3D printed gift ideas that look amazing

3D printing is rapidly being harnessed to produce beautiful goods that can make desirable holiday gifts. But beyond that, the technology has sparked a profound revolution in manufacturing, arts and science, a new CBC Radio documentary reveals.

Experts interviewed by documentary maker and computer scientist David Gerhard in The Revolution Will Be Extruded argue that within this decade, 3D printing will change the very fabric of our lives. The documentary aired Dec. 6 on CBC Radio's Ideas.

• Listen to the full documentary on Ideas

Chris Anderson, a 3D printing pioneer and industrialist living in Silicon Valley, called 3D printing "a way to [do] digital fabrication on your desktop that would have been impossible, or too expensive, just a few years ago."

At that time, 3D printers required skill and knowledge to build and use, he told Gerhard.

"Today, they're ready-made and so simple, any child can use one.”

Any child … and many artists and craftspeople, too. 

Check out a gallery of the some of the hottest arts and crafts brought to us through the magic of modern technology.