Jewelery Design is a broad field that includes the creation of necklaces, rings, earrings, bracelets and other accessories. Jewelry designers may be inspired by a number of motives ranging from designing to fit a specific client’s needs or riding the wave of current fashion trends and elaborating on popular themes to creating designs that are uniquely the artisan’s own. A common thread in the creation of these works is a need for precision when it comes to securing gemstones within settings or other materials.
Whether an aspiring jewelry designer is using 2D design applications, 3D engineering design software or digitally transforming physical prototypes for try-on sessions, a key step in the process involves modifying and recombining simple geometry. TinkerCAD, a free in-browser CAD solution, allows this with the use of a block-building approach that makes it easy to generate, modify and recombine shapes. Alternatively, solid modelers offer the advantage of parametric modeling and a node graph architecture that saves a history of commands. This allows the designer to make changes to the overall structure of a piece while maintaining the integrity of ornamentation and patterns that can uplift an otherwise simple geometrical design.
Another popular choice is RhinoGold, a software suite that offers a wide range of tools that are tailored specifically for jewelry design. Its parametric modeling allows the sculpting of surfaces to be adjusted to meet various design parameters including fit, size, scale and weight. Its surface texturing feature provides a range of options for organically deforming objects as well as defining new textures from image or mesh input. This can be applied to create a variety of different finishes for a piece of jewelry, such as matte, satin and gloss.
Other jewelry modeling software options include Jewelry CAD Dream, which is designed for jewelry creation and incorporates a wide range of gem cuts and other unique features. This suite of tools also includes a full range of wireframe and surface editing options, as well as a library of standard jewelry parts and chains. In addition, this software is fully integrated with renderers like Keyshot and 3D printer preparation software like PreForm.
Regardless of the type of jewelry being created, many designers begin their work by first sketching their ideas. This helps them capture the moving, spinning thought in their heads before it can be transformed into a tangible object. This sketching process is important for all creators, and is a critical part of jewelry design.
Once the initial sketches are completed, a digital model is generated to be used in the production of the final piece. This is done through the use of a number of computer-aided design (CAD) programs, most of which are highly specialized and targeted to jewelry designers. Ultimately, the goal is to convert the digital models to physical prototypes through the use of a stereolithography 3D printer such as Formlabs. This enables jewelry designers to quickly test the aesthetics and proportion of their designs, as well as allowing clients to see and try on their pieces for a better idea of how they will look.
