I realized that my wonderful 28 year old daughter is all grown up. I never had any doubt about her, because she has always been the kind of person who will take on any challenge and excel at it. I am just so proud of who she has become.

She is a beautiful and vivacious chemistry nerd, but when she graduated Summa Cum Laudy from Portland State University I was still kind of worried about her street smarts. With school and pursuits of the mind she is excellent. But real life? I guess it's normal for mom's to worry. We always see our kids as our babies. How would she manage her adult life? Beautifully, that's how she's done it!

She commutes each weekday by bus or train to her job downtown where she plays with things like pipettes and lasers. She's using her love of chemistry and her analytical mind to help make the world a better place. She has Blue Apron delivered a few times a week, so that when she gets home from her long day saving the world, she can make a gourmet meal for herself and her fiance, who is an engineering student.

Today she stopped by with a car load of groceries. Groceries for the Thanksgiving dinner that she is going to make at my house. She is so excited and organized about doing it that she sent me her meal prep and grocery spreadsheet. It just tickles me! She's been like this since she was 3. She had to know everything about everything and then master it all. Remember when you were excited about cooking Thanksgiving dinner?

She shared a blog post with me that she said inspired her to master Thanksgiving. I thought all of you might also get a laugh out of it. Heck - maybe you'll even use the spreadsheet! Just plug in the time guests will be arriving, and the spreadsheet tells you when to start cooking! :0)

Thanksgiving For Nerds

This year part of the Thanks I will be Giving, is for the opportunity I've had to raise such an amazing young woman. Thank you my beautiful girl, for growing into such an incredible gift to the world and to me!

Shapeways Store Now Open!!!

As some of you know, for several weeks I'v been busy learning about and iterating 1:12 scale items for 3D printing through Shapeways. I started out designing each piece for my Alki Point project. I thought it would be so much fun to decorate with stuff I actually made. I quickly got carried away! It is amazing that we now have the technology to create a piece on a computer, then actually see that idea come to life!

So far, my print tested inventory includes many lighting and plumbing fixtures, furniture, and decor accents. Before I made my items available to everyone, I wanted to make certain that they were:

1. Printable with no issues.
2. Looked in person the way I envisioned.
3. Were perfect 1:12 scale.
4. Functioned the way I intended.
5. Were used in an actual project where I could take "in Action" photos. I am still working on that!

This took a good deal of time and financial investment, but was well worth it! I feel confident in my designs, and have made them available in my Shapeways store. In the iteration process, I keep certain principals in practice so that my pieces are affordable. This means in the rendering photos you may see items stacked on top of one another. Saving printer space means the item costs less money. For items with many small parts, like my brunch set, Shapeways prints them inside of a material sack (sintershell) so that no pieces are lost. I have many more items in production or just waiting to be print tested, so check back often to see the new designs.

If you see an item that says First To Try, that indicates that it has not been successfully printed yet. Not to worry! There are a series of checks that have to happen even before an item is allowed to be available for sale. Once an item has met that criteria, it can be placed in my store. Once an item is ordered, it goes through another series of printability checks. If it does not pass, you are given a refund. Fortunately, none of my items has failed! Everything I have ordered has come in ready for me to paint, finish or just display!

I'd love to hear your constructive (please) feedback and suggestions for product improvements. If there is a need for an item that I have not filled yet, please tell me about it! I love a challenge! It would be so wonderful to see photos of how you used these pieces in your project. We are such a creative community, and everyone's ideas just tickle me!

A ~G-I-A-N-T-I-C~ ~T-H-A-N-K~ ~Y-O-U!!!~ to Alice for being my first customer! I am just so grateful that you believed in me! :0)

Thanks for stopping in!


My Miniature Madness Shapeways Store

Ramping Up For The Holidays

I've been supremely lucky to have extra free time for the past few weeks. I have taken advantage, and really enjoyed working on projects, reading blogs, and just being in an overall relaxed atmosphere!

