I have a printer
Get the file and print it yourself.
- Download a standard printable file
- Print it on your common home printer, your way
- Tweak it and download again if it is not quite right
Pre-launch · early access list open
Say it. See it. Print it.
MakeThingy turns a few words into a 3D model you can spin and tweak. Then download a printable file for your own printer, or have the printed part mailed to you. No CAD skills needed.
Made for hobbyists with a 3D printer, and for families with big ideas and no CAD skills.
Demo preview — the real thing generates your own design
The catch
Ideas are easy. 3D modelling is not.
You know exactly what you want: a dinosaur toothbrush holder, a knob that fits the drawer, a cookie cutter shaped like the dog. Then you open modelling software and the fun stops. MakeThingy is being built so that describing the thing is the whole job.
- The knob that broke and is not sold anymore.
- The kid whose ideas are bigger than any toy shop.
- The printer that sits idle because modelling takes so much learning.
How it works
Three steps from words to a real thing
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Describe it
Type what you want in plain words, the way you would tell a friend. “A dinosaur toothbrush holder.” “A replacement knob for my stove.”
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See it & tweak it
A 3D preview appears that you can spin around. Make it bigger, rounder, or add a name. Not quite right? Change it until it is.
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Print it or get it mailed
Download a standard printable file for your own printer, or have the printed part mailed to you. A grown-up places any order.
Interactive demo
Try the idea machine
Pick an idea and watch it print, layer by layer. Then tweak it.
The idea machine needs JavaScript to run. The steps above show how the real thing will work.
1. Pick an idea
Your idea
Waiting for an idea.
2. Tweak it
3. Choose what happens next
These are the two options the real thing will offer. Get early access to be first in line.
Demo preview — the real thing generates your own design
Idea wall
What will you make?
A few of the things people tend to dream up. These are examples of what you could ask for, not a catalogue.
- Fix something
- Play
- Gifts
- School projects
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Fix something
A replacement knob for the stove
The original cracked and the shop has never heard of it.
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Play
A dragon that guards your dice
Roll a six, wake the dragon.
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Gifts
A cookie cutter shaped like our dog
Ears and all. Bake a whole pack of them.
Grandparents get a batch first.
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School projects
A volcano base for the science fair
A base for the baking-soda eruption.
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Fix something
A clip for the cable that keeps falling behind the desk
Made for your cable, not a generic pack.
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Play
A chess set where every piece is a family member
Grandpa is the king. Obviously.
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Gifts
A name sign for a bedroom door
Spelled right, for whoever sleeps there.
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School projects
A solar system for the classroom shelf
Planets, rings and a very small Pluto debate.
Makes a good talking point.
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Fix something
A bracket for that one oddly shaped shelf
Describe the shelf, skip the hardware aisle.
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Play
A wobbly robot keychain
Every bag deserves a tiny sidekick.
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Gifts
A tiny rocket pencil holder
For the desk of a future astronaut.
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School projects
A model of your school, windows and all
A town-planning project you can hold.
Two ways to get it
Your printer, or ours
Mail it to me
No printer needed. We print it, you open the box.
- Pick your design and check the preview
- A grown-up places the order
- The printed part is mailed to you
Mail-order is part of the plan for launch. Details will go to the early access list first.
For parents
Kids bring the ideas. Grown-ups stay in charge.
Safe by design is how we are building it, not a badge we are claiming today. Here is the thinking.
A grown-up approves every order
Nothing is ordered until a grown-up says yes. Your child can dream up the dinosaur; you decide whether it gets made.
Ideas get a sense-check
We are building in checks so that what gets printed is a sensible, printable object, not a wobbly guess that will not hold together.
No scary software
Describing and tweaking is all your child has to do, and it works well as a two-person job at the kitchen table.
A note on small parts: printed pieces are not toys for very young children. We will share age guidance with the early access list before launch.
Questions
Good questions
Do I need to know 3D modelling?
No. That is the whole idea. You describe what you want in plain words and adjust the preview with simple buttons. There is no modelling software to learn.
Do I need a 3D printer?
No. If you have one, you can download a standard printable file. If you do not, the plan is to offer printing and mailing, with a grown-up placing the order.
Is it ready yet?
Not yet. MakeThingy is pre-launch. Join early access and we will let you know as it opens up.
Is the preview on this page the real thing?
No. The animations here are canned demos so you can see the idea. The real thing generates your own design from your own words.
What kind of file do I get?
A standard printable file, the kind common home printers and their slicing software work with. We will share the details as we get closer to launch.
Can my kid use it?
Kids are very welcome to dream up ideas, ideally with a grown-up alongside. Any order is placed by a grown-up. See the parents section for how we are thinking about it.
Early access
Be first to make a thingy
Leave your email and tell us the first thing you would make. We will let you know when MakeThingy opens up, and your idea helps us decide what to get good at first.
Tell us if you have a printer or not. Both are welcome.