A few years ago I started a weird KK tradition where I somehow include a funny reference to my partners brother in the KK gift to which ever (un)lucky family member I have. The first year was a set of laser engraved coasters with his face on them, followed the next year by a 300 piece puzzle with fake packaging and all. Continuing the dangerous trend of upping myself, this year I decided to 3D print a Dachshund with… his face on it.

But… why?

A little context won’t go astray here… my KK recipient was my partners brothers girlfriend, who had received a Dachshund puppy from my partners brother for Christmas, so overall the idea seemed fitting.

How I Made It

1.0 Getting a Dachshund Model

This was the easy part. A quick search on Thingiverse lead me to this great Dachshund model.

2.0 Making a 3D Face Model

I’ve got no skills when it comes to 3D sculpting and nor do I have the time to do it. Thankfully an internet search turned up this nifty website that can create a 3D facial model from just one photo.

3.0 Creating my Frankenstein

I’m solely used to parametric modelling, so when I imported these two mesh bodies I was completely lost. I eventually found two free options that could work; Blender and Meshmixer. I got both, but I opted to use Meshmixer in order to mash the two models together. I chose Meshmixer because I’m familiar with Autodesk software and it is designed as a streamlined tool that is more accessible. While more feature rich, I’ll have to invest the time if I want to use Blender in future.

The Result

I was really happy with how it turned out. I laser cut a “kennel” to house the model and added to small holes to hang a set of earring which was the actual, desired gift. I’ll go well out of my way to do something for a laugh, and judging by the gaping mouths and shrieks of delight, everyone else had a good laugh too.