INDN 252: Solid to the Works

So, the ideas that I have for my rings are very different. Some people are exploring the idea of developing their three rings along the same path, but I think I'm toying more with the idea of having totally different rings for each one. That way, rather than maybe exploring a single idea to fulfilment what I can do is explore three separate ways a little bit. That way I can start to come up with some ideas and styles that suit me a little more for the next project, since this is just a little one.

We have create three different rings, one large fit one (which barely holds on to the finger), one small fit one, (which clings onto the finger tightly), and one perfect fit one, (which will be designed to provide the optimum fit).

The idea I had for my first (large) ring is a variation of materials. The difference I want to go for here is inspired by a ring that has done it's fair few rounds of the internet, namely Sruli Recht's Skin Ring, where the designer had a piece of his skin surgically removed and then made the skin the feature of a gold ring.

Image acquired from: www.dezeen.com

This ring really delves into the nature of material juxtaposition, and Recht has really made a name for himself doing just such things. Now, sadly, I don't want to use my own skin to make a ring. That's possibly a little too much dedication for my liking. However, I'm thinking of possibly using something else's skin to be the feature of this ring (I'm very brave, as you can see).

I've got some really nice pieces of leather at home (lamb's leather, I'm told) that I'm going to put on the inside of a simple ring. To ensure that the leather is focus of the ring, I'm making sure that the outside of the ring is rather plain, while the inside is the feature. One of the important elements of this ring, since it's the large fit ring, is that it has a special way of holding on to the finger.

The idea that I have going for this ring at the moment is that the inside of the ring has the soft, slightly furry leather inside that clings to the finger, thus fulfilling the concept of the large ring.

This is the form I created in Solidworks. The inside of the ring traces the form of my large knuckle on the finger, while the outside of the ring is a simple circle. This outer edge is then enhanced with small clefts, which allow the ring to not roll too much and cling to the fingers next to the ring finger.

Soon I'll look at colour and a render or two!

The concept behind my small ring is a much more complex one. The idea that I have is that the hard part of the ring doesn't actually pass the second knuckle at all, and the ring as a whole just sits over the knuckle, covering it. The hard part of the ring would sit in front of the knuckle, but then there would be a second bit of the ring that is made out of a softer rubber that would then stretch over and encase the knuckle. The idea that I'm rolling with for this one is that the ring is a kind of merging of the technological and the natural, making a sort of mouth that inhibits the movement of the knuckle that it sits over, while at the same time exposing different sections of the knuckle through a perforated structure.

The first hard part of the ring is shaped to perfectly fit the section of the finger just prior to the knuckle. This section of the ring is designed to be the hold for the next section, that then clings onto the knuckle itself. The second section is designed to fit into all the little loops on this on, so that it stays on both sides of the knuckle.

The second section is looped back inwards on the inside, enabling this section to cling to first and then slip over the knuckle. I'm heading down this route because I really want to explore the concept of how I can get an interesting tight fit ring concept.

For your viewing pleasure, I put the two pieces together so that the connection can be seen and established. The two pieces don't fit together well in Solidworks, because the hard segment isn't circular, while the rubber section is. I did it this way, because the rubber section will be able to conform to the hard section a bit, and was easier to design being circular, while I need the hard section to conform specifically and then not move.

Now, the main ring!