Meet the Makers #6 - How to 3D Print Your Wedding Ring on a Mars 3 Pro- with Arezzo Jewelers

On this episode of Meet the Makers, we have a special guest - Vincent, of Arezzo Jewelers, who has been making custom wedding rings for over a decade using a 3D printer.

Vincent will take us through his journey of becoming a jewelry maker and how he has incorporated the latest technology to make unique wedding rings for his clients. He'll discuss the benefits of 3D printing in jewelry making and how it has revolutionized the industry.

But Vincent's passion for making doesn't stop at jewelry. He's also a big Marvel and Iron Man enthusiast who has built an Iron Man suit from scratch! He'll talk about his love for the character and how he was able to bring the suit to life using his skills as a maker.

In this episode, we'll learn about the intersection of jewelry making and cosplay, and how Vincent's experience as a maker in both fields has influenced his approach to creativity and problem-solving.

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Where to find Vincent! 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/v.for.vincent/
Website: https://www.arezzojewelers.com/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@v.for.vincent?lang=en
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Come be a guest on meet the makers: https://forms.gle/wTqzxqGpsu9hZ39F6
Follow misfit printing on TIktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@misfit_printing
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Chapters
Intro: -0:00 
How 3D printing has changes Jewelers process - 1:52 
Natural Vs. Lab Grown Diamonds - 7:09 
Marvel Jeweler - 8:20 
Building an Ironman Suit - 9:47 
Bitcoin Mining - 12:50 
Buying / Selling Gold - 4:50 
Getting attached to art -17:00 
Picking the right ring for you - 19:24 
Jewelry trends in 2023 - 21:05 
Social Media for business  -26:40 
3D modeling rings - 30:06 
Storing rind molds - 31:54 
Do your kids love jewelry ? - 33:49 
Outro- 36:00

Transcript

Hey everybody and welcome back to the Meet the Makers podcast today I am joined here. You may know him from doing some of the most beautiful custom jewelry that I have seen. He's also a fellow nerd and a part-time superhero. Today I am joined by Vincent from Art so Jewelers. Vincent, I am so excited to have you on here.
Thank you so much for coming on. Thank you. Thank you. I'm very excited to be here. Most people I think growing up, they wanna be firefighters, they wanted to be doctors.
How did you get into being a jeweler that's pretty unique. Family business. Okay. So I grew up, I did grow up in it. my father did, started, back in 1989, him in, a family member partnered up, started up, separated back in 2000 and, I've been doing it since 2002. Wow. Okay. I [00:01:00] love family businesses, so that's super unique to get to come into it that way.
Now, when you were growing up and you saw your father in this line of work, was it something that was really natural for you to follow in his footsteps or, did you not really expect to get to do it? How was that whole transition? So I didn't expect to follow in his footsteps, but I believe he expected me to follow in his footsteps.
So he did, strongly encourage me growing up. I was always good at working with my hands as a kid. I always built stuff, took stuff apart. I was,one of those kids that, took their toys apart and rebuilt them a different way. and I guess that came in, that came into my adulthood doing what I do now.
But yeah, the way my dad did things, it's, he does, he did things completely different than we do now. So it's actually a lot more fun to be in this industry now. Than it was when, during his time. Interesting. Now, what about it would you say has changed, since like when you saw him doing it versus the modern day of it Technology.
3D printing is actually, is was a game changer in our industry. [00:02:00] people 

have been doing it for the past about 15 years. I started doing about 10 years ago. but 3D printing was a big game changer in the industry. We went from doing our waxes that we make our master, molds out of hand. 
now I do 'em on the computer and I use a 3D printer. That is absolutely wild to me. And before,we were talking a little bit before this podcast, but I had no idea 3D printing was used in this application. I know you said that kind of maybe about 15 years ago was the timeline of when it got started.
Would you say it's pretty commonplace nowadays for jewelers to work with? Yes, it's industry standard now. Wow, okay. And that was my introduction to 3D printing. Was that, so it, to me, it was more just of a tool for work that I, a new thing I had to learn on top of everything else that I had to learn.
but then I just started playing with it. Make, making little trinkets here and there. you can't really do it on the printer I use for work because of the material. So expensive. but I bought a 3D printer for home and started, and just started going from going crazy from there.
Can you tell us a little bit more about the 3D printer that you [00:03:00] have for work? Because it sounds like it's really different from what we probably have and are used to in our home credit. No, it's actually not at all. you'd be surprised actually, people like that me that bought one. Years ago are pretty frustrated now how far 3D printing has come?
it's a resin 3D printer. okay. that I use. And the model, the machine that I use, which is currently broken, it's from the company in Vision Tech, which they started, doing printers for dental, which crossed over basic jewelry and dentistry cross over a whole lot. Same tools, same everything, even with 3D printing and making molds of, jewelry under teeth.
So they started making 3D printers for jewelers, where the resin, you're able to, once it's done and you here, I have a piece right here to show you. once it's done, it's the same thing as any resin printer that you use. but you're able to do a lost wax casting, so you could burn this out and make a final, a piece of jewelry with it.
So if I'm understanding correctly, then essentially what the process [00:04:00] is you. You build these out in the 3D printer out of a wax substance and then you go and fill it in after the fact with a mud to make the finished product. Is that how it works? Yes. Okay. It's the simplest way. Yes. So this comes out of the 

