Featuring Christopher Carter, Carter’s Jewel Chest, Mountain Home, AR

Christopher Carter at work in the custom design center with Matrix design software.

As you walk through the doors of Carter’s Jewel Chest, you feel immediately welcomed, both by the airy physical surroundings of the recently remodeled 31-year-old establishment as well as the friendly jewelry professionals who make it clear that they love what they do.  
Local customers have long recognized the store and its owners T.C. and Beth Carter for their integrity and tradition of carrying fine designer brands and creating stunning custom jewelry that’s always
a perfect fit.  And now, something new and very intriguing has been added to their offerings.

Customers can view a continuous loop of the Jewel Chest’s
impressive inventory from virtually anywhere in the store on poster-sized flat screened monitors.  Now, for the first time they can even watch designs being created before their eyes.  Cleary visible from the entrance is the featured custom design center, where the next generation and future of the business, in the person of 21-year-old Christopher Carter, spends most of his day designing  jewelry on a computer.  His projects may be seen in progress on a large flat screen LCD monitor mounted above his work station.

Christopher has been working at the store full time for over a year, during which time he immersed himself in learning all aspects of the company while sharing his own visions for the future. Shortly after he and his wife Nicole earned their Graduate Gemologist diplomas at the Gemological Institute of America in Carlsbad, CA he discussed the introduction of CAD/CAM to the family business. Prompted by the retirement of one of their full-time bench jewelers who also did the wax carving, Carter arranged for training from Gemvision to help get him up to speed on their Matrix software for computer aided design without losing time at the store. He also trained to operate their Revo 540 mill to produce the wax models he would design for their custom order requests. Carter says of the new tools, “I became interested in working in the family business as this technology developed. Our store is well known for custom jewelry design and fine jewelry manufacturing and CAD/CAM technology is a perfect fit. I began making significant contributions to the store’s bottom line immediately after learning the processes”.

Carter’s custom design process begins with a consultation by one of their 10 experienced sales associates who interview the client to determine not only the specific jewelry piece they’d like, but also their design preferences and lifestyle. They are ready to offer suggestions to help lay the groundwork for a very personal, unique piece of jewelry.  

Once the information from the initial interview is recorded, Carter takes it from there. He quotes an estimated starting price of $1,500, which includes the CAD layout and computer generated renderings of design ideas, the wax model and the casting. The variable factors like the type and karat of alloy and the addition of gemstones add to the price. Metal weight for a model in a designated alloy is determined in the Matrix software and the cost is calculated based on the daily market price. Gemstones and setting labor is tallied separately using the stores pricing book as a guide. A 10% deposit is required to begin the design process.

This image shows a computer monitor with Carter’s completed design for a white gold necklace containing a round Tahitian Cultured Pearl and diamonds being rendered.. The final rendering ready for customer review.

All presentations to customers begin with renderings of Carter’s interpretation of heir design ideas. He uses three presentation formats for design review. Carter states there are benefits of each of the platforms described below:

1. Using the large flat panel monitor in the design center and his laptop to manipulate the design. “I like this one when I have a design that is a bit more complicated than average to show in the printed format. I’ll do renderings and show those on the large screen first then switch to the 3D format so I can show the customer certain details in active views.”
   
   
2. Using printed renderings of the designs. “I like this format on 4x6 inch cards. The size of these images is more relatable to some customers as opposed to the huge size of images on the flat panel monitor. I put 2 views with our company logo on each card (see image 3 above). This size format works well for the customer to take with them to get opinion from others prior to the final commitment.”
   
   
3. Sending digital images through e-mail to customers. “This venue has been the most surprising. At first I thought the loss of personal contact might present obstacles for closing the sale but actually the opposite has been true. This option simplifies the shopping experience and gives customers the ability to review ideas over time”. To provide an example of how well it works, Carter shares a recent e-mail response. The customer writes: “Oh my gracious! I’m squealing at work right now. I just LOVE IT, it’s just PERFECT! Ohhhhhhhh, its soooooo beautiful! Ok, now I have to try to concentrate on my work…”

Perhaps the most fascinating aspect of CAD for custom jewelry clients is the photorealistic renderings which can be produced of their designs. Many are astounded by images of their ‘virtual jewelry’ and can’t believe the piece hasn’t actually been made. Matrix CAD operators have the option of assigning metal color, diamonds, a range of colored gems and spherical pearls as well as lighting conditions, environments and backgrounds.  Actual design layout time ranges from 30 minutes to several hours depending upon the intricacy of the design, the number and variety of stones, setting details and complexity of lighting and background elements.  Multiple renderings may be completed per set-up, each featuring a different view of the jewelry. The renderings are digital and may be printed or e-mailed directly to customers for their approval. It is also possible to import images of props into the program for rendering if the situation calls for a real showpiece. CAD users have also produced images for ad campaigns, design portfolios and displays of virtual inventory with this software.

