Top Creative Trophy Ideas

It is little wonder that trophies are among the best selling items in the 3D printing world. After all, competitive events take place every day, and many of those conclude with the presentation of awards or cups to the winner. This is even more common in competitions involving younger children, where it is customary for all the participants to get token awards, in the spirit of fair play. The placing of large orders for such pieces is therefore nothing new for owners of 3D printing shops or design agencies.

In the midst of this demand, however, it can sometimes be hard to really innovate from a design point of view. Most cups, whether 3D printed or otherwise, tend to fall into the standard format, inspired by pieces such as football cups; trophies, on the other hand, often feature some representation of the sport or activity they are rewarding, which can also potentially get stale quite quickly.

It is in that spirit that this article seeks to offer 3D designers and printers looking for inspiration a few creative trophy ideas, which they can apply the next time a large order comes in. This can, of course, also apply to the client as well, as it is not unheard of for designs to already be in place by the time the work is commissioned. Whichever side you may be on, find a few innovative designs in the lines below.

Mascots

With the advent of 3D printing, and all it brings to the table, it has become much easier to realise even the most creative trophy ideas with relative ease. This, in turn, allows printers and clients alike to expand their range of vision a little further than they would have in the ‘old days’, and to come up with truly innovative designs for their creations.

In this regard, why not make your piece something like a representation of a mascot or character? This is an idea that young children in particular are likely to be very receptive to, and it is perfect for use in awards for sporting competitions or contests involving younger participants. Making your piece in the shape of a mascot can also be an important branding tool, especially if your company or organisation does not have such a marketing strategy in place. If you are trying to implement a figurehead, or give your organisation a face, using the said aspect in your awards can be an excellent way of achieving this objective.

• Themed’ Trophies

Another way of ensuring your awards stand out from the pack is to make them themed to the event. This is, of course, already done to a degree, with fishing awards shaped like fish or football awards in the shape of footballs! However, the wealth of creative trophy ideas this practice can give rise to is yet to be fully explored.

Among the potential creative trophy ideas you can use, for instance, may be a robot or computer (for technology-related awards), a piece of sporting apparatus (such as a hockey stick, rather than the hockey player himself), an animal (for wildlife or pet-related awards) or an element of nature (for ecology awards.) All of these can offer a welcome alternative to the usual designs, and make your piece stand apart from the regular ones.

These are only a few ideas that can make your piece look more attractive than the norm. Creative minds are sure to come up with at least a couple more.

George Berdichevsky is the Founder of 3Design Center, which designs image files to be used in the production of creative trophy ideas. His team of talented artists can create bespoke images for 3D engraving from any idea or image. Visit the website for more information.

Writer and Online Marketing Manager in London.