OH Yeah, we are going to end 2011 with a 20.11% discount on White Strong & Flexible. 

This is our way of saying thanks for your continued support over the past year.

Every model ordered in White Strong & Flexible will automatically be 20.11% cheaper for material cost (the designer's mark-up will not be discounted).

So if you order a little something for yourself it will be 20.11% cheaper, if you order a big something for yourself it will be 20.11% cheaper.

You got it, WSF, 20.11% cheaper until midnight, December 31st 2011 EST

We have thousands upon thousands of amazing products for sale in the Shapeways shops designed by the Shapeways community.  We are always on the lookout for great products to put on our home page, to share with journalists and take to events to promote the amazing quality and breadth of items designed by you.  For us to promote your designs it is essential that you have high quality photographs that properly capture your designs.

We have posted some tips on the Shapeways blog on the value of a great photograph along with how to photograph your 3D prints and how to make sure your best image is the lead image on your product page and in the Shapeways Galleries. Take a look at the previous posts, take a look at the successful Shapeways Shops, then take a look at your shop and consider how you can improve your presentation.

Possibly one of the most touching stories of using 3D printing to create a unique, personal gift and we are not just talking a photo printed on a cup...

Shapeways community member Phelicia Ramlogan created a gift straight from a child's imagination and 3D printed it in full color.  Kira wanted a submarine duck, mocked it up in ZBrush and Photoshop (yes she is 4 years old), her father cleaned up the 3D model a little then had it 3D printed by Shapeways.

You must read the story below from the parents perspective..... 

CUTE!!!!

When a 4 year old understands that they can 3D model to design and 3D print exactly what they want, nothing is going to hold them back....

We all know nightclub lighting can play tricks on the eye, harsh fluorescent lighting may reveal a different face, but did you ever think you could mistake Albert Einstein for Marilyn Monroe?

Drzach & Suchy, (previously mentioned on the Shapeways blog) have been working on a series of 3D printed shadow casting panels that allows multiple images to be encoded within a single physical object, a white panel, which displays the separate images under specific lighting conditions.

"The underlying principle of our technique is based on a simple observation: the shadow cast by an object depends not only on the object itself, but also on the light; therefore the same object under changing lighting conditions can totally change its appearance."

With Conversation, the technique is used to make an image of Albert Einstein transform into an image of Marilyn Monroe. See the video below for a vaguely unsatisfying demonstration.

Three Cubes Colliding is a beautiful project by Ivan morison and Heather Peak, in collaboration with Sash Reading and Queen and Crawford using 1700 3D-printed connectors linking carbon fiber rods that support cubenfiber aerospace fabric sheets.

Three Cubes Colliding from Jimandtonic on Vimeo.

Found via 3Ders.org

Shapeways Eindhoven had one of it's biggest days yesterday, today it is New York's turn to be hit by the tidal wave of 3D prints. 

In November 2011 Shapeways 3D Printed over 80,000 products for the Shapeways community.

On December 16th we paid Shapeways shop owners over $26,000 in profits from the mark-up of their sales from August 15th to November 15th. 

Thank You ALL for being so awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It is such a buzz to see the pile of packages grow and grow.

Thanks to the Eindhoven team for working huge hours to get all of the orders processed (below).

It has been just over a year since Shapeways moved it's headquarters to NYC and it has been an amazing ride so far. The New York office went from one solitary NYC hire (Dan) and three Dutchies (Peter, Robert & Marleen) to a team of twenty one over the course of the year and still growing FAST.

In addition to the NYC office we are gearing up to open our fabrication facility in New York City early in the 2012.   If you want to be part of the Shapeways team we currently have twelve openings in NYC and another four in Eindhoven where the magic started.  Join us to help people make the most awesome stuff. 

Growthobjects have shared the unpacking of their africa #ceramic and lillyseed #02 3D prints from Shapeways. Beautiful.

Need to power on for the morning/weekend/work/whatever? The Power Ring by Designerica 3D printed in stainless steel or silver may just be way to get started.

A cool Kickstarter project that uses Shapeways 3D printing to extend the usability of the Amazon Kindle

The Kapsule Lightstand by Pieco is everything that you need to make your Kindle complete. It's the highest quality reading light available, and it gets its power straight from the Kindle. It has a slide-out kickstand for hands-free reading, and it provides a comfortable ergo-style grip for long reading sessions.

Vienna University of Technology unveiled their prototype for the world's smallest 3D printer in May this year developed by Klaus Stadlmann and Markus Hatzenbichler. Klaus recently presented the micro-printer at TEDx Vienna, on crutches..