Laser Cutting in the Jewelry Industry

If you’re interested in turning your hand to laser cutting, you might be wondering about the available jewelry cutting applications. Laser cutting machines have a wide variety of options for utility, from marking industrial equipment to designing artwork. What’s more, most jewelry designers have a laser cutting system because a laser cutter can play an important role in the jewelry designs industry.

CO2 lasers aren’t built to cut through metal, but that doesn’t mean you can’t use them to create unique jewelry. You can manipulate the material’s surface and add designs, text and numerals to certain types of metal, plus you can create cute designs from materials other than precious metals.

Who Buys Laser Cut Jewelry?

While you won’t necessarily make jewelry using precious metals to sell to top earners, this isn’t actually the biggest market. Low-cost, cute designs are in much higher demand, and young people are more serious about expressing their individuality through apparel than ever before.

Provided you have a great website and know how to do social media and content marketing, you can make a ton of cash as an independent retailer.

If you don’t fancy going through all the hassle of building a website and marketing yourself, you can list your creations on sites such as Etsy, Amazon and eBay. Either way, making jewelry using a precision laser cutting machine is a great way of becoming your own boss and making money doing what you love.

Laser Marking Jewelry

Laser cutting machines are capable of marking metal such as anodized aluminum and powder-coated stainless steel, as well as treated titanium and nickel plating. If you want to make a traditional style of jewelry, you can add names, logos, text and numbers to necklaces, bracelets, earrings and body jewelry.

Personalization is one of the hottest growing trends in the consumer market, and engraved jewelry is a favored gift for most ages. Depending on how precise you are and the exact type of metal you choose, you can position yourself as an affordable or luxury brand. The possibilities are endless!

Engraving Machines Techniques

Let’s take a look at some traditional cutting methods and some modern laser cutting techniques:

Laser evaporation: When using a laser cutter in this manner, the laser beam vaporizes the material’s surface. It’s popular with professionals because it causes minimal damage.
Laser etching: Perhaps the most popular way laser cutters are used in the jewelry industry, etching or foaming describes when a portion of the surface material melts and the melted material forms the desired shape when cooled.
Laser coat and mask: Also sometimes called laser marking, this is when a substance is applied to the material’s surface and the laser cutter creates a design on the surface of the item of jewelry.
Laser bonding: Bonding is another style of jewelry laser cutting that uses another material to create the finished design.

Other Materials for Jewelry

Generation Z is getting a reputation for having a distinctive, DIY style that marks a significant move away from the big brand-led consumer market of recent years. If you look on websites like Etsy and Amazon, you’ll see tons of chunky, cute and wacky jewelry designs made from wood, acrylic and Perspex, created by laser cutters.

You can tap into the popularity of laser-cut jewelry and the younger generations’ desire to stand out from the crowd and express themselves with bespoke apparel.

Advantages of Using a CO2 Laser Cutting System

There are tons of benefits when it comes to jewelry designers using a laser cutter for their bespoke jewelry designs:

CO2 laser cutters work with practically any nonmetal material and a range of treated metals
Better precision cutting than traditional cutting methods
CO2 laser cutters are noncontact, so they’re safe and tend not to deform the material
Very high repeatability lets you create exact replicas, which isn’t possible with traditional cutting methods
High speed
Cost-effective
Easy to design and make challenging shapes
Superior edge quality due to small heat-affected zone
Easily create complex shapes using computer software

Why Is Laser Cutting So Good for Jewelry Designers?

Laser cutting is excellent for jewelry cutting applications because you can create complex cutting patterns with superior edge quality, and very high repeatability and speed equate to high volume. Below are more of the reasons why using a laser cutter to make and engrave jewelry is such a great idea.

Bespoke

As every business person knows, a unique selling point is everything when it comes to success. One of the best things about using a laser cutting machine for jewelry is the scope for making custom engravings and unique jewelry designs. No matter what type of shape, design or engraving you want to make, it’s possible using a laser cutter.

Safety

Health and safety should be a major concern for anyone who’s active in business. Accidents and lawsuits could cost you your business, but laser engravers are practically risk-free. With minimal human contact while the machine is in use, it’s one of the safest ways to make and etch jewelry.

Low Risk of Waste

With a laser cutter, there’s no point where the laser beam touches the surface of the material, so there’s a low risk of contamination. Plus, with such a small heat-affected zone, there’s less risk of deformation occurring.

Precision

Computers control laser cutting machines, which means you get unparalleled accuracy, even when making the most intricate pieces.

Mark-Up

Laser machines are relatively inexpensive these days, and materials such as acrylic and wood can be highly affordable. By making unique designs that appeal to your target market, you can charge significantly more than the cost of making laser-cut jewelry.

Start a Lucrative Business Today

Laser cutting in the jewelry industry is really taking off, but there’s still time to get ahead of the competition. Take a look at the affordable, high-quality laser cutting and engraving machines from Thunder Laser USA today.