But, that's all about to change. Coincidentally, both my job and the holidays ramp up at the same time. Tomorrow is really my last slacker day for a while. Work and getting the house ready for holiday guests will take precedence over my mini life.

I've gotten enough done on Alki Point to see it begin to take shape. Once I made the decision to order the textured white scrapbook paper for the wall covering, I kind of found my way again. It is 12" x 12",  80#.  I love the texture, it went on easy, and painted up really nicely. Now I'll have a good supply for future projects!

Framing side of wall

Knowing that the paper was on its way, I went to bed Monday night thinking about how to construct the bedroom/bathroom separater wall. I needed it to conceal the future bedside lamp wires, so I decided to construct it like a RL wall. Well, sort of. I don't think my studs would pass inspection. There are really no fire breaks in it, but hey, it does the job, right?

Wall in the jig

I knew I would put wallpaper on the bedroom side, but I wasn't quite sure about the bathroom side. I debated; should I order more tile walls from Shapeways, or do something else? In the end I decided to use more of the flooring strips I used on the upper portion of the bathroom and kitchen walls.

Wall after constructing

Wall with paper and newly mixed paint color

Speaking of paint... The grey sample I ordered (Behr Paramount from Home Depot) was really too dark for such a small space. I mixed it with white until I got more of a silvery grey. I decided to paint only one accent wall in the living/kitchen area, then the partial wall behind the bed.




This photo shows the bathroom side of the partial wall. I am still trying to decide whether to leave it as is, or add a piece of plexi as a see thru wall. I guess I'll know once I cut the plexi for the shower and see how that looks and installs. I'll be using two part epoy to adhere it to the White, Strong and Flexible tile wall and shower pan. That's what was suggested on the Shapeways forum, so I'll let you know how that turns out.






It was a little stressful trying to decide how to finish the flooring strips on the walls. I tried a little grey stain on a sample piece, but didn't end up liking the way it looked. Too uniform. I might as well have painted the wall grey.

I wanted some texture, and to mix the modern elements with a little shabby and reclaimed. I tried a little light grey acrylic wash, but the water was really raising too many hairs on the wood. I could sand them after, but I found that most of the color also sanded away.






Then I thought I might just paint them white. After I applied the second coat, I'd lost most of the wood slat texture. Oh poop!

So, I searched again for my favorite inspiration photos, read a couple RL whitewashing articles, and decided to try my luck doing a little sanding after the second white coat was thoroughly dried. I loved it! So that's what I did!





Here's the dry fit, and sadly, this is where my progress will most likely stop for the next couple weeks. I'll try to sneak in a few hours here and there. Shhhhh!

They're Here!!!

A few weeks ago I posted how I started watching tutorials on Skillshare. That lead me to a 3D iterating software called Tinkercad. I started playing around with making modern 3D miniature stuff for the Alki Point project. That lead me to upload about 50 different designs to Shapeways. And that lead me to printing them. The above photo is the bulk of my designs, although I have several more either being printed now or that I am saving up to order. I know that I am behind the curve by a couple years with this stuff, but I say better late than never! It's just so exciting to finally get to see these little gems in real life!

My photos are taken with my phone so are not the best, and these are the raw Strong, White and Flexable prints. I am still deciding how I am going to finish each piece.

Afterglow Lamp Base - Cost $5.59. Shade Cost $5.51. I love the "stepping" from the printing. It gives it a pottery or natural fiber look and feel.

Shown without Shade to illustrate how bulb and socket fit perfectly.

Channel exit for the cord. I made six different lamp styles. All are designed with the bulbs and wiring in mind.

