Gwydion's Portfolio

A random collection of stuff I've made, as a way of showing off, mostly.

[beowulphx]

"Jinx put Max in space, Jinx can get Max back!"

In celebration of the film's 40th anniversary (not to mention all the other #NASAArtemis and #SpaceExploration successes lately) I've made my own version of #JinxTheRobot from #SpaceCamp! This was a fun challenge, as it's my first time designing parts to snap together and have articulation. His head even drops into his body like in the film! Available in 2 sizes to fit in with your other toys- check him out in my shop, linktree in bio!

[beowulphx]

I stink at self-promotion, so just a reminder for anyone shopping- My online store is full of geeky stuff you won't find anywhere else! (I'm still not thrilled with how long it took #Etsy to act on all that "Alligator Alcatraz" stuff, but they remain the most visible site I sell on) Everything I offer is ready to ship and most go out in the mail the next business day. USPS says the last day to ship for Xmas arrival is Wednesday, Dec 17th! Happy Holidays! https://linktr.ee/GwydionsForest

[beowulphx]

I don't make nearly enough Legend of Zelda stuff to put in my shop. I've been a huge Zelda nerd for DECADES, played nearly every game on every system (never had a DS, and never mind those Phillips CDI games). Currently, the only thing I really have are a couple of 3D printed custom Hood ornaments; an adaptation of a Hylian crest and the King of Red Lions head from WindWaker. But I have dreams of so, SO much more! I'm starting relatively small, though. Tears of the Kingdom gave us a lot of potential for creating stuff with it's Zonai devices and Ultrahand. One of the most popular and widely used constructs in the game is the hoverbike- an incredibly useful vehicle made form a steering stick and 2 fans. It can be tough to assemble well, and has a tendency to drift if everything isn't perfectly lined up, but when you save an autobuild that's stable and balanced, it literally changes the game! So I made a 3d Printed version!

I scaled it for the 5" tall action figures (currently available at Walmart for about $10) but it works pretty well for my Figma Skyward Sword link too. I started with 3d models ripped from the game (Thanks, The Models Resource!) and played with the sizing a bit; after taking some screenshots and doing the math, I found most of the zonai devices would be kind of ridiculous to keep in scale. If Link is 5 ft tall in the game, the fans would be about 4 ft in diameter, and the Zonai wing would be over 22 ft wide. Canonically, they all change size depending on how they're used anyway- the rocket might be 4 ft tall when used on a vehicle, but only about 2 ft long when attached to a shield. So I reduced things to what felt managable while keeping as much detail as possible. I shrunk the bottom plate of the steering stick and stretched out the yoke, for example, and added some reinforcements to make it a little more durable. The thing that really inspired me though was finding out glue sticks for hot glue guns came in different colors. Now I could add the Ultrahand goo to anything I made, and still have it look as organic as in the game! And the fan blades even spin!

https://www.etsy.com/listing/4408417128/zelda-tears-of-the-kingdom-zonai?ref=shop_home_active_1&frs=1&sts=1&logging_key=8e09a6c9b1450c650a95abd3c7d255bf5a6ebd69%3A4408417128

[beowulphx]

It's been a rough month for me on Etsy.

Don't get me wrong, I've been VERY fortunate to have found a niche, and the money I've made selling my 3D printed accessories has helped prevent some serious financial straits over the years, not to mention the great time I've had making stuff that people seem to enjoy.

While that remains true... Etsy as a platform has disappointed me to the point I cannot in good conscience remain there. The increasing number of "Alligator Alcatraz" listings was alarming, and though I had been communicating with Etsy support to flag and report those items, it doesn't seem like any of them have been removed. Then just this week, I started seeing "Alligator Auschwitz" merch. After reporting the item and shop multiple times, and sending the link directly to the support group, the only acknowledgement I got was the same canned response about "taking concerns seriously" and "here's the link for our anti-hate speech policy". A policy they have repeatedly chosen not to enforce.

