Blind Dutch Girl Receives Incredible 3D Printed Statuette in Her Own Likeness for 16th Birthday

The power of people and technology coming together to do thoughtful things for others is what often makes 3D printing so powerful and interesting on many levels. With the ease of digital design that promotes and facilitates creativity, coupled with 3D printing itself, which allows for affordable and repeated prototyping when necessary–quite simply, designers and engineers are able to go the extra mile.

Now, a Dutch girl is enjoying the rewards of what 3D printing can accomplish, after her parents gave her an incredible gift for her sixteenth birthday. Almost completely blind since she was six years old, Danique can actually still see some vague outlines and contrasted shades of color and shadow, but she is not able to make out any clear details.

Obviously, it’s important for a teenager to know what she looks like–in fact, it’s important for everyone to be able to have the chance to know their own image–and Danique’s parents came up with an incredibly sweet and resourceful idea for their daughter.

They contacted Oceanz, an innovative company known as an experienced and professional 3D printing company that works with many different retailers in the Netherlands, of all sizes, in supplying 3D prints in many different forms.

They weren’t exactly able to make it a surprise gift, however. Danique had to be scanned from the top of her head to the bottoms of her feet in Haarlem. Once they had a digitally scanned file, it was sent to the Oceanz office in Ede, where they were able to turn out a beautifully 3D printed statuette, standing 25 centimeters tall, in 24 hours.

Printed, polished, and finished off in a bright blue hue, Danique may not be able to see all the details but she can feel the statuette, almost like reading in Braille. This allows her a ‘picture’ of what she looks like now as a young woman. Bright blue is also the color Danique is able to see best, and the piece should give her years of enjoyment in touch-resistant plastic.

Her parents reported that she is more than satisfied with the outcome.

“With this statue I finally truly ‘see’ myself,” said Danique. “The doll is well detailed. I can feel my hair, my hands and my posture. It gives me a good imagination and it’s definitely not the same as feeling my own face.”

Oceanz also works with customers in the industrial, medical, retail, and aerospace sectors. They are also known for having a team that works not only creatively but also diligently with their client base to produce 3D printed models ‘that make a difference.’

They more than succeeded in upholding their mission in helping to give this Danish teenager a look at herself via a really cool, detailed 3D printed figurine–almost in a rock star stance. It couldn’t be a more perfect design for her age group.

Discuss Danique’s unique birthday gift in the 3D Printed Danish Doll forum thread over at 3DPB.com.

Oceanz is the largest 3D printing Service Center of Northwest Europe and is the first 3D printing company in the Netherlands with an ISO 9001 certification.