Introduction: 3D Printed Wedding Rings

About: For more about my costumes, crafts and general craziness, check out my blog: http://modmischief.blogspot.com/

Reasons you might want 3D printed wedding rings:

  • Unique - no one else will have rings like yours (unless, of course, you share your design)
  • Totally custom - the design is limited only by your creativity and can easily be sized for tiny fingers or monster hands
  • Easy to make - all you need is some free 3D modeling software and access to the internet
  • Cheap - with shipping, our rings cost less than $60 each
  • Easy to replace - if you lose your ring or your finger changes size you can just have a new one printed from the original file
  • Bragging rights - you get to tell everyone that you are a jewelry designer and made your own ring!

Step 1: Design

Determine your ring size. You can measure your ring finger with a piece of paper or string, or you can print a ring size chart.

Design your ring in your preferred 3D modeling program. We designed our rings in SketchUp.

Start by making a basic ring in a size that will fit your finger and then play with various design elements until you are happy with the result.

We wanted something simple, with an industrial look reminiscent of tools. We really liked the idea of our rings interlocking or working together like gears, so we experimented with making protruding and recessed pieces that could fit together.

I've included the files for our rings, in case you'd like to use them as a starting point for your own designs.

Step 2: Printing

We had our rings printed and cast in silver by Shapeways. They will also now do 3D printing in gold and platinum!

You upload your file to Shapeways' website and they print it and send you the finished ring in the mail.

Before getting our wedding rings made in metal, we had prototypes printed in cheap plastic to make sure we were happy with the way they fit and looked on our fingers. We changed the size slightly before ordering the actual wedding rings.