I know there have been calls for a boycott, but there are few equivalent alternatives, and many Etsy sellers depend on their shop for their sole source of income. As one of the fortunate people who can afford to try alternatives, though, that's what I'll be doing - though it means a pretty sizable delay in getting to make any new stuff.

After doing some research, Storenvy (https://gwydionsforest.storenvy.com/) and BigCartel (https://gwydionsforest.bigcartel.com) seem like possible replacements, so I'll be working on moving all my listings to one or both of those (I'll try to document the process so I can hopefully make it easier for others to leave Etsy too).

As another gut punch, the 2nd season of Neil Gaiman's The Sandman series dropped this month. Like many, I was a big fan of the graphic novels and still own a set, and the stories gave me a lot of inspiration for things to make. Things that just... feel wrong to profit from now. Before the first season came out, I had made my own versions of the "Key to Hell" and Dream's Ruby, but I took down those listings once the allegations against Gaiman were known. Still, I have several of each left over, so before I shut down my Etsy shop completely, I'm re-listing them, with all income (not just profits- the full amount) to be donated to RAINN.org, a charity that helps SA survivors. Once they're gone, they're gone. (I do plan on watching the rest of the series one time; a lot of other good people made excellent work around that before we knew what a predator Neil was, so I'm supporting the other artists who had their hearts broken)

[beowulphx]

What in the actual hell, @etsy ? I've been trying to report the hate and violent merch I see every day, but this is a new low. If you can't remove or prevent stuff like this, you have either completely lost your way, or you're actively encouraging this genocidal BS. Disgusting, immoral, and wrong. Condemn and remove this crap immediately.

[beowulphx]

My shop is built on values of kindness, creativity, and respect for all. That's why I'm deeply disturbed by Etsy's failure to effectively address hateful merchandise like "Alligator Alcatraz," "Gator Gitmo," and fake ICE badges.

This content promotes cruelty and undermines the very spirit of a community-driven platform. I continue to urge Etsy to uphold its own policies and immediately remove these offensive items.

Help call for a more ethical marketplace. Report hateful listings and any shops you see promoting this kind of violence.

To report a shop on Etsy:

Visit the shop on Etsy.com and choose Report this shop to Etsy on the left.

Select a reason from the dropdown and add a note.

Choose Report this shop. 

To report an item on Etsy.com:

Select Report this item to Etsy on the listing page.

Select a reason from the dropdown and add a note.

Choose Submit report.

If you like, you can use this example to paste into the note field of your report:

"This listing contains derogatory language targeting individuals based on their ethnicity, which violates Etsy's Anti-Discrimination and Hate Speech Policy.

The name normalizes the dehumanization of immigrants and potentially profits from human rights abuses. The term is symbolizing cruelty and celebrates a modern concentration camp, designed to exploit fears about immigrants rooted in racism and xenophobia." Myself, I am still researching alternatives to selling on Etsy. In an email exchange, they confirm that reporting items and shops is the best action we can take, but I've told them I plan to move to a new platform unless they issue a firm statement against these types of items, and promise to take a firmer stand in support of their own policies by the end of July. (So far, Storenvy seems the most comparable, and I wasn't able to find any of the same offensive listings there)

[beowulphx]

I had someone suggest that, to go along with all my display stands for the Star Wars Micro Galaxy Squadron & Action Fleet lines, I should also make some Star Trek Accessories. And darn it, I apparently have a weakness for all things 1" action figure scale. So, I got a good deal on a few of the Innerspace and Strike Force toys on Ebay, and started mashing stuff together... and it's led me down a whole rabbit hole of potential accessories and crossovers, lol. For now, though, I've got some display stands for the Trek Innerspace Apollo and 2 shuttlecraft sets, all in their own section of my Etsy shop. Don't know how popular they'll be, but they were a lot of fun to make!

