Suppose you could print thread in shoes the way you say. Is it really going to be cheaper for you to do that than for me to get a sweatshop in Macau to drag thread through fabric? Take your doorknobs. I can cold stamp a doorknob a gazillion at a time. Or, I can 3d print them one excruciating layer at a time. Even if I decide that the gargoyle is worth it, what I"m gonna do is I'm gonna print one gargoyle, then I'm going to make a sandcasting dummy out of it, sprue up about fifty of them, and pour them in potmetal. Maybe I go the extra mile and go brass/bronze. Which are you going to buy: a doorknob that has been 3d printed out of polymer and costs $23: http://www.shapeways.com/model/280625/ Or something forged out of steel that costs $12? http://www.amazon.com/Forged-Iron-Door-Pull-Heart/dp/B003NB0... Hell, take that "evolved" doorknob, print it once and cast it in aluminum and I'll bet I can get it down to $6 per. The 3d printing part of it becomes the part we used to call "artistry" only now instead of working in clay with a knife I'm working in Rhino with a Wacom.