After a customer selects a design, Carter begins the manufacturing process for the piece by converting the CAD file to another format which will give the computer controlled machine all the information to cut the wax model automatically. The mill will produce waxes in as little as 30 minutes or as much as several hours. Because the machine is controlled by numeric code, all detail is precise and the resulting model is a 3D version of the original design file.  Carter modified a heavy-duty tool box for his mill stand which occupies a designated space in the jewelers’ shop.

Carter is shown here in the manufacturing shop setting up a project on their in-store Revo540 Mill. The full-service department features casting facilities and a laser welder.

After the wax model is cut, T.J. Persenaire the store’s master jeweler will cast the wax and begin the finishing and setting process. He confers with Carter about the various mechanical details of each custom piece, and when all specific details have been worked out, any adjustments to the design file can be made and the final model cut for customer review and casting. Carter states, “The benefits of having an in-store Revo mill are multiple. For this project we were able to work out minor assembly details with the full drilled Cultured Tahitian Pearls. For our customer pieces, it gives us a wax to show during the process to confirm their likes and dislikes. Final changes, if any can be made at a nominal cost prior to casting, finishing and setting, with a major savings in time”. Persenaire adds, “The manufacturing and setting were simple as compared to using traditional methods such as having to drill the holes and raise the beads by hand. Having the beads in place and the bearings precut made the overall process go quickly allowing me to maintain high quality through the process”.

Over the years, Carter’s has offered custom corporate jewelry and gifts.  “Having Matrix CAD software has added speed and precision to our ability to make this jewelry in-house”, says Carter. This rendering shows a brooch made for the staff of an Arkansas bank. To develop the design, Carter scanned the bank’s logo from their camera-ready artwork and input the likeness into Matrix. He used a program feature called Matrix Art to add dimension and texture. This project took him 1.5 hours to develop, layout and render. After the design and estimate were approved by the bank, Carter cut all 10 wax models for the run on the mill during one procedure using an oversized milling fixture.

The final version of the Cultured Tahitian Pearl “S” shaped pendant was cast in white gold and then finished and set.

When asked about other benefits of creating jewelry designs using CAD/CAM, Carter elaborated, “I design more than one option for most customers’ special order pieces. The options are typically very different. The pieces customers don’t select are often produced and put into our store’s inventory. We are known for our individual brand of jewelry so having a constant flow of our own pieces into our inventory is a plus”.

Carter has done the design layout for over 50 custom jobs since starting with CAD/CAM and made several pieces for the store’s inventory. He says that this technology has enabled him to do more symmetrical and geometric precision pieces quickly that would have taken a significant amount of time to produce by hand—especially when the jewelry pieces include gemstones. When asked about his personal design favorites he smiles and describes a platinum and diamond 3-stone ring that sold for over $15,000.00.

This lovely pendant was a bonus from one of Carter’s custom design sessions. Though it was not selected by the customer, it was manufactured for the Carter’s Jewel Chest inventory and then sold.

His enthusiasm over the results of CAD/CAM is contagious. For years Beth Carter has conceptualized a collection of jewelry components which may be purchased individually and are easily interchangeable by the wearer, creating different wardrobe- appropriate options with the various pieces.  Now she is excited to pursue her idea through the possibilities of CAD/CAM to make it a reality.

Carter comments about how the technology has enhanced his sale closing ratio and drawn new customers who are astounded by its capabilities. “People are really impressed with my ability to show them the ring in a 3D format from all directions and having the large screen monitor helps this immensely. Customers will watch as I prepare design layouts and renderings which leads to questions and eventual orders from the most intrigued”.

For information about Carter’s Jewel Chest, visit www.cartersjewelchest.com.