Flower Ring in Silver 925
The ring was modelled in Solidworks and rendered in Keyshot. The design was modelled in inspiration from blurred Korean lighting and flowers in 2019, Seoul. The process explored the casting process from a 3D perspective as a one-off exploration project.
The pattern was designed in Illustrator and converted into a DXF format for Solidworks. It was developed by doming each head with a fillet while curved around the overall ring diameter to uniform the pattern.
Technical Drawing
Solidworks Model Final Design with render samples in Keyshot.
Making Process after finalising the design from the visuals.
Initial Concept was 3D printed in wax for 925 silver castings. Using lighting in the foreground can help highlight areas of print changes and texture problems which can be amended using needle files and light sanding.
(Caution about 3D printing in Wax)
Always double-check the suppliers print material and properties as the casting process requires a specific melting point and exchange with the metal. Based on my experience blue wax is far better in casting then purple due to the material properties it contains. This can vary but double-check before printing and casting.
The first casting produced holes and dimples within the external and internal ring which ranged from 1 to 3mm in diameter. This was due to the wax not melting and formed bundles which didn't bond with the metal.
The repair process uses silver solder to fill in the gaps like soldering however requires a smooth surface to do. While sanding the inner surface clean the ring's dimples were too deep and could not be repaired without special treatment.
Prototype
2 Left are failed & unpolished sample & Right is the polished final unit.)
Final polished ring in Silver 925 in Central London.
The final design was reprinted in blue wax suitable for jewellery design which was approved by the studio. This new sample was casted in the same process as the rest and came out right.
