3D printed light diffusers

Our own 3D printed light diffusers: a ribbed round shade and a twisted faceted column that turn a bare light into a soft glow.

Service: Product Development & Prototyping
What it is: Our own design project, not a client order
How it is made: FDM printed in one piece, with no moulds or tooling
Colours printed: Neon yellow, orange, green and translucent orange

Design a lamp shade Send a brief

What we brought

What we can do
Shapes a printer makes easily
Fine curved ribs and a twisted, faceted column, each printed in one piece with no moulds or tooling.
How we look after you
Judged lit, on a real shelf
We lit each shade on a shelf, by day and at night, to see how evenly it spreads the glow.
What you get
One design, several colours
The ribbed shade came out in green, orange and neon yellow, so the colour is a choice, not a limit.

Gallery

The whole project at a glance. Drag or swipe to browse; tap a picture to enlarge it.

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The finished piece
The neon yellow ribbed shade.
The translucent orange faceted column.
The ribbed shade glowing at night.
The ribbed shade, all the way round.
The faceted column's twist, turning.
ProductionThe ribbed shade printed in green.
In orange, beside a small test boat.
Lit and testedThe faceted column by day, unlit.
The ribbed shade lit on a bookcase.

The build

How we built it

4 steps, from the brief to the finished piece. Pick a step to jump to it.

The brief

Step 1 of 4

Shapes: A ribbed round shade and a twisted, faceted column
Light: An even glow from a bare light, with the shape showing through

At Additive Inn, our 3D printing studio in Singapore, we designed our own light diffusers. We set out to make shades that soften a bare light into an even glow, in shapes hard to make any other way.

Production

Step 2 of 4

We printed each shade in one piece on our FDM printers. The ribbed shade was printed in green, orange and neon yellow; the faceted column in translucent orange, its flat faces catching the light at different angles.

The ribbed round shade printed in green on a black background, its curved ribs running from rim to base — The ribbed shade printed in green.

The ribbed shade printed in orange on a black background, with a small red printed test boat beside it for scale — In orange, beside a small test boat.

Lit and tested

Step 3 of 4

There was nothing to glue, paint or wire into the shades: each one simply sits over a light. We tested them on a shelf, by day and at night, to judge how evenly each shape spreads the glow.

The translucent orange faceted column standing unlit on a white shelf in daylight, beside a candle and a potted plant — The faceted column by day, unlit.

A white bookcase with the yellow ribbed shade glowing on top, between a framed print, candles and a small plant — The ribbed shade lit on a bookcase.

The final build

Step 4 of 4

Two finished shades: the ribbed round shade in neon yellow and the faceted column in translucent orange. Lit, the ribs and facets turn one bare light into soft bands and panels of colour.

The neon yellow ribbed shade on a black background, with small printed test boats beside it — The neon yellow ribbed shade.

All the way round

Both shades turning, to show the ribs and the twist from every side.

The ribbed shade, all the way round.

The faceted column's twist, turning.

More product development

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3D printed light diffusers

What we brought

Shapes a printer makes easily

Judged lit, on a real shelf

One design, several colours

Gallery