Sprout: Casting Project

For this project, I was wanting to create some sort of natural form with the ultimate goal of using it as a chocolate mold! I am particularly drawn to flowers and floral designs, so I chose to make a bouquet. Through many iterations, the bouquet organically became two sprouts! Read more to learn about the process..

1. Fusion 360 Autodesk
2. 3D printer
3. Pencil
4. Paper

Bonus:

1. Silicone
2. Melted Chocolate
3. Popsicle sticks
4. Ice chest

Though my initial idea was a bouquet, I decided to sketch out a few different potential designs as back-ups to try out in Fusion. I also sketched a few variations of flowers and how I would want it to look before landing on a particular bouquet style.

Moving into Fusion, to ensure dimensional fit, I copied a casing template from the MAT 111PF, then created my designs within those frames. I began creating a rough sketch of the bouquet I had in mind utilizing the "point" and "fit-to-point" functions. I used the "mirror" function to generate identical petals. However, the sketch became overconstrained and would not allow many of the 3D functions I wanted to apply. I was especially excited to use the "loft" function to create a square base for the shape but struggled to implement it with my design. Later I learned how to actually implement the function and look forward to using it in the future. Taking a break from the increasingly complicated design I had made -- it was not "extruding" correctly or allowing me to "fillet" the edges -- I decided to try one of my other sketches. I attempted a version of the snowman but faced the same issues with turning the sketch into a satisfactory 3D form. Returning to the bouquet, I modified it into something with less petals and blossoms and connecting the stems until I was able to implement a 4mm extrusion and fillet the edges to 0.25mm. I also tapered the extrusion by 15 degrees. Eventually, I landed on the two sprout design!

After completing my design, I exported as an .stl file to the UCSB Makerspace 3D printing site. Here I was able to visualize how the piece would look when printed. It did not end up needing any supports or additional adjustments. I sent it to print and saw the design come to life within 6 short minutes!

When I went to pick up the piece, it had come out perfectly -- albeit a little smaller than imagined! I picked off some remnants of plastic and it was complete! I really enjoyed this process and being able to see my designs go from a digital to physical form. I have also really liked almost free-styling my design with the "fit-to-point spline" function! I look forward to making more prints in the future!

I appreciate the idea of using digital fabrication as a tool to create more tools for design processes. By expanding available resources for production, digital fabrication and 3D printing create novel production pathways to new objects and can speed up the means of production.

The reading also recommended “partial, multiple, and ambiguous representations” of potential outcomes of the fabrication process. Having used this method for my paperform design, I understand the importance of physically visualizing your product and creating a “practice” form even if it may be misshapen or not the exact final product.

Lastly, parameters have evidently been central to the designs we have created this session. By utilizing parameters, the design becomes easier to execute using real-life measurements and implementing practical constraints where necessary. Additionally, when parameters and constraints are not in use, artists can visualize designs free from many of the limitations of physics and hand-held materials.

To make the silicone mold, I used gorilla glue to paste the thicker face of my shape to the base of the mold case (img 1). After that set, I fitted the cylinder part and base together. Then my group and I mixed the silicone mixture before pouring it into the mold. I only filled mine half-way since my design did not have a lot of depth. Next, I tapped it several times to get rid of any remnant bubbles and left it to set for 24 hrs. The next day, I gently popped off the base then pushed it out of the cylinder. It came out pretty well though it appears some silicone sealed beneath my design obstructing the opening. I gently pealed this excess part away revealing the design.

Utilizing incredibly tasty tempered chocolate (thank you Emilie!), we placed a dollop on our molds, then used a popsicle stick to fill in the gaps of the design and ensure all the crevices were filled. Filling the stem portion of my design was challenging but I eventually got it by repeatedly adding chocolate on it and smoothing it over. Then, it set for a little less than an hour in a bucket of ice. When it was set, I gently began to remove it however due to the delicate nature of the design my final chocolate cracked a little. Perhaps the chocolate became too cold? I will for sure try to cast chocolate again! Thank you for such a fun, delicious, and memorable experience!