Wednesday, December 10, 2014

3D Printed Barbie Armor Lets Little Girls Slay the Dragon

Brought to you by Emerson


http://www.3dprinterworld.com/article/3d-printed-barbie-armor-lets-little-girls-slay-dragon

19 comments:

Julianna said...

I believe this whole thing is useless and could cause problems. Okay... little girls do like dressing up their dolls, but the 3D printed outfits are really dangerous. As it mentioned in the article the little pieces of the 3D printed outfits, could fly all over the place and end up in someone's mouth, ear, etc. Also, the 3D swords or other accessories could be really sharp. Which could cause A LOT of chaos! Another reason why I believe it is useless, is because there are A BUNCH of other doll outfits in the world! Overall, I believe this 3D outfit is useless and could cause problems. Although, if anyone wants to make armor accessories or an outfit, they could make it out of soft fabric.

Grace said...

I disagree with Julianna because girls that have Barbie dolls are old enough to know what and how to do with them and to deal with them. There are too many doll outfit manufacturers out there, Julianna, but this is one of the commercials/articles that say that girls aren't all pink and pretty. Like the Nerf Rebelle commercial, it shows that girls can play with Nerf guns too. Even though the guns are decorated with pink, it shows that girls are tough. But I think that 3D printing it was a bad idea because the filament is really fragile so when little girls are pretending that she is slaying a dragon, it is likely that they will toss her around and break some or all of the pieces. Don't get me wrong, it's a great idea and it shows girls that stereotypes can't control them and it shows that girls can be tough. But they could be made out of a soft and a more resistant fabric, and there are already so many doll outfits. But this was a good idea. The man cared about the little girls birthday so he actually used a 3D printer to make clothes. This is a great article. I'm sure that this will inspire a lot of people around the world to make things using technology. Also, the stereotype that says girls have to love pretty ponies, pink, and princesses is proven wrong here. Great article for inspiration and showing girls that they are their own person.

Sydney said...

I think that this is really cool, but that the person shouldn't go TOO far with it, like making a guillotine Barbie or something. I also agree with Grace that the armor should be mad out of a stronger material that isn't straight-up metal, like plastic would work. That would still keep the armor's design but make it more durable.

Jenna said...

I thought that this was a interesting website. I don't really like the idea of barbie armor for little kids.(I like the armor for older kids though.) It makes littles kids think about war and battle. The idea of battle might not be realistic for the kids either. By that I mean that the kids might not understand that in real battles people can get hurt and killed. I thought that because the armor was 3d printed the article was interesting. I also liked the little clip at the bottom of the page, it was very funny! In conclusion I found this article to be interesting and a new discovery in the world of toy makers.

Sophia said...

I agree with Jenna and Julianna that they shouldn't make little kids play with armor Barbie dolls. That is not good that they are making these dolls because they will think about war, like Jenna said and that will turn out really bad. Even though that is really good 3D printing. The 3D swords are really sharp. If the little kid put it in his mouth he could swallow it and choke on the sword. Again, I agree with Julianna that this is useless because there are so many other doll outfits in the world. If they want to have a cute outfit they should just make it out of fabric and not 3D print it.

Mason said...

I think that this is cool, but with the amount of money invested into it, I don't find it useful. $5000 for a birthday present? What is he thinking? At least he could use that money for a good cause. I think that the violent aspect of this doesn't matter much. Still, people should still use money for a good cause. As Sophia said, the outfit should be made out of fabric. In conclusion, I find that this is just a waste of money.

Kendall said...

I think that this is a very good product. Growing up, I would never play with the barbies, because I only had one pair of pants. A lot of girls grow up learning/reading these story books that always end in "he came along and stayed the dragon, saying the princess from his fiery breath. They ride of into the sunset. THE END" That's why one of my favorite stories is the Paper Bag Princess. I understand that some people are worried that kids might hurt them selves, but #1, put a warning tag on it and #2, you can dull the edges on a sanding table. I think that people need to understand that it is not in all girls nature to sit around, when they could be doing something, to wait for the prince.