Persuasion Bedside Table. It has non opening drawers on both sides. Cost on this one is expensive (IMO) - $36.11

Forethought Headboard. I'll make it into a platform bed for the Alki Point. I made three different headboard styles. This is the only one I have had printed, so far. Cost $32.98

Enliven Undermount Kitchen Double Sink Cost $13.31. Faucet sold separately, cost $2.13

Enliven Square Nesting Bowls Cost $12.04

Large Coastlight Modern Planters. Cost $18.86

Steadfast Shelf Sized Vase Set. Cost $5.83

Exhilarate Back and Side Tiled Shower Walls. 1/16" grove can be grouted for contrast. 4" x 7" Back wall $22.78, 3" x 7" side wall $15.85. Shower pan is made to fit and is 4" x 3" x 1/8" and costs $12.14. Shower unit with mixer and rain head costs $4.89. Wall mounted low profile toilet costs $11.14. I'll get better "in use" photos once they go into my project.

Exhilarate bathroom accessories include: Sink $8.28, Faucet $2.22, Trash Can & Soap Pump Set $6.57, Towel Bar, Towel Holder, TP holder and 3 Hooks Set $11.66. 

I also made pendant light shades for the kitchen and bathroom that accommodate standard 12 volt sized bulb and socket sets. Two different styles of modern cabinet hardware, modern door handles, wall art pieces, a brunch set and subway tile kitchen side and back splashes. Those are in production now, so keep your fingers crossed with me!

If you want to give 3D designing and printing a shot, I'll be happy to answer questions or help in any way I can! All you need is an idea, some measurements to convert to scale, and a willingness to spend a little time and money. Believe me - if you love to make, you'll love this process!

Second, Third, Fourth Guessing...

I'm in that part of the project where I am second guessing my color choices and wondering why I hadn't thought about certain things - like wall coverings. Really, Jodi? Is this your first time?

I could have just painted the walls, but not me! Nope! I wanted to complicate everything as much as possible texture. So, I dug through all my little stash places to see what I could come up with. I found some scrapbook pages left over from some project and thought I'd try painting it to see how it looked.





It was green with a bit of a cross hatch texture, so I thought I'd better put a couple coats of primer on it. It looked like the texture was going to show through, so I decided to paint it next.








I put two coats of the grey paint sample paint from Home Depot. It definitely dried a little darker than I was anticipating. It also has a surprising bit of sheen on it for being flat paint.


That's where I started questioning my choices in color combinations. I brought everything I have gathered so far to the table to look at all of it together. Paints, fabrics, flooring, exterior, interior, textures.




Some of my grey fabric looks kind of blue. Some of it looks as though it has a greenish tinge to it. The primary grey paint matches the high gloss cabinet film from Elf Miniatures, and that matches the solid grey fabric, but is that too matchy matchy and too much grey? The grey that I sprayed all of the trim is definitely light, but is that a good thing? Suddenly I realize that I am inadvertently and literally making a 50 Shades Of Gray vacation rental!





What's my solution? Oh! Great idea! Buy 3 more yards of fabric online that "look" like the right grey and wait a few days for them to arrive!

Then my brain decides to second guess the painted scrapbook paper. Will it unwrinkle itself with the wallpaper paste? Should I put a couple coats of matte sealer on it before I put it on? Is that too much grey? Maybe I should buy some white textured scrapbook paper and just give myself a couple days to decide.

Once I start in on this kind of thinking I begin and end in exactly the same place. Like 15 rounds of this. Before I decide to just go for it. Most times, everything turns out great and I am happy. But then, the Barn happened. And now, I am afraid to mess everything up again. Hump. There's no hope for me...

So, I spent HOURS on Etsy. Distraction was good. Then I went through my stash of leftover project parts and pieces and decided to put wooden strips on the upper half of the back wall. I started this after 10:00pm and did not go to bed until 1:00am. I like the texture, but am I going to stain it? Will it compete with the wood floor?



I managed to get the wood wall finished, and get the divider wall between the kitchen/bathroom cut. sanded, wood installed etc.







I managed to start thinking about the ceiling/roof and make sure I had wood for that.









I finished up the spray painting, and checked that the window frames still fit.

But really, it doesn't seem like I got much done over the weekend. I'll try to make some decisions, then get back to it on Tuesday...