How is a 3D-printed vase made?
Short answer: a LUMA vase starts as a 3D model and is printed layer by layer from plant-based PLA. Then it is finished by hand with a flame, checked and packed. The vases are made in Amsterdam in small batches, and their fine, twisting ribs only exist because of 3D printing.
The design
Every shape begins on screen as a 3D model. First comes the silhouette: the cylinder of SILO, the tall line of SPIRE, the bottle of SILK, the round body of SORA. Then the ribs that spiral around it. Each shape comes in three sizes, and the proportions are tuned to each height: 22, 28 and 34 cm, or 21, 27 and 33 cm for SPIRE.
The material
The vases are printed from PLA, a plastic made from plant-based raw materials. It arrives as a thin filament wound on a spool. The water-tight insert in every box is made of PETG, a tougher plastic chosen because it holds water and takes more heat.
Printing, layer by layer
A 3D printer melts the filament and lays it down as one continuous line, layer upon layer, from the base up. In every layer the ribs sit a fraction further around than in the one below, and that is how a straight wall becomes a spiral. A Small spends a few hours on the printer, a Large more than half a day.
Finished by hand with a flame
Straight from the printer, a vase can carry fine threads and small irregularities. Each one is then finished by hand with a flame, in a few quick passes that take those traces away and leave a clean, matte surface. The vases are not sanded. Because a hand guides the flame, every vase carries small signs of how it was made.
Checked and packed
After finishing, every vase is checked by hand, given its insert and packed in a white LUMA box with protective wrapping and a thank-you card.
In stock, or printed to order
We keep a few of every colour and size in stock, and a vase in stock ships within one working day. When a colour and size is not in stock, we print one for your order and it ships within two to three working days. We print in small batches, so no warehouse fills up with vases nobody chose.
Why these shapes need 3D printing
Ribs that twist around a hollow body, fine enough to catch the light, are hard to make with a mould or on a potter's wheel. A printer builds the shape layer by layer, so the ribs can follow the form all the way around. That is the idea LUMA started from: a vase that could not be mass-produced.
Frequently asked questions
What is PLA?
A plastic made from plant-based raw materials. LUMA vases are printed from it. Keep a PLA vase below 50°C, as the material starts to soften around 55°C.
How long does it take to print a vase?
A Small spends a few hours on the printer, a Large more than half a day. After that, every vase is finished, checked and packed by hand.
Is every vase unique?
The shape is the same, but every vase is finished by hand with a flame, so each one carries small traces of how it was made.
Where are LUMA vases made?
In Amsterdam. Every vase is finished by hand with a flame, then checked and packed in our own studio.
Why the vase needs an insert for water is explained in is a 3D-printed vase water-tight? See the four shapes in the collection.
