NERDSWAG: MakerBot – 3D Print Your Nerdist Art

Let’s get printable.

Have you ever drawn a picture of some object and wished it could be a real thing for you to hold? Well, through the scientific wizardry of 3D printing, that wish is beginning to come true. For those of you exclaiming, “3D printing?! Is that like those paper box people we made in fourth grade art class?” the answer is, of course, no. 3D printing is an additive process which stacks successive layers in different shapes on top of each other to make a fully-realized three-dimensional object. One of the forerunners in this field is MakerBot who endeavors to bring this amazing technology home. If you love designing things, then you’ll want to enter our Nerdist/MakerBot Thingiverse contest. Design a piece of Nerdist art and if you win, we’ll make it for you and mail it to you (along with a Nerdist t-shirt)!

Robots that build you things! Anything you want can be constructed through this method and Thingiverse allows people to share the amazing things they’ve made with their MakerBots. For example: someone made this Samsung Galaxy S3 case to look like Han Solo in carbonite. Someone else made a TARDIS with light-up windows and a totally different person made this bust of Batman complete with glowering, crime-hating facial expression. You may not have access to Gentle Giant’s full body 3D scanner to create your 3D printable masterpiece, but we’re giving you a leg up by putting The Nerdist logo on Thingiverse. It’s not just for fun stuff, though; this technology can be used to design and create useful items like very specific tools for a workshop, or creating a digital clock that’s housed in a 3D model of The Nerdist himself (or Matt Mira, a Mira alarm clock would certainly wake us up). It’s the next wave in designer DIY collectibles.

This is where you come in: we’ve got a MakerBot, but we need your awesome designs for it to make cool things. We’re asking that you design a cool piece of art that sports the Nerdist logo. It could be anything; the more creative the better. Wanna put the logo on top of a bowling trophy? Do it! Interested in making a USB holder? Want to design a pair of chopsticks with the Nerdist logo or even Chris Hardwick’s head on top? Have at it. You dream it, you design it and if we choose yours, we’ll make it for you to have. Just make sure to stay inside the parameters of what the Makerbot can build. All you have to do is send your 3D design to [email protected] by Thursday, March 21st, 2013 for your chance to win. That’s only 3 weeks, people, so get a-designing. This is one instance where doodling in class will pay off.

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