Coming soon to a shoe and dishwasher near you

Just printed these suckers out.

Here's a big change in the way we make and buy things that could creep up on us much as the Internet did: 3D printing. We can understand it intellectually, but it's hard to imagine how it will change our everyday lives. Consider:

Soon it will be possible to print out products at home ranging from appliance parts to shoes. You will be able to have that dishwasher part made just for you instantly. This promises to empower a new wave of design and customization fueled by our personal taste and imagination.

It's here already.

Nike with its Nike iD services lets customers personalize and design their own Nike merchandise, down to their favorite colors and materials. Amsterdam-based Freedom of Creation, renowned for its lighting designs, has 3D-printed fixtures gracing the interiors of luxury hotels around the world. Canada-based Weatherhaven, which supplies portable shelters, digitally explores and validates its custom designs without having to build physical prototypes. This saves the company up to $100,000 per shelter. 

As a result, yesterday’s factory is evolving into a global community of custom design and personal fabrication services. And manufacturers are creatively embracing the changes.

Myriad industries – from automotive (which already created the first 3D printed car) and aerospace to footwear and jewelry – have embraced 3D printing that creates objects by laying down successive layers of materials.It is estimated that 3D printing will grow to become a $5.2 billion industry by 2020, up from $1.3 billion last year.

I'm going to print me out the perfect napping couch.