Om Shanti Mandala Necklace Pendant For Women
I wanted to create an intricate design to showcase our capacity to produce jewellery for women. The key here is to showcase what we can do in terms of a level of detail, combining intricate design ideas.
· Create a pendant design
· To be worn on a necklace chain
· To be created in a precious metal
· To include elegant detailing
· To capture a theme
I looked to spirituality for inspiration. The design centred around capturing some of the details from Buddhist and Eastern traditions.
I looked into the tradition of mandala patterns as a design inspiration. A mandala is a geometric circular design or pattern that represents the cosmos. A mandala is a symbol of the universe in its ideal form. The leaf mandala formed the basis of the pendant.
Symbolically helping the wearer to get closer to achieving the perfect self. I like this idea.
The pendant is only designed to be 15mm round, so the level of detail in a full mandala is tricky. Starting with a floral mandala and adding concentric circles help to reinforce this design ideal. A central ring with embossed details echoed by a larger outer ring.
When I started this I worked on this exclusively within the CAD software; as a result everything was too uniform and regular. The design did not feel like it reflected the intention. I switched to a hand-drawn design, translated to vectors and then to a 3d model. This led to an organic feel for the design, which was much more in keeping with the humanist theme of the pendant.
The original idea was to set a stone at the centre of the design. These could have been birth stones. I added a Tanzanite to compliment silver in the design. (as above)
The small Om Shanti symbol added to the centre seems to balance the design. Om Shanti is an invocation for peace and is often chanted to promote inner calm. The symbol has become more popular thanks to Yoga and its practice.
The finishes considered were antique gold plating or sterling silver. The pendant in 925 silver with a selective plate highlight of the flower petal detail was also considered.
The loop on the back of the pendant would have been adequate, but would have made the pendant unbalanced, causing it to swing forward. The addition of another flower detail part on the top was ideal, as it continued the theme and allowed better balance for the pendant.
The final 925 silver pendants were given a high-polish finish, after being oxidised to add an aged feel. This helped to show the detail of the textures clearly.
