How to make a ring with a certain image
November 17, 2013 2:43 AM Subscribe
I've been googling and googling different ways to make rings, but I can't find precisely what I'm looking for. I have an image that I'd like to use to make a ring with a simple band. I want to know how to treat/preserve/protect the image so I can wear it frequently and also how to turn it into a ring. A plain wire-type band is fine with me. Adjustable size is ideal, but a fixed one would work too. Does anybody either know how to do this or know of a resource that would be helpful? I think this is enough information, but feel free to ask if you have other questions. Thank you!
Response by poster: A high quality laser printout in color. On paper but I could try to get it printed on something else.
posted by mermaidcafe at 3:10 AM on November 17, 2013
posted by mermaidcafe at 3:10 AM on November 17, 2013
Does this look like the sort of thing you have in mind? Or you might look around this site or similar for the ready-made pieces to put together, if you are thinking of this kind of thing.
posted by taz at 3:33 AM on November 17, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by taz at 3:33 AM on November 17, 2013 [1 favorite]
There are a few options.
You could use the existing image and protect it. The easiest way seems to be a bezel ring and a glass or resin cabochon. The pieces can be bought in different shapes, sizes and materials. You just assemble & glue. A test if the glue eats into the picture or causes colors to bleed together would be good.
Instead of the bezel ring, you could even use a bottle cap and glue it to a ring with a flat surface, like here.
You could also make your own "cabochon". (I think this is like the first tutorial taz linked to, where they use glue or something like that). You could also use resin, this is more advanced though, and you'd need to buy the supplies which will run $10+ at a minimum whereas one cabochon will cost considerably less. If you want to learn how to mix & pour resin, head over to youtube. There are good tutorials.
Another option is image transfer. You could transfer the image on a piece of polymer clay, bake that piece in your oven at home and then glue it to a ring. Image transfers look like this.
You can paint them to make them look shiny, but I don't think it is necessary. Again, youtube is good for tutorials.
Hope this helps. Happy crafting!
posted by travelwithcats at 5:10 AM on November 17, 2013 [5 favorites]
You could use the existing image and protect it. The easiest way seems to be a bezel ring and a glass or resin cabochon. The pieces can be bought in different shapes, sizes and materials. You just assemble & glue. A test if the glue eats into the picture or causes colors to bleed together would be good.
Instead of the bezel ring, you could even use a bottle cap and glue it to a ring with a flat surface, like here.
You could also make your own "cabochon". (I think this is like the first tutorial taz linked to, where they use glue or something like that). You could also use resin, this is more advanced though, and you'd need to buy the supplies which will run $10+ at a minimum whereas one cabochon will cost considerably less. If you want to learn how to mix & pour resin, head over to youtube. There are good tutorials.
Another option is image transfer. You could transfer the image on a piece of polymer clay, bake that piece in your oven at home and then glue it to a ring. Image transfers look like this.
You can paint them to make them look shiny, but I don't think it is necessary. Again, youtube is good for tutorials.
Hope this helps. Happy crafting!
posted by travelwithcats at 5:10 AM on November 17, 2013 [5 favorites]
Oh, forgot to add. If you'd like to give the ring a more 3-dimensional effect by adding pieces into the cabochon, resin is the way to go. It dries clear and the added pieces appear to be floating above the picture.
posted by travelwithcats at 5:24 AM on November 17, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by travelwithcats at 5:24 AM on November 17, 2013 [2 favorites]
Response by poster: You guys are the best. Thank you!
posted by mermaidcafe at 5:32 AM on November 17, 2013
posted by mermaidcafe at 5:32 AM on November 17, 2013
If you got a piece of metal engraved or etched, it could be mounted on a ring band. I googled laser engraving metal fabrication. Here are a couple results; you could tweak this, and/or check the results and ads thoroughly. Photoetching is another term to check out. Found site in the process.
posted by theora55 at 5:59 AM on November 17, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by theora55 at 5:59 AM on November 17, 2013 [1 favorite]
If you go the bottle cap route, use Diamond Glaze. It is much easier to work with than resin.
posted by Wordwoman at 5:28 PM on November 17, 2013
posted by Wordwoman at 5:28 PM on November 17, 2013
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posted by DarlingBri at 2:51 AM on November 17, 2013