[beowulphx]

Made a new thing! Well, THREE new things, but they're related and very similar. Based on the Ghost Eye hidden orbs from the 2009 Coraline movie, I made a set of 3d printed light up versions that I'm selling as a set. As disgusted as I am with Neil Gaiman as a person, it's hard to separate how integral some of his works were to who I tried to make myself into, and I know there are plenty of other young fans of this movie who don't know about his behavior, who just like the character and the story. I'll make stuff like this for them, and hopefully let them feel a little bit closer to their hero... so they know that the real monsters of our world can still be beaten. Available in my shop here:

https://www.etsy.com/listing/4311701609/coraline-ghost-eyes-set?ref=shop_home_active_1&frs=1&sts=1&logging_key=bc98e6f2ba2b6f962d351790f45fda7ba4dcd99e%3A4311701609

In a similar vein, I've got a few props I've made from the Sandman series left over; I've taken down the listings for them from my Etsy shop, but I'm considering putting them back up as the 2nd Netflix season gets closer. I just want to get rid of them, give a little bit of visibility to all the other people who worked on the show (and did an amazing job) before they knew what a shitstain the author was. If I do re-list that stuff, it'll only be so I can donate all the proceeds to Planned Parenthood or Random Acts.

[beowulphx]

New flight stands available! It's been a busy weekend for me! I've been having an absolute blast making things for the #StarWars #MicroGalaxySquadron line, and I keep forgetting to show off my work, lol. Here's an info dump:

TIE Striker stands have been added to my TIE Silencer listing; it'll hold the ship securely in 3 different positions, and all of them with the wings angled up or down. https://www.etsy.com/listing/1874151885/tie-silencer-tie-striker-3d-printed?ref=shop_home_active_2&crt=1&sts=1&logging_key=2e27982c7f1759504761e8de9666f25e9d508db1%3A1874151885

I added a new listing for some clear "universal" ball joint stands, these will fit the Desert Skiff, Fiend Fighter, Droid Tri-Fighter, and probably the Z95 and other future ships too. https://www.etsy.com/listing/1886192196/universal-ball-joint-3d-printed-stand?ref=shop_home_active_1&sts=1&logging_key=51a85f9927d3c97c027dca1fa811c11032dfa405%3A1886192196

Also, while it's not my intention to keep re-configuring my older existing stands, sometimes I have ideas that can add functionality or strength to make it worthwhile. My Marauder base has been fortified with columns inspired by the Bad Batch's time on Pabu, and I figured out a way to let my U-Wing stand show the ship angled left or right. It's my intention to keep at least a couple of every ship stand available for the folks who are new to the line, and for those who maybe finally get their white whale of a chase. To that end, I have, and will continue to keep making stands for things like Grievous' Soulless One fighter and the Ginivex fanblade, lol https://www.etsy.com/shop/GwydionsForest?ref=shop-header-name&listing_id=1636932020&from_page=listing§ion_id=42179283 One other thing I'm REALLY thrilled with is my Droid Dungeon, which is a 1/72 scale rebuild of the old Kenner Jabba's Dungeon & Droid Factory sets from the 1980's. It was an interesting challenge to see how accurate I could make it, while redesigning some aspects to work with a 3D printer instead of injection molded parts. I'm excited to see what other sets I can re-create, and maybe do more of my own versions too!

[beowulphx]

I didn't make a new flight stand for the #Jazwares #StarWars #MicroGalaxySquadron Desert Skiff. The ball joint display stand it comes with is just about perfect, and nothing I make would be sturdy or durable enough to compete with that. So I made a base for the base. I worked up my own version of the Sarlacc pit from #ReturnOfTheJedi, and added 2 slots where the skiff base could slide in (making room for a double-skiff display, since walmart is supposed to be getting an exclusive 2 skiff box set). Then I made a movable "beak" (it will rotate or can be removed completely, if you're not a fan of the "special edition" effect) some holes for pipe-cleaner tentacles, and an evacuation chute if you can't wait 1,000 years to get your figure back. And then, since I still have all my original #ActionFleet toys, I made an adaptor that will let the #MicroMachines version of the skiff from 1997 use the base as well. I am having a blast playing with my toys!

