Freestyle Project #9: My Class! 5/23/25

Designing this commemorative plaque started as a personal milestone: my very last Freestyle Project of sophomore year. I knew I wanted something I could look back on during senior year, college, or even beyond proof of how far I’d come and a snapshot of who I was at this point in my life.

On the Front plane of Fusion 360, I sketched a simple rectangle measuring 120 mm by 80 mm with a slight 5 mm border to give the plaque a clean frame. Centered within that border, I drew construction lines to position the raised text exactly where it felt balanced. Setting these dimensions up front meant the overall shape stayed true, even when I decided to tweak proportions later.

With the outline locked in, I extruded the base plate up by 5 mm, creating a sturdy foundation. Next came the fun part: embossing the celebratory message. I used the Text tool to lay out “Class Of 2027!” in a bold, sans-serif font, then positioned “By: Jayden Adomako!” just below in a smaller size. Each letter was raised 2 mm from the surface, making them stand out crisply against the background.

Because I wanted the option to revisit or remix this design in the future, I named every parameter plate width, text height, font size so a single change would ripple through the model. If I ever decide to turn this into a metal keepsake or add a custom frame, I can adjust those values without rebuilding the whole thing.

To bring the plaque to life, I applied a brushed-metal appearance to the base, dialing down reflectivity for a matte, heirloom-quality feel. The raised text got a polished-steel finish so it catches the light and casts subtle shadows across the background. I experimented with light direction in Fusion’s render environment until the contrast felt just right enough to read the message at a glance, but soft enough to feel timeless.

As I wrapped up this project, I reflected on everything I’d learned this year: parametric constraints, appearance overrides, and the power of organized component trees. More than that, I recognized how CAD has become a tool for storytelling this plaque isn’t just geometry and materials; it’s a moment frozen in time.

Looking ahead, I can’t wait to revisit this model on graduation day, or whenever I need a reminder of my sophomore-year ambitions. Though it began as an end-of-semester assignment, it’s become a personal keepsake, a symbol of growth, and a promise to my future self that I never stop creating.