3D printer. 
We clean it up and then I make a mold of it inside the mold. It's a silicone mold, just an, you would do it for prop making the same way, but then we put the mold into an oven about, 12 to 1400 degrees, and we burn it out. Wow. And then the wax melts out and then we have an empty cavity, but then we put it into a casting machine.
I have a couple different kinds. we could get into that, but and then it goes in there, and then whatever metal I want to go in, gold, silver, platinum, it gets put into, it gets. Thrown into the, into the MT mold. That is absolutely wild. I just, I again, never had any idea that's how it was done, or that's, was a pretty common thing in the industry.
Yeah. now is 3D printing technology has evolved. I'm not sure how familiar you are with, the different resin printers on the market now, but are you [00:05:00] finding that as technology advances it's becoming closer and closer to the machine that you initially started with in your business? It surpassed Wow.
So I meant, I spent, I hate to admit it, I spent $16,000 on that machine 10 years ago. the Mars three Pro is better than my machine, and that machine costs, oh my god, five, $600 now. Yeah. So the machine, the average standard for, a higher end store is gonna buy a $10,000 machine nowadays. But I'm the Mars three and, equivalent type of to that printer.
You're getting the same results now. I know a lot of people who I follow and are just hobbyists, they're not doing this full-time, but they print on that machine so it's, yeah, it's crazy. They just need to buy the right resin for it and then they can make jewelry.
That is, I'm my mind is actually blown right now. Yeah. This was on a Mars too. It's not fault. It's quite a big ring. You're gonna need, somebody with a big finger there. Yeah. For, clients that I do [00:06:00] custom engagement rings for, the past year since I've had my resin machine. When I do a custom ring, I explain how I do the process the same way I explain it to you and their finished ring.
Once I give 'em the finished ring, I make this for them to have as a prop. Oh my God. So they have a little, model of their engagement ring to bring home. That's super unique. now when you are walking people through this process of, doing these custom rings, How long does that process typically start from, like 

them coming in and having an idea of what they want to, it finally being a finished product? 
it could be anything. So yeah, typically I would say about three weeks is the total process from when I first meet them to the ring is done. It could be longer if the ring is more complicated or, or at the piece. It doesn't have to be a ring, it could be anything. but I, they come in, original appointment.
They, I have a list of what they've already, what they requested, the type of stone that they want. Whether they want natural lab growing gemstone. the designs, inspiration designs, they come. So they come in, see what I have, see how I work. [00:07:00] I have a lot of samples that they could make custom jewelry right in front of them.
And then, once we figure something out, I shake their hand, they leave, and then I sit in my computer for a few hours and I design a ring for them or any piece that they want. Interesting. Now, you mentioned something I wanted to back up on real quick. Okay. You talked about. maybe they're coming in, they have an idea of what stone they want, be it lab grown or natural desi diamonds or gemstones.
Can you talk us through the difference between what a lab grown versus, a more traditional diamond is? Why are you interested? You're good sales. One good sales line. lab growns and natural diamonds are the same thing. A lot of people are gonna hate that I say that. but I'm a gemologist. I graduate from Gia Gemological Institute of America, so I'm supposed to be biased towards natural diamonds.
But lab growns, they're the same thing. The only difference is, the journey to become the finished diamond is that they're done in a laboratory. The process is replicated and sped up. but it's the same thing. It's a di, it's a, it's chemically equivalent to a diamond, so it's just as good. So [00:08:00] save your money.
 For people when they're coming in and, they're getting these custom, builds done, how much are you helping them along in that process of,Designing, bringing that vision to life.
Is it typically people come in with an idea or are you more would you say like the artist behind bringing what the final creation is? People come in with, a sketch of what they want and I give them the Mona Lisa. They love that

