At Uwe Koetter, we recently launched our e-commerce site and one of the options we offer is 3D printing. As surreal as this might sound, this is something many jewellery designers are exploring today. It has become one of the leading ways to design, develop and deliver new and innovative products to the market. It is revolutionary in helping the customer determine exactly what the finished product will look and feel like. This process of manufacturing is known as casted jewellery versus the traditional handmade jewellery.
It enables designers to produce pieces that would be virtually impossible to manufacture by hand. The joints of the jewellery items are stronger as they are produced from one continuous piece of metal rather than separate pieces soldered together. It also saves a lot of time as a piece can be created in a matter of days. Being involved in the design process builds an emotional connection for customers, and it gives them the ability to create highly personalised pieces of jewellery.
There is a perception that jewellers only use 3D technology to make things cheaper and quicker, but 3D technology also allows them to create highly artistic pieces. Whilst technology is evolving and improving all the time, it should be regarded as a tool to help interpret a complicated design, not to replace the human element of the process.
The alternative to casted jewellery are handmade jewellery, it refers to a goldsmith forging each piece of the jewellery item by hand. The metal has been hardened by the process of rolling, bending, hammering and shaping the jewellery into the desired design. It is this process of heating and annealing that hardens the metal which the casting process skips, makes handmade jewellery the highest quality of finish possible.
Both manufacturing processes has its benefits but it depends what you find important when it come to your jewelley items.
