How to Make a Amulet Using Tinkercad

I know I cant be the only one with a love for a more medieval looking jewelry. Now when I think medieval jewelry I think of big heavy amulets. Amulets can be used for D&D or Medieval themed costumes, regular wear, or just to add to your collection.

Here is a simple way to model and print an amulet that can be worn as is or used to make a mold for metal or resin casting.

3D Printer Filament

Tools:

3D Printer (FDM works fine but a resin printer would yield better results)

First things first, start brainstorming. If you intend to make the same amulet as I feel free to move on to step 6 but for those looking to customize there's the first thing to do is start brainstorming on paper. This doesn't have to look great or be very detailed, just get some ideas on paper. If you have a friend nearby bounce some ideas off them or just keeping thinking until you have something on paper that you like.

Don't be afraid to get crazy but for this one do remember that the simpler the design the easier it will be to model.

At this point you should hop on a computer if you have not already and go to Tinkercad, if you do not have an account they are free and simple to set up and the Tinkercad Website will guide you through the basics. For those unfamiliar, Tinkercad is a free, browser-based CAD program that can be used to make 3D models and is a good starting place for those looking to get into cad. It is a simple program and simple to use but difficult to master so no matter your skill level you should be able to use it.

Starting simple, make a basic shape. This can be any shape of your choice but the most simple and easiest is a circle.

Now that you have a shape make it as big or as small as you want, in my case I made mine with a diameter of 1.5 inches. It is important to consider the practicality of your amulets size when making it. A large amulet may be too heavy or look off. The opposite of this is that it may be too small to work on. This is much less of a concern, but for those of entry-level skills, small details may be a cause for frustration.

If you are uncertain about the size of your amulet you can cut out a circle of paper or cardboard and hold it up to your neck or chest in a mirror to gauge how it will look on you.

The thickness of your amulet is also up to personal preference. One thing to note for this is how soft your metal is. Pewter is very soft and I found a thickness of 1/8th inch to be plenty but for more firm metals you may be able to get away with less.

Now that you have a basic shape add a key feature. Amulets like most pieces of jewelry have a prominent centerpiece. This can be a gem, cross, letter, etc.

For my piece, I used a compass rose. It is one of my favorite symbols and it translates to 3D space beautifully. Lucky for me making a compass rose in Tinkercad is simple.

Simply create a 3D star. This will be under the "basic shapes" tab on the right-hand side of your screen, labeled as "Star" (there will be 2 labeled star the one you are looking for is the 3D shape and not the flat-sided one which can be determined by the tag image shown in the picture above). From here select the star and adjust it to the size you want, change the points from 5 to 4, and the inner radius to 0.32.

Next using the "hole" feature cut off the top of the star by arranging the hole over the star's center point, overlapping only where to wish to remove material, and combining the two shapes. To combine shapes you can either left-click and highlight both shapes or shift-clicking both shapes. Then in the top right corner clicking "Group".

If you are following my design the exact size of my compass rose can be found in the pictures above but do not be afraid to mess around with these settings until you find something you like.

Finally, select the centerpiece and your base shape and align how you would like. To center both Select both pieces and use the "Align" feature, selecting the center section. Then raise your detail until it is on the surface, to do this exactly you can raise the detail piece using the thickness of your base as the movement amount.

Finally, combine all features and you should have the basic look you are going for. If there is anything you don't like you can simply ungroup the pieces and make changes as you see fit.

Now that you have the basics out of the way, add some details. These can be skipped but they serve to fill in the blank space around the amulet and make it look better in many cases. these details can be anything you want be it shapes, text, patterns, or just studding as I have done.

When you are making details remember that the finer they are the harder they will be to produce.

To do the studding as I have, make a small shape (I used a diamond) arrange one in each corner, then make a copy using "Duplicate and Repeat" and drag it to the right and bottom of the amulet, repeat for all 4 sections and you have a ring of studs.

Next, make 4 cylinders and place them in the 4 sections arranged as in the photo above. If you want a more precise alignment you can use the "Align" tool again.

finally, select everything and combine them with the "group" function again in the top right.

This is everything done except for the hole, if you want to change anything it as simple as ungrouping and making the appropriate changes. If you are happy with your model then all that remains is to put a hole in it.

Almost there!

Once you are happy with your model the final step is to add a hole to the amulet so that you can put it on a necklace.

This is simple to do, all you have to do is make a cylinder "Hole" feature with a 1/8th inch diameter and place it along one of the edges and all the way through the amulet then group the features and you have a completed model.

Now that you have the model in Tinkercad you can select "export" in the top right corner. You will want to export it as a .STL file.

From here you can 3D print it with the slicer of your choice.

the settings are not very important if you intend to cast this but if you intend to just use the 3D print make sure to make it strong enough to handle some wear and tare.

Important Note: if you are using an FDM 3D printer a 0.4mm nozzle will work but a smaller nozzle will result in finer detail. If you have a resin printer this is a very resin printer-friendly project and that will yield better results if using silicone.

Once you have printed the amulet you will likely have to clean it up, this is easy and most includes removing any stringing and cutting off any seams. This can be done with a razor blade and some flush nippers pretty easily but I was able to do it fully by hand.

Something you can do is sand all surfaces smooth if you choose but I did not find it necessary.

Now you can keep it purely as a 3D printed Piece and that will look just fine especially if you used a resin printer or put a lot of time into post processing it, but you can always take it further from here.

You could make a mold with silicone or plaster and cast it in metal or resin, you could make wax copies and make multiple castings, you could take the print and electroplate it through a few methods that can be found online.

I choose to try and cast mine and made a mold from it. In my case I could not get a good casting but a better set up or more skill could easily do so.

No matter what you choose to do, make it your own.