Okay all, some of you churn out design after design while others of us tend to be procrastinators. So here is my challenge to myself and the rest of you procrastinators out there.
Between now and the time you receive your Glowforge, design and have ready three projects so they can be cut the first week. Post whatever detail you want here. Unlike other design challenges this is completely free form and mostly so those of us that need that kick will be ready with something to cut beyond a hello world.
I know it’s very simple but it will be just exactly what I need and was a good learning experience.
–My last test project is a rubber stamp design I made by tracing over a flower on my iPad using Inkpad. I plan to cut it into either rubber or cured photopolymer and make an art stamp of it:
I’m in too. I pinned a reference design for a book stand/holder this morning, and will be revisiting Fusion 360 and Inkspace this week to generate a laserable set of files. I suspect we will be designing and building more than a few disability aid tools over the coming years. I also have aspirations to design and build a floor-standing three tier fruit basket using variations on the layered fruit bowl designs already lurking about the forums for the baskets, and a funky organic inspired stand to hold them. I am not seeing that as a first three project though, seems a bit complex from this side of the learning and design curve. I also have a design ready for a sundial with the lines and gnomon customized for our location.
I was in Baltimore last month and the conservatory there has a cool sundial. It’s like one of those 10 sided dies used for gaming with each face showing the time in a different major world city from the sun shadow in Baltimore. A world clock with no clock. It was probably 3 ft wide and tall. I was thinking it’d be a great laser project.
I have basically no design experience but I’ll give this challenge a go. First up is something I know a lot of people here are planning on making. A wallet. As with everything else I do, I’m just going to wing it. I made a bunch of rectangles in Inkscape, printed them out, and taped them together.
The final design will of course need some holes for stitching, more pockets for cards, and probably some sort of flap for my ID card. But that’s something to figure out once I have leather and a Glowforge to work with.
I know two of my three for sure. The first is a box insert for a board game. It has a TON of pieces, so being able to quickly set up and put away the game is a huge benefit. Here is an example for another game, this one I bought:
And here is the game that I want to make the insert for: Scythe.
I haven’t started the design for this one.
My next project will be a deck box design for Magic: the Gathering. I am looking to make a hinged box with an inner sleeve, the purpose for which is to be able to add a label insert to the top of the box for a laser cut/engraved label with the deck name, as well as an insert on the front of the box to identify the deck colors. This one I’ve begun designing in Fusion 360, but I am not finished just yet. I’m also using this one to learn parametric design, as well as to learn how to connect all of this up in Fusion with the hinges and stuff. Not quite there yet.
I like the challenge! That’s how I’ve been keeping myself busy while waiting for the GF. A couple of months back, I decided to make at least one design each week. I’ve been averaging about 2 designs a week since I started my challenge. Some of them I’ve posted here, some I have not yet posted. It’s really helping me learn the software to churn out many different designs. Some of them I really like, and some I may never do anything with.
But I firmly believe the best way to get comfortable with software is to use it as much as possible (and watch many tutorials).
I’m in! I am a serious procrastinator, so this is great.
I have 27 boxes stashed, some plywood scraps, and a few acrylic sheets. I’m sure my collection will grow exponentially in the next month.
Actually, I do have my third project! It’s actually already done, at least prototype level. It’s a die where you can remove any face and flip it over and/or replace it with a different face. I posted about it here previously:
