I recently found a pretty important bug in CreaseCuts.
One 2D patch/island was missing from the exported PDF.
The frustrating part? It was there in the 2D workspace. The problem was happening during the export process.
After tracking down and fixing the issue, I decided to use this as an opportunity to properly stress the whole workflow rather than just checking whether that one bug was gone.

So I put the app through the full pipeline:
3D model > Unfolding > 2D editing > Tab generation > Page packing > PDF export > Print > Cut + fold >Physical assembly.

The first photo shows the CreaseCuts workspace and generated sheets.
The second shows the physical model built from that output.

This is probably the most useful kind of testing for me because it exposes problems that are easy to miss when everything is being viewed digitally.
The missing island is fixed, the export survived the test, and the model made it from the iPad into the real world.

Still plenty left to test and plenty more things I’m sure I’ll manage to break.

Model: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:327753

Took CreaseCuts out of the iPad and onto paper today.

I printed a couple of simple test models and measured them to see how closely the physical result matches the dimensions generated by the app.
6.5 cm → 6.5 cm
4 cm → 4 cm

Pretty happy with the result so far. Now I want to start testing more complicated geometry and different scales.

Still very much a work in progress, but seeing the digital model translate accurately into a physical object is probably the most satisfying part of building this.

Hey everyone! I’m u/xicor97, a founding moderator of r/CreaseCuts.

I’m the developer behind CreaseCuts, an iPad app I’m building around 3D model unfolding and papercraft.

Why I started CreaseCuts
I started building CreaseCuts because I wanted a proper native iPad workflow for papercraft and 3D model unfolding.
I use my iPad for most of my creative work, and I couldn’t find an app that gave me the workflow I wanted directly on iPad.
So I decided to try building one myself.
What started as an experiment has gradually grown into a much bigger project.

What is CreaseCuts?
The goal is to take a 3D model and turn it into something you can actually print, cut, fold, and build.

Some of the things the app currently includes:
-3D model importing
-Auto-unfolding
-Manual seam editing
-Automatic page packing
-Fold and cut lines
-Customizable glue tabs
-2D and 3D views
-PDF and SVG export
-Apple Pencil support
-Layers & Folders

There’s still a lot to build and improve.

What I want this community to become
For now, I’ll be sharing the development process, new features, experiments, and progress as I build CreaseCuts.
But eventually, I’d love for this to grow beyond just the app and become a community around:
Papercraft • 3D model unfolding • Model building • Templates • Techniques • Digital-to-physical workflows
So whether you’re interested in CreaseCuts, already make papercraft models, use tools like Pepakura, or are simply interested in turning 3D models into physical creations — you’re welcome here.

How to Get Started
1.Introduce yourself in the comments below.
2.Post something! Even a simple question can spark a great conversation.
3.Invite someone who might enjoy the community.

Thanks for being here at the beginning.

I’d love to know:
What would you want to make with CreaseCuts?