Fashion jewellery brand Isharya’s latest collection, Infinite Petals, named after the highest meditative chakra Sahasrara, isn’t just another costume jewellery line. What makes it stand out is that it uses a new and cutting-edge technology called 3D printing.
But what exactly is 3D printing, we asked Gauri Tandon, who along with sister-in-law, Radhika, started Isharya back in 2004. “Each design is sliced up into thousands of horizontal layers, and thus, it emerges out of the printer, layer by layer. The essential material is nylon, which makes the pieces light and strong. Some of these nylon pieces are cast in brass and then gold-plated, while others are directly gold-plated,” she explains. “It is the first time that a fashion jewellery brand has used 3D printing technology, and we are very excited about it,” she adds.
The collection entails intricate filigree patterns encasing pearls, amazonite, blue chalcedony and other precious stones. Pieces range from necklaces, chokers, rings, earrings and cuffs—all which have been both directly printed in nylon and gold-plated, as well as designs that have been cast in brass from a 3D-printed mould and then filled with vibrant resin in pastel colours and then gold-plated.
This new technology opens many design possibilities that are difficult to achieve with hand-crafted work, explains Gauri. “We wanted to create a standout collection that set us apart from other brands in the market, and the idea of marrying cutting-edge technology with traditional Indian culture appealed to us,” she says.
But a lot of research and hard work went into creating these intricate pieces. “With Infinite Petals, we spent 10 months designing and sampling before we were happy with the collection,” she says. To give its latest collection a fair chance, Isharya has priced the 3D-printed pieces on par with its other collections. The idea behind this strategy, Gauri explains, is to test the waters. “We want to see how the audience reacts, and then we’ll consider investing more effort into this technology,” she adds.