If you’re online, you’ve probably heard about the kid down the street using a 3D printer to make figurines for their tabletop RPG campaign or your nephew who sometimes fixes your computer using one for his Warhammer collection. Whether or not you consider yourself geeky, 3D printing is a hobby that anyone can enjoy. It’s not only affordable but useful. As someone who’s found themselves with a tightening purse string, being able to print needed objects rather than buy them has been more helpful than expected.

Entry level 3D printers such as a the FlashForge AD5M Pro 3D Printer, CoreXY, which currently runs for $379 on Amazon, or the TINA2S Fully Assembled Mini 3D Printer for Kids and Beginners, which runs for $199, are easy to setup and use and don’t require a lot of bells and whistles to get some solid, consistent prints. While most people start with filament printers, even resin printers have become more affordable in the past five years.

For the Gear Head

If you know someone who practically lives in their garage or with their head under the hood of their car, you can help them out with your 3D printer. Sites like Thingiverse, Makerworld, & Printables carry a host of free models and files to search through—enough to fill several afternoons as you fall down the rabbit hole.

Ideas of objects to print:

• Various hooks and pegs to hold or mount pegboard objects in the garage
• Car vent gravity phone holders & Magsafe car mounts
• Backseat iPad mounts
• Cable clips
• Garage remote controls
• Can crushers for recycling

For the Cook or the Baker

It’s easy to get lost in this section of 3D printing files as the kitchen lends itself to gadgets and gizmos like apple corers, garlic crushers, and citrus squeezers. While there are plenty of objects and gizmos you can print for that cook or baker in your life, be aware that anything that touches food will need to be printed on a food-safe filament, which is something too many people don’t consider. You’ll also need to consider how you’ll clean it as most filament won’t be dishwasher safe.

Ideas of objects to print:

• Cookbook holders and mounts
• Kitchen timers
• Cookie cutters
• Drawer Dividers
• Cutting boards
• Bag clips
• Cabinet sliders

For Audiophiles

Would you be surprised to learn you can 3D print an LP? It isn’t going to sound as good as the real deal, but it’s possible to do. (You can read more about it here.) Surprisingly, there’s plenty you can print that lends itself to good quality sound and for much cheaper than heading down to the local audio store.

Ideas for those who love audio:

• Speakers & subwoofers
• Replacement stereo knobs
• Retro cassette players
• Headphone holders
• Audio Jacks

Other Areas of the House

Besides being able to print replacement parts for countless knobs and pulls throughout the home, there are plenty of hangers and organizational doodads available to print. In fact, if you shop at Ikea, 3D printing parts to modify Ikea furniture is one of the hottest topics in 3D printing.

Other ideas of items to print:

• Planters
• USB Stick Cases
• Picture Frames
• CD Storage
• Camera Lens Caps
• Cable minders

These ideas are just one page in the book of 3D printing. Even dentists and doctors are using them these days to fashion new teeth and organs. As scientists and techies continue to develop different forms of filament, more items will become printable. We can already print houses and bridges, so what’s next? What do you see us printing in the future?

Perhaps a spaceship!

The above picture is a detailed look at the Stoofbrug in Amsterdam, the world’s first 3D-printed metal bridge.