A CAD/CAM-designed bangle was the big winner at the 2012 JAA Jewellery Awards in Sydney last night.
Designed and crafted by Martyn Brown and Martin Linning from Jewellery By Design, the stunning bangle, titled Undulation, is made from 9-carat yellow gold, sterling silver, titanium anodised wire, white diamonds and custom-made laboratory-grade glass tubing.
The fundamental structure of the bangle consists of finely bound anodised titanium wire overlaid by an interlaced network of gold rivulets that capture and direct 1200 0.01-carat brilliant-cut diamonds. A hand cut cylindrical glass sleeve then encapsulates these elements.
Speaking at the Awards ceremony, Linning said he initially thought it would be “impossible to make a bangle out of glass” but nonetheless decided to give it a try.
“At times we didn’t know what we were doing… but in the end we did it,” he said.
“CAD/CAM design is the future of the industry.”
The other major winners at the JAA Jewellery Awards, which attracted over 112 entries, were:
Apprentice/Student of the Year
Wayne Hooper (Peter Minturn Goldsmith School)
‘Montgolfier’ ring
Precious Metal
Tertawa Masker’ ring
Riki-Mojag Tait (Verity Showcase Jewellers)
Pearl
‘Verso’ ring
Thomas Meihofer (Thomas Meihofer Jewellery Design)
Silver
‘Floral Harmony’ hair basket
Amelia Fabian (Jacques Fabian Jeweller)
Coloured Gemstone
‘SFR10’ ring
Thomas Meihofer, Stacey Illman and Brian Mahon (Thomas Meihofer Jewellery Design)
Diamonds (RRP below $5000)
‘Once in a blue moon’ earrings
Samantha Nordhoff
Nordhoff Jewellery Couture
Diamonds (RRP above $5000)
OUTside IN’ ring
Ben Preston-Black (Creations Jewellers)
CAD/CAM
‘Undulation’ ring
Martyn Brown and Martin Linning (Jewellery By Design)