Jewelery Design is all about taking the creative vision of a designer and making it reality. This can be done in a number of ways but the most common is using 3D software. This software can help with the entire process from design to final production. The right software can ensure that the design is accurate, the stones are correctly sized, and that everything is ready to go for manufacturing. This is especially important if the designs are going to be produced in metal. This is why it is important to choose a software that has a good learning curve and user interface. This will make the whole process easier and faster.
Jewelry designers take a wide range of artistic inspiration to create unique, one-of-a-kind pieces that can be treasured for generations. Whether the goal is to make bold, statement pieces or delicate, dainty items the same design principles are applied. Creating a design that is both visually appealing and functional requires careful attention to detail. Achieving a balance of shape, form, texture and color also is key. Aesthetics are crucial and must always be balanced with the limitations of the manufacturing and craft processes that will bring the designs to life.
The first step in bringing a jewelry design to life is to develop the concept on paper. This can be done in many different ways from simple pencil sketches to full 3-D computer generated designs. The next step is to determine what material will be used for the finished piece. This decision will be based on the type of jewelry being designed and the budget for the project. Some types of jewelry are more cost effective to manufacture than others. Once this is determined the design can be started.
Several different CAD environments can be used for jewelry design but most are geared towards specific product geometry rather than organic sculpted forms. Solid or surface modelers like SolidWorks and Rhinoceros excel at geometric shapes with smooth, tightly controlled surfaces that let the designer numerically define feature dimensions. Polygonal modeling programs like Blender and ZBrush are more amenable to organic jewelry models and provide freeform manipulation tools that can speed up a workflow that requires frequent reworking of geometry.
All of these jewelry design environments have their strengths and weaknesses. 3Design and Firestorm offer specific jewelry design wizards, libraries of gems and base models while JCD shines in its handling of multi-gem arrays and parametric design. Plugin-cladded solutions like Grasshopper are excellent at modeling dynamic, data-driven geometries and open up new frontiers in ultra-customized jewelry design.
Adding a stereolithography 3D printer allows for the rapid iteration of prototypes to hit that sweet spot where a jewelry piece is both beautiful and functional. In addition to the benefit of a quicker design process, having a physical prototype at hand for consultative client sessions also improves customer satisfaction and helps to increase sales by providing customers with the opportunity to try on the piece to see how it fits and looks.
