Combining 3D printing, fashion and engineering on social media

Sandison began her 3D-printing journey in a laboratory at Boise State University.

Sandison, the only mechanical engineering student in the lab, was “assigned the responsibility to fix equipment when it broke down” she said.

She used YouTube, the Innovation Studio and her school to design and 3D-print parts for the equipment in the laboratory.

Sandison was a Furby creator’s assistant before she graduated. She began to 3D print toys at home, and post them on TikTok. While some went viral, they did not match her background as a model.

Sandison was inspired to create her fashion line when she considered how to rebrand and relaunch her online presence. Another 3D fashion social media account called Sew Printed helped Sandison.

Sandison said that Sew Printed’s long-form videos on YouTube helped her figure out how 3D printed wearables fit people’s bodies.

Sandison said that in an effort to reduce her plastic waste, she also saves her plastic scraps and failed prints as part of a project for “someday”.

“When I own my own house … I’m planning to cast them in resin tiles and make a giant rainbow floor,” she said. “All the black pieces will say something about transforming your failures into beautiful things,” she said.

Sandison wants to inspire people through her social media platforms to be more innovative and creative by using 3D printing.

She said: “People believe that creativity is something one is born with, but it can be developed and practiced.”

The majority of people do not know what [3D printing] “Is,” she continued. “I enjoy showing people how 3D printers function and what they are capable of.”

Sandison’s Myriad of Reflections collection for 2023 will be completed with 15 looks. The collection will be shown in an independent runway in July, and then again at Boise Fashion Week.