I don't have a listing for this in my Etsy shop yet, but I'm hoping to have that added later today. If you're a fan of the line or just want to see some of the other stuff I make, check out my shop here: https://www.etsy.com/shop/gwydionsforest/?section_id=42179283

[beowulphx]

I've been very busy cranking out as many #jazwares #starwars #microgalaxysquadron flight stands as I can. My 2 3d printers have been running non-stop for weeks to keep up with the demand, and I've gone from ordering a couple reps of filament per month, to needing 3 or 4 per week! As a maker, it's a great problem to have! My latest design is for the series 4 #Ywing fighter. It's a little larger than most other fighter class ships, but it's well balanced and has a center of mass that makes it easy to support. I wanted to see if I could make a stand that gives people a choice of display, either level, or at a more dynamic upward angle that I'm becoming increasingly fond of. The resulting stand ended up looking like an abstract squirrel, but works great! Stable, small footprint in both orientations, and prints cleanly with no supports. Really happy with it, and now I'm thinking about redoing most of my other stands to give them the same dual position options! All my current stands and their downloadable STL files can be found in my #etsy shop here: www.gwydionsforest.etsy.com

[beowulphx]

The #Jazwares #MicroGalaxySquadron #SithInquisitor transport, like the #BadBatch #HavocMarauder, was a large challenge to design a stand for. I needed to make sure it had plenty of clearance for the wings to fold down, but also wanted to see if I could leave room for the ramp to open, at least partially. I also made it look a little more organic and for added menace, threw a #Sith symbol from #RiseOfSkywalker on there too!

[beowulphx]

This stand was a bit of a tricky one to design. While I wanted to keep the footprint small and print without supports, the versatility of the #GauntletStarfighter with its rotating wings meant it could be positioned at multiple angles, and I wanted to make sure it could be shown off in as many ways as possible! I made the stand to hold the ship by one wing, but in 3 different positions. Banked, right, left, and straight vertical. It works, it's stable, and it's fairly unobtrusive, but I may revisit this one if i get the time.

[beowulphx]

This is the ship that inspired me to start making stands for the #Jazwares #StarWars #MicroGalaxySquadron line. #AsajjVentress' fan blade ship from the #GenndyTartakovsky #CloneWars cartoon comes with a small clear stand, but it can only be displayed with the fan partially closed and doesn't have landing gear. I decided to give it a more dynamic posethat allows it to be shown fully open! (One day, I'd like to design a replacement closed fan insert that has landing gear, but that's a project for a later time)

[beowulphx]

Really proud of this one, my #Jazwares #MicroGalaxySquadron #StarWars #LAAT stand. Designed to print without supports, hold one LAAT and 4 scout class #SpeederBikes, and have a small footprint while allowing clearance for another LAAT (or similarly sized vehicle) underneath. With the number of repaints and variations for this ship, I wanted to maximize display space!

[beowulphx]

Adding to my #StarWars #MicroGalaxySquadron Stand collection, a smaller set of tabs that will hold 3 scout class #SpeederBikes in formation. I also add at least one clear PLA version of this with every order of stands! Great for army building and diorama display!

[beowulphx]

An update to my previous post about the #Jazwares line of #StarWars #microGalaxySquadron ships. I've been having a lot of fun designing some 3D printed stands for several different models now, and have expanded them to have their own section in my #EtsyShop! (Check them out at GwydionsForest.Etsy.com: https://www.etsy.com/shop/gwydionsforest/?section_id=42179283 ) The challenge was to make them relatively simple to print with no supports, but to have ample clearance for the wings/guns etc to be displayed in flight mode, while having a smaller footprint and still being stable. For the #BadBatch #HavocMarauder, I also added some tabs to hold a couple of the scout class speeder bikes, and room for Hunter's AT-RT underneath, so all of #CloneForce99 could be displayed together!