3D printed hat accessories: Discover 3D thoughts!

Posted By Amandine Richardot on Dec 6, 2017 | 0 comments

When it comes to clothes and accessories, customers ask more and more for customization. Using 3D printing is a great way to produce fashion garments that are unique and personalized. Drew Williams decided to apply this logic to an accessory he loves, by creating caps where unique 3D printed hat accessories are mounted. Discover 3Dthoughts and see how using additive manufacturing can help produce amazing 3D printed hats!

About 3D thoughts

Can you introduce yourself?

Absolutely, I’m Drew Williams and I recently started 3D Thoughts to showcase the abilities of 3D printing and art.  Technology has always been an interest of mine as well as learning about new technologies and the impact they can have on people and societies.  3D printing caught my attention because I believe it is a huge innovation that gives people the ability to create on their own.

What is 3D thoughts?

At 3D Thoughts, we combine elements of fashion, culture, and art to create unique 3D printed designs that are mounted on hats.  Each 3D design we make is fitted with a set of powerful magnets used to secure the 3D print to another set of magnets inside of the hats.  We use magnets to increase the customization options for people since the 3D printed designs can be removed and attached to different hats whenever someone wants.  We are currently working on creating designs based on video games because we are gamers ourselves and there is so much creative digital content to work with.  The customizations offered with 3D printing give many possibilities for future designs though.

Why did you decide to create 3D thoughts?

3D printing is very fun, especially when you see the end result of something you thought about, designed and brought to life through 3D printing.  We’re hoping that this idea will give others that opportunity to creatively express themselves with their own personalized designs.  At the moment we are focusing on adding specific designs to the website but custom designs will definitely be coming.  In addition to the personalized aspect, we also wanted to bring out the 3D aspect of pictures and designs using 3D printing.  Looking at pictures and imagining pieces of them projecting outwards, or adding a 3D model to complement an image, opens up an infinite number of possibilities that can be created using 3D printing.  3D printing has implications far beyond fashion though and if this idea helps someone else realize how 3D printing could be applied to one of their projects, that’s great.

Your use of 3D printing

Why did you decide to use 3D printing?

We decided to use 3D printing because of the flexibility it gives us with manufacturing and the personalized nature of 3D printing.  Using 3D printing we are able to make a large number of varied designs and not have to worry about changes to the manufacturing process.  Outside of the 3D printer, there is no specialized machinery required to produce our items.  That point ties directly into why 3D printing is so great for us when creating personalized products, we can make something completely unique that doesn’t require its own manufacturing process.  The personalized item can be created using the same machine that produces a different object in much larger quantities.

Which 3D printing technology and material did you use?

We are using the powder based multicolor 3D printers through Sculpteo.  With this method, we have the ability to adjust colors while creating the 3D model which gives us the flexibility to change the color scheme before it is actually produced.  In addition to being able to adjust the colors quickly, this method also ensures that once the print process is finished the product is basically ready to be shipped, saving time and resources.  The powder material also has a solid feel and weight to it that makes the finished product feel like a real sculpture.

Why did you choose to work with Sculpteo’s online 3D printing service? How did the relationship with our service go?

There are many reasons that we are working with Sculpteo but a couple of those reasons are pricing, software and customer support. The software that Sculpteo uses for uploading 3D models is simply great, the UI is easy to navigate and uploading files is extremely easy. Being able to see what your final product will look like before being printed, as well as being able to check for any structural issues, is a huge benefit.  On top of that, we are able to see instant quotes for the prices of our models.  The customer support that we’ve received while working with Sculpteo has been amazing as well, through every step of our project there has been someone from Sculpteo willing to help us with any problems.  We’re definitely looking forward to working with Sculpteo more.    

About 3D printing in fashion

Do you think 3D printing can be a game changer when it comes to the fashion industry? How and why?

Definitely, 3D printing and fashion go together really well because of the creative nature of both.  Everyone has their own style when it comes to the clothes they wear and the accessories they purchase, with 3D printing the options for what you can purchase have become much more varied.  With online 3D printing services like Sculpteo, everyone has access to industrial grade 3D printers and it is getting easier to find professionally made 3D printed products designed by people not associated with major fashion labels.  3D printing is still adding new materials to work with and as the materials for 3D printing grow so do the opportunities to design with them and apply them in new ways.

For which fashion businesses would it be relevant to use 3D printing?

The customization and materials available with 3D printing could probably be applied to every fashion business in some way.  Right now 3D printing is very relevant for fashion accessories such as jewelry, tie clips, cufflinks etc. because all of these items can be altered to have unique designs without changing their underlying functions.  Some fashion businesses are also 3D printing with flexible materials to create articles of clothing and handbags so it’s hard to say 3D printing couldn’t be relevant when there are so many ways to apply it.

Interested in how 3D printing can be a game-changer for the fashion industry? Check out our blog post about 3D printed shoes, and this exclusive interview with two fashion experts, also on what 3D printed shoes can bring to fashion.