Are you tired of the time-consuming workflow with the solidify modifier? Frustrated by rim textures being stretched to another Blender file? Sick of applying the modifier and tediously UV unwrapping, only to undo it because the offset wasn't right? Or maybe you're tired of using shader mapping and choosing "object" instead of UV, only for it to look completely wrong?

Well, then "Smart Solidify" might be for you! It automatically UV unwraps the rim with an option for the UV to follow the shape of your mesh. Just select the materials, and you are (mostly) good to go! The setup also keeps your texture from stretching, even if you decide to manipulate the mesh later. Other options include UV manipulation, Even Thickness, welding, and auto-smoothing.

Book pages? Sides of laminated wood? Bricks? Yes.

Update 1.0:

Added checking for default UV map names. Now both "UV_Map" and "UVMap" are included. If the addon wasn't working for you on V0.9 - it should now work!

Please note: This does not cover all advanced features of the solidify modifier. It also does not UV unwrap your mesh, just the rim.

How to install: download the .blend file and save it to your assets folder. Then it will be in your assets/modifiers under "SmartSolidify".

What's included: base file contains a few demo assets from the promotional image and the geometry nodes setup.

Limitations:

The UV unwrap modifier setup might not work correctly with triangulated or n-gon meshes.

If the mesh has multiple closed boundary loops that are different in length - some stretching might occur. (currently working on a fix)

This setup works just like solidify modifier and all the limitations apply. It works best with simple objects with clean topology.