Lesson 4: Extrude

About 14 minutes · Blender 5.2.1 LTS · Mac Mini + Magic Mouse

What extrude does

Extrude copies a selected face and pulls the copy away from the surface. Blender builds new side walls for you. It is the most-used modeling tool.

Real screenshots

Before: the top face is selected.

After: the selected face is pulled out, and new faces fill the gap. The manual uses a different shape, but the steps are the same.

Image: Blender Manual by the Blender Documentation Team, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Shared unchanged.

Steps

1. Tool Select the cube and press Tab for Edit Mode.
2. Key Press 3 for face select.
3. Mouse Click the top face. It turns orange.
4. Key Press E, move the mouse up, and click. The top is now a raised block.
5. Check You see a tall block. The new side walls are visible.
6. Key Press Cmd + Z to undo.
7. Key Press I to inset. A smaller face appears inside the first. Move the mouse and click.
8. Key Press E again and move up. You now have a raised frame.
9. Key Press Tab to leave Edit Mode.

Project: raised name tag

A flat plate with a raised center panel and a border. The colors are for later lessons.

1. Tool Add a cube: Shift + A, then Mesh > Cube.
2. Key Press S, X, type 2, Enter to make it wider.
3. Key Press S, Y, type 0.5, Enter to make it a flat plate.
4. Key Press Tab, then 3 for face select.
5. Mouse Click the top face.
6. Key Press I, move the mouse slightly, and click. This makes a border.
7. Key Press E, move up a little, click. The center panel rises.
8. Key Press Tab to leave Edit Mode. Save as nametag.blend with Cmd + S.