Toys are Expensive...Why Not Make Them?

I am a HUGE tech geek and always have been. This is one of the many things my husband, Justin, and I have in common. For mother's day last year he surprised me with my very own 3D printer. Since then I have printed many things and eventually got the grand idea to try my hand at making toys.

My tiny humans have no shortage of toys, but let's be honest, toys are expensive! My son loves Minecraft, but those little figures are $8 to $10 each and that is for the cheap ones. So, with the knowledge that I have of 3D printing, I started searching my go-to pattern site, Thingiverse for Minecraft figures. Unsurprisingly, I found no shortage of them. When I printed the first one, I was surprised at how great the quality came out. Plus, my son loved it so much he took it as it without letting me paint it. This has actually been the trend with all his toys.

What I love is that I can print toys whenever I want for him and it literally costs me pennies. My son will come in the room every now and then to check the print, and when it is finished it goes immediately in his impatient little hands. I have a happy little boy who loves his simple one-color toys because mommy made them for him.

Now, I know what you're thinking...3D printers are expensive. While this is true for some, you can actually buy a 3D printer for about $200. The PLA filament that you use to make the prints is about $20 per spool, but that spool lasts for a very long time if you are just making toys. Let's do some math to see if the purchase is worth it. For the $220 I would spend to buy the printer and first filament spool, I could buy 22 toys at $10 each. With that one filament spool that I just purchased, I can make anywhere between 25 and 45 toys depending on what size they are. That pays for the printer and filament plus more.

While the thought of working a 3D printer might be scary to you, there are some out there that are quite simple. My starter printer is a Monoprice Mini and is worth every penny. Try one out and be the awesome parent who can make toys!