Natalie said...

I agree with Mason, because think about this: the kid wouldn't even know that it cost about $5,000! That's a lot for barbie doll accessories. You could just make them by hand, without having to spend it on something like this.

I also agree with Jenna, because (1) little girls don't usually play with armor on their dolls, and (2) by the time they actually like armor and fighting, they're probably way past their barbie-doll playing time.

This is not the best use of money, and it is kind of dangerous. Like I said previously, little girls are usually playing with barbie when they're younger, and when there are sharp and small things around, that's exactly what you don't want.

Gemma said...

This article is really interesting. I think that it is empowering to girls even though it is sharp. There are many other doll outfits but to face the facts, they are all Miss America dresses of very tiny bikinis which are not empowering in the slightest. Barbie is already a abomination of nature, because she got some serious plastic surgery and photoshop (I'm just saying.) This 3d printed outfit makes her girls hero instead of a princess. This should be given to girls who want to be barbie when they grow up. After they get this toy, they will want to be warrior princesses. If someone is making this, and people are supporting them, then this could catch on and be something HUGE! It would make tons of money, and be a great feminist statement even though not meant to be in the beginning.

Richie said...

This article is great. The person who is taking part in the project is a genius because barbie doesn't just have to be a "girly girl" that little girls play with. By making the barbie dolls with the armor ( I agree with you Gemma) then they become hero-like and girls of higher ages will play. 5,000 is a fair price for revolutionizing the barbie world, and paving the way for new additions to barbie for years to come.

Richie said...

I disagree with Natalie and Jenna, girls still might like barbie even when they are older.

Mina said...

You go, dude! I think that what this man did is awesome. We don't need another stupid Barbie dress, but this is cool. I know that everyone is all into this strong girl stuff, but that's not how I see this. I love that Radda was just messing around with his 3d printers when he created this. I completely disagree with Julianna. Sure, the armor can turn from a fun toy to a dangerous weapon, but only if you make it so. I also agree with Mason when he says it's a waste of money. I really like this product, but I think that $5,000 is a little overboard. I kinda agree with Gemma, but I also disagree. I think that she's right when she says that it's empowering to girls, but I don't think it's a completely new idea. I mean, there have been many cases of people trying to "girlify" products (anyone hear about the nerf guns?). In conclusion, I think that Radda is definitely heading in the right direction. Keep it up!
P.S. I keep reading that Barbie is a princess. What?!

Lily S. said...

I agree with Julianna. 3D printed outfits could get very dangerous. A little girl playing with a barbie armor set like this could get stabbed and hurt. It would have to be made of a lot of little pieces and they could be everywhere. The pieces could go in eyes, ears, and noses. I agree with Grace. I think that it is cool that girls can go against the stereotypes. I like that but I also think that $5,000 is way too expensive for a birthday present. I don't understand why people care about it being to scale, because if barbie were a real person she would not be able to stand up. I did a little research and here is the link:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2308658/How-Barbies-body-size-look-real-life-Walking-fours-missing-half-liver-inches-intestine.html
It has all the measurements of barbies. I think that this is going to get more popular in years to come. People will start making their own things using 3D printers.

Jaime said...

I thought this article was very interesting. It is cool how Jim Rodda was planning on 3D printing a My Little Pony glitter cannon, for his niece's fourth birthday. But he figured out that it was to hard, so he made amour for her barbie doll. I agree with Julianna, I think that, as they stated it is way to dangerous, because of its pointy edges and little pieces, that can get lost, or a little baby can get to the outfit and swallow a small piece, which is a choking hazard. If they made it in a safer way, it would be a great invention.

Allie said...

