Lolo & Galago owner Jason Penn said printing directly in 3D will enable the company to create “ground breaking” designs “which are very difficult or impossible to make using traditional casting methods”.
“We believe 3D printing can be combined with traditional jewellery finishing to form a truly unique collection,” he said.
“When you hear of most 3D printers being used to make metal pieces, what is actually happening is the 3D printer creates a wax mould which then goes through the same casting process as any other jewellery piece so you are still limited by the traditional restrictions of casting technology.
“At Lolo & Galago we knew to make a true step forward in the industry we needed to go further than this and so we are working with one of the few 3D printers in Europe that can print directly in precious metals.
“This means we omit the casting stages – after creating our designs through CAD the 3D printer is then loaded with our precious metal and, layer by layer, builds up our jewellery piece.
“The finished, printed article will be as if straight from casting.”
“Afterwards, we will employ all the traditional jewellery making techniques (cleaning, polishing and setting by hand) to ensure a true luxury finish.”
Lolo & Galago expect to launch its first ‘flexible’ 3D printer collection next year.