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Stardust and You – Concept Turned into Toy Prototype and Museum Exhibit

Written by Ralph Hill, Mechanical & electrical systems, 3D manufacturing

Prototyping Engineer

Published August 10, 2026

Large scale 3D printing is not one big print — it is a modular assembly problem. The Stardust and You spiral platform is 6.5 feet in diameter and strong enough for children and adults to walk on, so we split it into 35 modular pieces, each printing in two to five days.

Carol Gamble — founder of Little Partners and inventor of the Learning Tower — wanted a walkable spiral of time to accompany her children's book. We designed a 3D spiral pathway rising as the story progresses, with educational toys that drop into custom cavities or attach magnetically along the way.

Project at a glance

Client: Carol Gamble — author, founder of Little Partners and inventor of the Learning Tower
Category: Toy and experiential prototype
Starting point: A children's book needing a physical, walkable companion experience
What we delivered: Concept design, structural engineering, large-format fabrication and finishing of a 6.5-foot spiral play platform
Key constraints: Child-safe and load-bearing at 6.5 ft diameter, art-quality finish, transportable assembly
Outcome: A work-of-art interactive prototype that brings the book's story of the Universe to life

The client

Carol Gamble – serial entrepreneur, founder of Little Partners®, and inventor of the Learning Tower®. Carol authored the children’s book Stardust and You, a poetic journey that explains the formation of the Universe and our place within it.

Carol approached LA NPDT to bring her vision to life—an immersive, hands-on experience to complement her book. The goal was to design a walkable, physical representation of the spiral of time, where children could explore the story of the Universe chapter by chapter through interactive play.

Stardust and you You, Toy Prototype, LA NPDT

The challenge

This project represented a creative fusion of art and science. We were tasked with building a large-scale, durable platform—6.5 feet in diameter—strong enough for both kids and adults to walk on. At the same time, it had to match the whimsical visual style of the book and integrate seamlessly with a set of custom-designed toys. Each toy needed to be engaging, educational, and robust enough to withstand frequent use.

Our solution

We began by conceptualizing the platform. While early ideas leaned toward a flat structure, we quickly realized that a linear or circular design would not fully capture the narrative’s essence. To express the evolution and movement of time portrayed in the book, we designed a 3D spiral pathway—starting at the base and spiraling upward as the story progresses.

Along the path, children interact with educational toys corresponding to different stages of cosmic evolution—atoms, stars, planets, and more. Some toys fit into custom cavities, others attached magnetically, making them easy to move and engage with.

Our engineering team created 3D CAD models and divided the spiral platform into 35 modular pieces for efficient 3D printing, assembly, and transport. Each segment took between 2 to 5 days to print. While the platform was being fabricated, we prototyped and painted the toys to match the book’s illustrations. This process required close collaboration with the client and a few creative pivots—such as repainting the entire set after feedback indicated that the initial colors were too vibrant. The final paint style was carefully tuned to match the book’s aesthetic.

The result

The finished prototype was not just a toy—it became a full-scale, interactive educational installation. By integrating storytelling, science, and play, we helped transform Stardust and You from a children’s book into a tangible learning journey.

This concept was later adopted and adapted by Flying Fish for their touring science exhibit Stardust – The Universe in You, created in collaboration with the University of Minnesota Duluth, Telus World of Science Edmonton, Cosmosphere International SciEd Center & Space Museum, and Spark Initiatives.

The exhibit brings cosmic education to life through immersive storytelling and hands-on experiences for children and families across North America.

Ready to Bring Your Idea to Life?

Whether you’re an author, educator, or innovator, LA NPDT can help turn your vision into a validated, functional prototype. Let’s collaborate on creating meaningful, interactive experiences that inspire the next generation.

SCHEDULE YOUR FREE CONSULTATION TODAY.

Toy prototype development at a glance

Scope	Concept art, CAD modeling, 3D printed prototypes, finishing
Purpose	Play testing, safety review, manufacturer quoting, photography
Deliverables	CAD files, painted prototypes, drawings for quoting
Typical timeline	3-8 weeks

Toys have to be tested by hand

Scale, weight and how a character feels in a child's grip cannot be judged on screen. Prototypes also expose the things reviewers will flag later — small parts, sharp transitions, pinch points — while changes are still cheap.

How we built the prototypes

We modeled the characters from the concept art with production in mind, printed them at final size, and finished and painted the parts so they read as real product rather than gray resin. Those prototypes supported play testing, licensing conversations and factory quotes without the client committing to tooling.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a toy prototype cost?

Most single-character prototypes run $800 to $5,000 depending on size, articulation and finishing quality.

Can prototypes be used for photography?

Yes — hand-finished and painted prototypes are routinely used for packaging and marketing shots.

Do you help with toy safety requirements?

We design with ASTM F963 considerations in mind and coordinate testing through accredited labs.

Capabilities used on this project

Rapid prototyping services
3D printing, CNC machining, urethane casting and functional prototype builds with published materials, tolerances and lead times.
Prototype design and engineering
Design for the prototype itself: CAD, tolerance stacks, material choices and assembly detail before anything is built.

The large-format prototype playbook

The form had to carry the narrative
Early ideas leaned flat, but a linear or circular platform could not express the evolution of time in the book. A 3D spiral rising from base to summit made the structure itself tell the story.
35 pieces, printed in parallel
Our engineers modeled the spiral in CAD and divided it into 35 modular segments for efficient printing, assembly, and transport. Each segment took two to five days — modularity is what makes a 6.5-foot structure buildable at all.
Load-bearing whimsy
The platform had to survive adults walking on it while matching the book's whimsical visual style. Structural design and art direction were solved together, not in sequence.
Toys as chapters
Atoms, stars, planets — each toy corresponds to a stage of cosmic evolution and was prototyped alongside the platform. Some seat into custom cavities, others attach magnetically so children can move them freely.

Large scale 3D printing: the decisions behind the spiral platform

Challenge	Options	What was chosen
6.5 ft structure	One-piece fabrication vs. modular printing	35 modular printed segments
Narrative form	Flat, circular, or rising spiral	Rising 3D spiral matching the story
Walkable strength	Decorative vs. load-bearing	Load-bearing for children and adults
Toy attachment	Fixed vs. removable	Custom cavities plus magnetic attachment

Questions about this project

Straight answers from the engineers who ran the build. Have a different question? Ask us directly.

Talk to an engineer

How much does large scale 3D printing cost?

Large-format printed structures typically run $15,000 to $60,000 depending on size, structural requirements, and finishing. Modular segmentation is what keeps the cost and the schedule manageable.

How big can a 3D printed structure be?

Effectively unlimited when it is designed modularly. This platform reached 6.5 feet in diameter by splitting into 35 segments printed in parallel.

Can a 3D printed platform hold an adult's weight?

Yes, when it is engineered for it. This spiral was designed as a load-bearing structure for both children and adults, not a display model.

How long does a project like this take?

Segments printed in two to five days each, running in parallel while the interactive toys were prototyped. Projects of this scale typically span two to four months end to end.

Industries this project belongs to

See how we approach development in each of these categories, and the other products we have taken from sketch to production there.