I disagree with Julianna, Jenna and Sophia. Sorry guys. I think that this is a great idea for younger children. It helps them not become "girly" girls and become more "tomboys". As you know in life, everything is perfect. You can't just stay around playing dress-up your whole life. Also, if younger children learn what a 3D Printer is capable of, they might want to learn more and/or do a job more associated with technology. I mean, yes, we have gotten over the male/female stereotypes, or at least we think we have. Still, females are less likely to choose a technology job because there will be much more men working there than women. I did a little researching on this and found this article from the Washington Post: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/on-leadership/wp/2014/10/23/why-are-so-few-women-even-on-the-business-side-of-tech-companies/. Also, printing 3D armor for young children's play toys gives them knowledge that there is a military, and people actually fight to protect this country. Lastly, I looked at other links about this product and found that it was modeled somewhat like Athena's armor. This set of armor could actually teach some child about Greek Mythology! This is why I agree with Grace, Kendall and all the rest who said that this is a good product.

Rhea M. said...

I completely agree with Allie, but it's not so important that young girls learn about the military and about technology. Sure they may be inspired to work in technology but they won't be figuring out what do for a long time and we learn about military and technology later in life. We are learning technology today. We have 3D pens and laptops and robotics. Also women can choose whatever jobs they like. Otherwise I thought this was an amazing article and it is a good toy for girls. It also hides they stereotypes from barbies. Even boys could play with it now

Celene A. said...

I think this is a very good idea. Although it might cause problems, it breaks the Barbie stereotype, and that is great. It shows that if a girl plays with a Barbie Doll it doesn't mean that she's a girly girl who loves pink, ballet, and, ironically, Barbie Dolls. This shows that girls are better than that. My only problem is a $5,000 investment is not worth a birthday present.

Kendall said...

I kinda agree with Grace, but at the same time I do not. I think that girls could understand that they don't have to like pink and glittery things, but I think that if a little girl wants armor for her barbie doll, I think it might be safe to say that that girl might not like playing with barbies. The image associated with barbie is that they are perfect, and every thing associated with the image surrounding barbie, I feel like this girl might want for something else. I also think that companies like Nerf should not make "different" toys for girl> I think what they need to do is show that girls can play with the EXACT same thing that boys can. Even the Nerf rebel shows that girl have to like pink and purple. I think that in this day and age, it is a step forward, but I thin that they need to accept that boy and girls should be permitted by society(peer pressure) to lay with the same things boys do. I also think that that would permit there to be a lot less younger kids refusing to play with the other gender because"girls do play with ..." I also think about the safety part, that people need to relax. Has anyone ever thought about the original barbie? They have high heels and small purses and hair clips, and all of those things are a chocking hazard to small children. I think when people were saying that you don't want them thinking about war, all I can say is.... Nerf=guns Shooting/War based video games=war

Why can boys learn about war when girls cannot dress up a doll in a knights armor?? I think it is a very gender biased option.

Thats all

Talia said...

I disagree with Julianna and Jenna. This is a truly incredible invention, definitely not useless or dangerous. Printed outfits aren't dangerous, in fact we have many 3D printers at OUR school AND 3D pens. If they were dangerous then we probably wouldn't have them AND I have held them and I am fine. Also, I don't think he made the outfits with wings and they won't"fly" everywhere. Maybe if someone isn't using it and they throw it for some reason but I don't think it will end up right into someones ear, which wouldn't be dangerous anyways. I don't believe 3D swords are sharp, but if they are I still can't stab anyone with a tiny 3D printed object that would probably just tickle someone if they got poked with it. Yes there are tons of doll outfits, but they are girly and not hard armor like this. This is also good because it is not wasting any money on buying fabric and sowing and stuff, the person just 3D printed it without and trouble. People could 3D print it for their selves as well. And if the armor was soft fabric, it wouldn't be armor. Just soft girly barbie clothing and not HARD armor like it should be. I loved Grace's last line in her post, so I am going to write it again.

Great article for inspiration and showing girls that they are their own person. :)