Wendy's arguably had the best dining experience in a fast food restaurant in the 80's/90's mostly due to the large sunroom at the front of the building. It brought in natural light and warm, cozy vibes inside. In recent years, many people have talked about how much they miss the sunrooms, and that the restaurant chain should bring them back. There might be some older locations that still have these sunrooms, but I typically see the newer, more modern style buildings by me.Â
Â
Â
I wanted to make the sunroom the main focus on my miniature design, and while the sunroom is up front and center of the design, I started noticing more and more details of the building as I dug into the design. Like the large roof that curves outward, tall side windows, and brick exterior. Of course another standout design feature is the retro Wendy's logo and road sign.Â
Â
Â
I wanted this model to pair nicely with my Taco Bell and White Castle model sets, so the design of the building is slightly different from the actual restaurant. All parts can be printed on the A1 MINI.Â
I designed a brick pattern that runs all around the building. This took the most time to design since there are tons of windows, different wall sections, and changes in direction of the bricks. The result looks awesome when printed and gives off a real brick look to the model.Â
The roof is separated into multiple pieces for ease of printing. The assembly was very smooth and I didn't even use any glue as the pieces just fit nicely together.Â
The sunroom really is the main focus of the model, especially if you use a transparent filament. I added a tea light inside and the model gives off a nice warm glow. Make sure to assemble the sunroom in the correct orientation. For some reason, I kept assembling the sunroom upside down and wondered why it wasn't sitting right. I flipped it around and finally got it right.Â
The sunroom has a black frame that I decided to print separately from the sunroom window. This reduces the print time and filament changes/waste. The black frame is quite thin and delicate. It prints with supports, so I recommend using flush cutters to snip the supports off. If you try to rip the supports off, the frame could break. Also, wait for the print to cool before scraping off the build plate to avoid any deforming. If the part does get deformed or doesn't fit perfectly around the window, heat up the print slightly with a heat gun or hair dryer to form fit and cool over the window.Â
You will need to print and cut out the circle Wendy's logo for the building sign and road sign. I decided not to 3D print this part of the logo as it would be too small and the details would not print accurately. I cut my logos using scissors and it was very difficult to get a nice, clean round cut. If you have a Cricut machine or H2D, I would recommend trying to cut the images with some kind of cutting machine. Also, using sticker paper or glossy paper could improve the look of the logo even more. I do have a Cricut machine so I may try printing and cutting, but for now my manual cut images look fine.Â
As always, there is an assembly guide posted.
Â
Filament Used:
BL PLA Basic Yellow
BL PETG Translucent Brown
BL PLA Matte Terracotta
BL PLA Basic Cocoa Brown
BL PLA Matte Desert Tan
eSun Black
eSun Fire Engine Red
eSun Cold White
Â
I hope you enjoy this model and it brings back some fond memories of the Wendy's restaurants from the 80's and 90's. Don't forget the tea light candles to put inside for extra warm, cozy vibes. Display this model next to the Taco Bell and White Castle model sets for a trifecta of classic fast food spots. More model sets are in the works so keep checking back and follow for more! Thanks for your support. Feel free to reach out with any questions. Enjoy!