Behind the Scenes: From 3D Model to Finished Jewelry

Many of our clients are fascinated by how their digital designs transform into wearable art. While our customer-facing process emphasizes the design consultation and final reveal, there's an intricate technical journey in between that combines cutting-edge technology with traditional craftsmanship. In this behind-the-scenes look, we'll pull back the curtain on how your custom jewelry piece moves from pixels to physical reality.

Stage 1: Digital Design Finalization

Once you've approved your 3D design, our technical team prepares the digital file for production. This involves several critical steps that transform your visualization model into production-ready specifications:

• Technical refinement: Adjusting dimensions to account for metal shrinkage during casting
• Structure optimization: Adding internal supports and adjusting thickness for durability
• Setting preparation: Creating precise prong or bezel structures for secure stone setting
• Surface detailing: Defining texture specifications and finishing requirements

These adjustments ensure your design will be both beautiful and structurally sound when manufactured. We also create a technical specification document that travels with your design through each production phase, ensuring consistent execution of your vision.

Stage 2: 3D Printing

The production journey begins with creating a physical prototype using our high-resolution 3D printers. Unlike consumer-grade 3D printers, our professional systems can produce incredibly fine details with accuracy down to 0.025mm—essential for intricate jewelry designs.

We typically use two different 3D printing technologies depending on the complexity of your design:

• DLP (Digital Light Processing): Uses liquid photopolymer resin that solidifies when exposed to UV light, creating highly detailed models with smooth surfaces
• Wax 3D printing: Directly prints in wax-like material specifically designed for the investment casting process

The printing process typically takes 3-8 hours depending on the complexity and size of your design. After printing, the models undergo a cleaning process to remove any support structures and cure the material to the proper hardness.

Stage 3: Investment Casting

With the 3D-printed model in hand, we move to the ancient "lost wax casting" technique—a process that dates back over 6,000 years but remains the gold standard for fine jewelry production.

This multi-step process includes:

1. Investment: The 3D-printed model is placed in a flask and surrounded by a plaster-like material called investment
2. Burnout: The flask is heated in a kiln to temperatures exceeding 1300°F, which completely eliminates the wax or resin model, leaving a negative space in the exact shape of your design
3. Casting: Molten metal (gold, platinum, silver) is poured or vacuum-forced into this negative space, filling every detail of the original design
4. Cooling and break-out: The metal solidifies, and the investment material is broken away, revealing your jewelry piece in its raw metal form

Stage 4: Metal Finishing

At this stage, your jewelry exists in raw metal form—a faithful reproduction of the digital design, but far from the polished piece you'll eventually wear. Our master jewelers now take over, performing several crucial manual operations:

• Removing sprues: Filing away the metal channels that allowed the molten metal to flow into the mold
• Initial cleaning: Removing any residual investment material and oxides that formed during casting
• Filing and sanding: Smoothing any rough areas and refining details by hand
• Preliminary polishing: Bringing the metal to an even surface before stone setting

Stage 5: Stone Setting

For designs incorporating gemstones, the setting process requires the skilled hands of experienced setters. Depending on your design, different setting techniques might be employed:

• Prong setting: Metal prongs are carefully bent over the stone's crown to secure it
• Bezel setting: A custom-fitted metal rim surrounds and secures the stone
• Pavé setting: Multiple small stones are set close together, creating a surface of continuous sparkle
• Channel setting: Stones are secured between two parallel walls of metal
• Tension setting: The stone is held by pressure between two parts of the metal band

Each stone is individually examined and placed with precision tools under magnification. For complex designs with multiple stones, this process can take several days to complete perfectly.

Stage 6: Final Finishing

With all elements assembled, your jewelry undergoes final finishing processes:

• Fine polishing: Creating a mirror-like finish on polished areas
• Texturing: Adding any specified surface treatments like brushing, hammering, or engraving
• Plating or coating: Applying any specified surface treatments like rhodium plating for white gold
• Cleaning: Ultrasonic and steam cleaning to remove any polishing compounds
• Quality control: Thorough inspection under magnification to ensure perfection in every detail

Stage 7: Final Presentation

Before your jewelry is packaged for delivery, we document the finished piece with high-resolution photography and perform a final quality inspection. We prepare detailed care instructions specific to your design and materials, and carefully package your creation in our signature presentation box.

From the digital model's initial preparation to the final polish, your custom jewelry piece passes through at least a dozen skilled hands and integrates both cutting-edge technology and ancient techniques. This harmonious blend of innovation and tradition enables us to create pieces that couldn't be made any other way—unique expressions of personal style backed by exceptional craftsmanship.

Interested in starting your own custom jewelry journey? Contact us today to schedule your design consultation.