Looking for a new project for your 3-D printer? New York lawyer Martin Galese has an idea. He's turned drawings from expired patents into digital blueprints for 3-D printers. That means anybody can get his very own plastic hat holder, cup for drinking without spilling in bed, or combination pen-holder-bookmark (if you still have any paper books).

As a lawyer, Galese works with modern software patents for his job, The New York Times reports. Such patents often make the news today, as the subject of lawsuits between huge technology companies. But these older patents drew Galese because of their artfulness and beauty, he told the Times.

I don't know if "beauty" quite the word for all of them, but they are quirky and fun. Take, for instance, this guy: