Designed by a Year 8 student
Turning Ideas Into Real Toys
I'm a Year 8 student in New Zealand and I design toys. Every one starts as a pencil sketch in my notebook, becomes a 3D model on my tablet, then comes off my printer as something you can actually hold.
- Printed to order, dispatched in 2–4 days
- Plant-based PLA, sanded by hand
- NZ$1 from every order to UNICEF
01
Sketch
Every toy begins as a pencil drawing in my notebook. I redraw it until the shape looks right.
02
Model
Then I build it in 3D on my tablet, making sure every part is thick enough to survive being played with.
03
My printer builds it layer by layer. Small toys take about two hours; the big ones run overnight.
04
Play
I sand it smooth, check it over and pack it myself. After that it's yours to play with.
- 6
- Toy designs, all drawn by me
- 14 hrs
- Longest print so far: the dragon
- 1 a month
- Kids' drawings picked for the Dream Lab
- NZ$1
- To UNICEF from every order
Fresh off the printer
A few of the newest designs from my workshop — each one printed to order in the colour you pick.
The kid behind the printer
Meet the maker
I've been drawing made-up creatures since I was about six — dragons with too many wings, robots with wonky arms, whole notebooks of them. When I finally got to use a 3D printer, I realised the drawings didn't have to stay on the page. I could pick one up.
My first dragon snapped at the tail. The next one came out with a droopy wing, and the one after that fused to the print bed. Fixing the same toy over and over turned out to be the real skill — the drawing is honestly the easy part.
Now I want IdeaPrints to be bigger than my own notebook. That's why the Dream Lab exists, so other kids' drawings get printed too, and why NZ$1 from every order goes to UNICEF Aotearoa.
What I've learned so far
- Patience beats speed — A print that takes twice as long usually comes out twice as neat.
- Failures are just drafts — Version four is normally where a toy starts working. Never version one.
- Design for hands, not screens — If a part is too thin to squeeze, it's too thin to print.
Dream Lab
Your drawing could be the next toy
Any kid, anywhere, can send me a drawing of a toy they've imagined. Each month I pick one, model it in 3D, print it for real, and show it here with the child's first name and age.
Send a drawingNothing gets published without a parent saying yes first.
1Your Drawing
Pencil, crayon, glitter pen — however you drew it.
23D Model
I rebuild it on my tablet, keeping the bits that make it yours.
3Real Toy
Printed, sanded, photographed — and one is posted to you.
Picked recently: Liam, Age 9 — a narwhal with a sparkly horn.
NZ$1 an order, straight to UNICEF
Every toy helps another kid dream bigger
Every order sends NZ$1 to UNICEF Aotearoa, the New Zealand arm of the UN children's agency, for children's education, health and creativity. NZ$240.00 has gone across so far, and every donation is dated and published.
See how the pledge worksEducation
School supplies and learning programmes for kids who don't have them.
Health
Clean water, nutrition and medicine for children who need them most.
Creativity
Art materials and making spaces, so more kids get to build their ideas.
We're brand new, so right now the amounts are small. I'll publish what's been given as soon as there's something real to report.
What your toy is made of
No mystery plastic. Here's exactly what comes out of my printer and how it's finished before it's packed.
Plant-based PLA
PLA is made from cornstarch rather than oil. It's hard-wearing, low-smell and BPA-free.
Sanded and checked by hand
I sand off the print lines and check every toy for sharp edges before it goes in the box.
Pick your colour
Ocean blue, sunset orange, cream, forest green and more — choose yours at checkout.
From the Maker Journal
Prints that worked, prints that flopped, and what I changed in between.
Print Fails4 min read
Why my first dragon kept snapping at the tail
Three broken tails later, I worked out that skinny parts need thicker walls and a much slower first layer.
How I Make It6 min read
How a drawing becomes a 3D model
A walk through the app I use on my tablet, from a flat outline to a shape that's actually ready to print.
Dream Lab5 min read
Inside the Dream Lab: modelling Liam's narwhal
A sparkly horn is harder than it sounds — here's how I got the spiral to print without any supports.
Kind words from the box openers
Notes from the parents and kids who opened one of my parcels.
The dragon arrived on a Tuesday and hasn't left my son's pocket since. He tells everyone that a kid designed it.
It came with a little card explaining how it was printed. My daughter read it twice before she even played with the toy.
My octopus is my favourite because the arms are wiggly and it's blue like the actual sea.
Questions parents ask
The practical stuff: materials, safety, shipping, and what happens if something turns up broken.
What are the toys made of?
Every toy is printed in PLA, a hard plastic made from cornstarch instead of oil. It's BPA- and phthalate-free, has almost no smell out of the box, and holds up to normal play. The colour is in the plastic itself, so there's no paint or coating to chip off.
Are they safe for young children?
They're made for ages 3 and up. Some designs have horns, posable arms or other small parts that could break off and become a choking hazard, so please keep them away from babies and toddlers. If you want one for a younger child, email me and I'll tell you which designs are the chunkiest and least breakable.
How long until my toy is dispatched?
Nothing sits in a warehouse — your toy is printed after you order it. Most orders leave the workshop within 2 to 4 working days, though printing happens after school and at weekends, so a busy week runs closer to the longer end. You'll get an email with tracking the moment yours ships.
Where do you ship, and what does it cost?
Tracked shipping anywhere in New Zealand is a flat $6, and it's free on orders over $75. Most NZ parcels arrive 1 to 3 working days after dispatch, a little longer for rural addresses. Shipping to Australia and most other countries is a flat $18.
What if something's wrong with it?
If your toy arrives broken or doesn't look like the photos, send me a photo within 7 days and I'll print a replacement or refund you — your choice, no arguing. Changed your mind instead? Post it back unused within 30 days and I'll refund the price of the toy. Return postage is on you unless the fault was mine.
How does the Dream Lab work?
Draw a toy, photograph the drawing, and upload it on the Dream Lab page with the child's first name, their age and a parent's email. Each month I pick one drawing, model it in 3D, print it for real and post the toy to that child. Nothing goes on the site until a parent has said yes, and everyone who sends a drawing gets a reply from me, picked or not.
Ask me something else
Take one home, or send me one of your own
Every toy here started as a pencil sketch. You can pick one off the shelf, or send me a drawing and I'll try to make it real.