Being able to draw your own jewelry designs can come in handy in many different ways. Maybe you are an aspiring jewelry designer or you are launching your own handmade label and wish to learn how to bring your ideas to paper. Maybe you have an idea for a custom made piece of jewelry you wish to have made and being able to communicate your idea better will help the jewelry maker create the piece you have imagined. Or maybe, you are interested in fashion and jewelry and want to draw some artwork to decorate your space. No matter what your case is, following this new series will help you achieve your goals.
Through the course of this series, you will get a look at how to draw things like rings, necklaces and earrings. You will learn to shade gems and shiny diamonds in black pencil and also how to paint these pieces in vibrant colors.
This post will serve as an introduction to this new blog series revolving around the art and techniques of drawing jewelry, where we will cover the main concepts you should keep in mind before grabbing that pencil.
Photo via Shutterstock/Faferek
Perspective
Perspective is a concepts that you need to understand because it can either make or break the way you communicate your design. The good news is that when it comes to drawing jewelry you only need to apply a one-point perspective, meaning things won’t get too elaborate and confusing. If you are not familiar with one-point perspective or wish to brush up on the concept, check out this blog post about the topic.
Photo via Shutterstock/Vital Che
Scale and proportions
I cannot stress how important it is to scale your designs properly when drawing them. Usually, since rings, necklaces, bracelets and earrings are small items that fit comfortably in a piece of paper, you will be drawing them with a 1:1 scale (meaning true to life). But sometimes you might want to change the scaling, for example drawing a larger piece to get a close-up look at the tiny gems or details. It is always important to pay close attention to the scale you are applying to the sketch, but even more so in the case of closeups.
The same goes for proportions. You need to maintain proper proportions, otherwise the design will lose the desired shape and become a different piece. Pieces of jewelry such as rings, earrings and necklaces are so small and detailed that the slight shift in proportions will make a big and noticeable difference for better or worse.
Photo via Shutterstock/Africa Studio
Wearability and comfort
This one is all about personal choice and artistic liberties. Depending on the function and purpose of the piece, you may want to design something simple and small or something big and extravagant. In practical terms, you would want to think about your design being something wearable and comfortable but, on the other hand, your aim could be to create an artistic piece not meant to be worn every day and that is not supposed to be comfortable like a heavy necklace with many large jewels. Therefore, wearability and comfort are aspects you need to consider but not necessarily stick to. Decide what your intention with your design is and this will guide your process organically. the amount of wearability and comfort in your piece is 100 percent about personal design aesthetic and choice, so have fun with it!
In the coming posts of this series we will take a look at how to draw different pieces of jewelry and how to paint them. I hope you are as excited about this series as I am!
Where is the course?
I want to advance level covering perspective views and gouache coloring
Drawing
Learn
Where is this course?
Wire wrapping crystal rings and pendants.
Wire Wrapping jewellery rings and pendants with crystal.
This is unusual. An article about drawing that shows no drawing, at all.
How to use technical drawing in jewelry designß
All types of Jewellery