Trends

Customizable Jewelry Gets Taken Up a Notch with Tech

TrendsMay 31, 2016

Customizable Jewelry Gets Taken Up a Notch with Tech

Irish jewelry company Love & Robots uses 3-D printing technology and historical weather data to commemorate the wind patterns of a particular date and place.

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This sterling silver pendant from Love & Robots’ “Windswept” collection was created to commemorate the wind speed and direction in Dublin, Ireland on March 26, 1983.

Dublin--Customizable jewelry suffers no shortage of popularity, but the designs have always risked running stagnant. That’s where tech-focused jewelry company Love & Robots comes in.

Instead of paying homage to a person or place with an initial, Love & Robots’ “Windswept” collection utilizes wind data from a user-chosen location and date over the past 50 years to virtually blow wind over a piece of cloth or ribbon.

Customers watch the virtual wind blow and manipulate the cloth, then pause the motion to create a customized piece of jewelry in 14-karat rose or yellow gold, sterling silver or gold-plated brass. The collection retails between $168 and $1,324.50.



“So much of what we feel attached to, what we remember, is inextricably linked to a particular place and time,” said Love & Robots CEO and co-founder Emer O’Daly. “We wanted to realize that in a material way by linking a particular date and place to a personalized piece of jewelry.”

O’Daly is an architect and graduate of University College Dublin and Yale University, where she gained expertise in 3-D printing and digital design. Love & Robots' other collections focus mainly on typography and graphic motifs.

“We at Love & Robots are looking at how 3-D printing will revolutionize the design and fashion industries. We look to create interactive experiential pieces where the customer is truly part of the creation process,” said O’Daly.

“Windswept” isn’t Love & Robots first foray into tech and likely won’t be the last, with the brand planning to explore more virtual materials.

Last year the company created a free-moving chainmail cape, made with thousands of moving components to look like actual moving feathers.

The “Windswept” collection is available exclusively on LoveAndRobots.com.
Ashley Davisis the senior editor, fashion at National Jeweler, covering all things related to design, style and trends.

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