Today we’ll be diving into the design inspiration of one of our incredibly talented community members: Peter Heldal. You can check out Peter’s store, SketchFox, which is filled with foxes, fishbones and hashtags – he’s clearly a man of many interests!
Tell us a bit about yourself
I’m a young guy from Denmark. My love for designing and making comes from an introverted childhood where most of my time was spent fiddling with little inventions rather than hanging out with the other kids. As I’ve always been a deep thinker I really enjoy observing, pondering and solving problems. I haven’t found the path I want to walk in life so I’ve been a bit around many things: Electronics, Jewellery, digital illustration, 3D modelling, photography and videography as well as music production. I settled on Graphic Designer shortly before I found Shapeways. I am super excited about the opportunities that Shapeways gives in terms of designing things and not worrying about the sales, manufacturing, shipping and customer service. I’m now focusing on my Shapeways shop, hoping that it will flourish. I would love to settle my future here!
What inspires you to create?
I love to immerse myself in the creation of a design or gadget, because I’m creating something I like, can relate to and care for, as well as offer to others who may find it rewarding in any way. It’s a way to bring people together. You can discuss your design or creation and share ideas and techniques. When you make a design, there are no limitations to what you can do. You can create an illusion of another reality if you like through which you can express yourself. I feel that designing and creating is like giving the world something that it can benefit from, whether it’s just a smile on a person’s face, or a new invention. Everything matters.
What’s your favourite part of 3D printing?
As much as I love to design and make 3D models on the computer, I have sometimes thought “it would be so cool to see this as an actual physical product that I can share with others!” I love the process of making models on the computer. Making the curves nice and smooth or sculpting in virtual clay and seeing how a ball becomes a mountain, so to speak. So for me the fascinating part of 3D printing is when a virtual product becomes a physical product. It’s a whole different experience and you can proudly say: “I made this!” I am not very familiar with the actual 3D printing process, but I’m sure I would find that just as fascinating.
What does being a maker mean to you?
Being a maker to me means that I can share all my ideas with others, and with that I carry a responsibility to make it interesting, expressive, useful, beautiful and cute. Anything that, in one way or another, can give other people value in their life. I feel that sharing my designs is also like sharing a part of me.
Tell us about your favourite design.
My favourite designs are the animal related jewelry. I carry a deep passion for canines in particular, but also all other animals, because they are not human. Animals have their own personalities and ways of being and I think it gives great variation to the world we live in. Animals can be beautiful, cute, funny, clumsy or even very intelligent and noble. A dog cares for his master giving him unconditional love and I really feel that we owe animals that in return.
Check out some of our favorite finds from Peter’s shop: