Are you a 3D designer/modeler? If you're longing to see your creations made manifest, Shapeways--an online service, currently in public beta--is where you should be. Upload your model, and the Shapeways "prints" it into an object, then ships it to you.

Objects are printed from a variety of polymer-based materials--right now, colors are limited to cream, white, clear and most recently, black, but more Shapeways plans to add materials periodically. And pricing is determined by the amount of material your model requires; it's not terribly cheap, but that's understandable, considering the utter futuristic coolness of what you're getting.

The company's site is much more than just a place to order models: It features numerous tutorials for designers, forums, and a gallery of design work that's a blast to peruse.

And if you're fascinated by this whole idea (like me) but aren't a CAD expert, Shapeways offers two design templates. With the candle holder, you can choose the material, the words, and whether they spiral or wrap horizontally (our creation, at left, cost around $90, including shipping). There's also a customizable fruit-bowl design.

To get an idea of how 3D printing actually works, check out Shapeway's video, after the jump.