Process 📝✨💻

Ideation & sketches

The initial process for designing the cosmic mandala jewelry was all about diving deep into creativity and exploring endless possibilities. It began with simply fishing out as many ideas as I could, inspired by the concept of mandalas and their cosmic symbolism.

As I sketched, the ideas began to take shape, each design bringing its own unique energy. I found myself drawn to the intricate patterns and harmonious geometries emerging on paper. With every stroke, I could see something truly captivating and intriguing starting to develop.

Here’s a glimpse of those early sketches, where the essence of the cosmic mandala jewelry began to unfold.

Digital Iterations

This jewelry series draws inspiration from the cosmic dance of celestial bodies, transforming the spiritual symbolism of the sun, moon, stars, and planets into intricate and wearable art.

Each design represents the interconnectedness of the universe, embodying themes of balance, transformation, energy, and eternal cycles.

The pieces celebrate the grandeur of the cosmos while offering a personal connection to its infinite beauty.

after doing these digital iterations, I tried mocking them up digitally to understand scale

The Eureka Moment

After completing the initial sketches and digital iterations, I felt something was missing from the cosmic concept. This led me to explore the Shri Yantra Mandala, a sacred geometric symbol that embodies the balance of divine feminine and masculine energies. Its nine interlocking triangles, centered around the Bindu, symbolize the creation of the universe, surrounded by lotus petals representing purity and cosmic cycles.

The Shri Yantra is a perfect fit for my jewelry concept, as its intricate geometry and profound symbolism bring depth and meaning to the designs. It transforms the jewelry into more than just wearable art—it becomes a personal talisman, embodying harmony, energy, and a connection to the cosmos.

Intial Experiment

Final Design

Looking at this design emerge, I couldn’t help but feel victorious 🏆✨—like I had unlocked a major milestone in my ideation journey! 🎉 The moment the concept clicked, I knew I had a look I could finally lock in 🔒. From here on, it’s all about diving into the fun part: experimenting with materials and production! 🧵🖌️✨

The excitement of seeing the cosmic mandala come to life has me absolutely buzzing with energy ⚡🌌—I can’t wait to take the next steps and watch it evolve even more! 🚀💎

Design & Fabrication

Now that I had my design in place 🎉, it was time to test it out in real-world sizes! 📏✨ Before jumping straight to the actual materials, I decided to go the smart route and create paper prototypes 📝✂️—because why not double-check before committing, right? 😉

I printed 2-3 sizes that I thought would look amazing 🔍📐, and it was so exciting to see the designs come to life in a tangible way! 💃✨ It felt like the perfect step to make sure I was on the right track before diving into production. 🚀💎

"This step was absolutely crucial as it gave me so much clarity on how my design looked at the right scale 📏🎨. Seeing the prototypes in real size cleared up a lot of doubts I had, and it helped me move forward with confidence and excitement 🚀. It felt like a major win 🏆, setting the stage for the next phase of the project!"

With the scale sorted ✅, I moved to laser cutting my design. I started with pine wood boards, but they burned and didn’t cut cleanly 🔥✂️. While exploring options, I found scrap acrylic in the lab (including some from my open-source hardware week 🌟) and tested it out. To my surprise, it worked perfectly—clean, precise cuts! ✨👌

After learning the lab had plenty of scrap acrylic 🪵➡️🔵, I decided to repurpose it. This pivot not only gave me great results but also made my project more sustainable 🌍♻️ by reducing waste and reusing materials. Paired with felt, yarn, and threads, this approach brought an eco-friendly and creative edge to my design! 🌿🎨

I took a little break from laser cutting ✂️✨ and started thinking about how the product would be worn and what would hold it all together 🤔. The idea of weaving, which I explored during Open Source Hardware week, kept coming back to me 🧵🌟.

Excited to take it further, I decided to experiment with some weaves using the loom I had created during that week 🪡💡 with a golden yarn that I already had. It was the perfect opportunity to combine functionality with a handcrafted touch, adding another layer of creativity to the project! 🎨🌿

Prototypes

Coming Soon

Mentoring notes

coming soong Mentors in all sessions may share with you their comments, notes, advise, projects and technical equipment to check out. This is good place to share those, so that you can find them later on when you need them the most!

Half-fabrication files

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1. Coming Soon ↩