New Blender add‑on Pixie Pivot gives users granular control over Blender’s pivoting and gizmo‑alignment workflows using a suite of Maya‑inspired tools. Users can reposition gizmos, adjust object origins, align to mesh elements, and define custom planes, all via an intuitive HUD and hotkey‑driven interface that works even without traditional gizmos.
Developed by Armored Colony and available via Superhive Market, Pixie Pivot enhances Blender’s 3D Cursor system to support efficient pivot handling. At $10 under a GPL licence, the tool is compatible with Blender 4.5 and was released five days prior to publication.
Pixie Pivot in Action
Pixie Pivot manipulates Blender’s 3D Cursor to give users enhanced control over transformations. The tool supports:
- Repositioning and rotating gizmos without altering object selection
- Defining custom alignment planes for edge or face normals
- Snapping to mesh centres and bounding box components
- Holding up to three alignment points for precision placement
- Switching between Object and World orientation modes
- Setting object origins directly through the interface
- A dynamic HUD that shows active keys and commands
- Full hotkey and UI customisation, including colours and defaults
Unlike Blender’s standard transform tools, Pixie Pivot separates selection from pivot manipulation. This enables users to align gizmos by dragging directly from any element (faces, vertices, or edges) without deselecting the main object. The add‑on works with or without visual gizmos, favouring a hotkey‑driven workflow aided by an on‑screen HUD.
Implications for Production Workflows
Pixie Pivot may reduce transition friction for artists used to Maya or 3ds Max by giving Blender comparable pivot control tools. For layout artists, modellers, riggers, and animators, this add‑on could streamline repetitive alignment tasks, help with complex object positioning, and improve scene organisation through better control of origins and orientations.
Pixie Pivot’s reliance on Blender’s internal 3D Cursor system ensures compatibility with standard workflows, but introduces complexity for users unfamiliar with cursor-based transforms. The inclusion of a HUD and visual feedback mitigates this, offering clear input cues during active operations.
