Aaron ButlerCreative Design
Blender

Donut and Coffee

The standard first Blender project: modeling, sculpting, particles, procedural materials and a lit scene.

Year2026
Craft
MODELINGMATERIALSLIGHTING
01
Overview

The one everybody starts with

The donut is the standard first Blender project, and it covers more ground than it looks: modeling, sculpting the icing so it drips over the edge, scattering sprinkles as particles rather than placing them, procedural materials, and a lit scene to put it in.
It's here because it's the honest starting point. The two views below take the scene apart instead of presenting it: the components separated out, and the same arrangement as wireframe, which is where the modeling actually shows.
The scene taken apart — icing lifted off the bread, the coffee surface off the mug. Every piece is its own object.
The scene taken apart — icing lifted off the bread, the coffee surface off the mug. Every piece is its own object.
The same arrangement in wireframe. The donut and the mug carry nearly all the geometry; the plates and the table are almost nothing.
The same arrangement in wireframe. The donut and the mug carry nearly all the geometry; the plates and the table are almost nothing.
02
Outcome

Where it is now

The scene is below, live. The sprinkles needed converting from scattered particles into real geometry to make the trip out of Blender at all, and they come through white: their colors are assigned randomly at render time, which is not something a model file can carry.
The full scene — donut, coffee, and the surface they sit on.
The full scene — donut, coffee, and the surface they sit on.
A shallow depth-of-field pass, composed as a photograph rather than a turntable.
A shallow depth-of-field pass, composed as a photograph rather than a turntable.