 Transitioning off of, the side of what you do for customs. I know I've seen that you guys also carry, some line of, Marvel inspired jewelry, which I just thought was so cool. with that said, do you ever see those two worlds blending together? 
Do you ever imagine yourself making something custom that falls a little more on that, like nerdy side of things? Yeah, I actually, I always hope for people to come in and ask me to do something super nerdy. Very rarely does, but cuz people don't wanna. Overinvest in that kind of stuff, and custom does get a little expensive.
but the, what you're referring to, if you're familiar, it's Pandora. Pandora, it's a very [00:09:00] popular jewelry line in here in America, around the world. so they have an entire Disney line, which includes Marvel, star Wars and all that. And I was like a big backer of all that. So it, it is cool.
Unfortunately, it's nothing for men, I wish there was something for men, in the Pandora line, but it's basically, it's a charm bracelet with little characters, little characters on them. they're a lot of fun. but if, yeah, they're, if you're familiar with the Pandora line, it's for that.
there's another line that I do care. I just don't have 'em in a store because it is the men's line. I'm actually wearing the ring. Oh, very cool. I wish it would focus, it's. it's in my men's line. They have the license to Marvel. So the owner of the company, he sent me a bunch of Ironman's stuff.
So this is the ring that he sent me. I wear it every single day. I just don't have it on display, but I do sell it. It's called Rock Love Jewelry. You could look it up on Instagram. It's very cool. That's awesome. Now you also, like I've seen on your Instagram and your TikTok, You do, I don't know if costly would do the right word, but I see you dressing up in Tony Stark Cosplays Yeah.
Stuff. [00:10:00] Cosplay the word. Yeah. yeah. yeah, I brought here my little 3D printed arch right there. It's just unplugged. Yeah. I wore this two, C two, E two, last week came to Chicago. I used to do a lot more cosplay. I used to dress up as fully as Iron Man. I have a whole suit there. It is working now.
I made it out of e v a foam. That was all, that was also 10 years ago. 10 years ago was before kids. So I did a lot of fun stuff before kids. but yeah, I did Ironman. I am working on a new suit. I don't think you see, you would've seen anything cuz I don't post anything of it. I'm, I do have the full suit printed.

I just have to paint it. That's gonna be a project over the summer. Gotcha. Now for the suit, different, it sounds like different process that you went about building it the first time, the second time. is there any things that you learned the first time in making that going into this suffering round of it, you're changing or. 
modifying in your process for that? the first time around, I did it out of, Eva foam. So I used, ura, if you're familiar with ura. it's basically origami. You're folding [00:11:00] pieces of paper flat, and then you put in your shaping flat pieces into 3D objects. So I, that's how I did that. I wish that I had a 3D printer back then, because I would've all went all out that way.
But no, the two don't relate. I learned a little bit with electronics, that's for sure. in my knowledge I was soldering electronics, wiring resistors, all that. I learned that with my original Ironman suit, cuz my hands and my eyes and my chest lit up. Okay. but this time around I'm using Arduinos, so I, I've a couple long ways since then.
So I got, I'm having a motorized helmet and all that good stuff. Animated lights. That's super cool. So that, that is, I could say what I've learned, but now, this time around, it's 3D printed, Definite learning curve. It almost seems like a rite of passage in 3D printing where everybody goes through it and, I see so many different people do different variations of it, but it's, it definitely seems like a long project.
How long would you say in terms of hours you have into this project so far? Oh my gosh. Over a hundred just in printing hours. Yeah. and I have probably [00:12:00] only a third of it sanded, not even painted, so Yeah. Over a hundred already. But the, that's trial and error. Trial and error because, and I do the PLA welding and all that good stuff.
Oh, okay. Yeah. So that's a lot of fun learning, different learning how to use Bondo. Never done that before. Yeah. Post-processing. It's a whole different beast on top of, finishing your prints. I've never done anything as extensive as that, but. I know for me, I've laid down prints that have taken a while and I'm like, okay, we're through the rough part.
But then you get into the sanding and like you said, the Bondo and it's it really can get pretty, pretty extensive for sure. no. You mentioned that you have kids. I know you haven't had an your man's suit in a while, but do your kids also get into cosplaying with you and do they Yeah.

Right now they're in Harry Potter. Okay. So we're big on that. Just took 'em to Universal. Got 'em, their wands, rogues everything. I brought my, older, my seven year old to C two E two, the first day ahead. Her as, running around as Gryffindor. Oh, that's super cute. You guys always, look great when you guys come out together. [00:13:00] Thanks. Yeah. Yeah. So coming back to, your, business, one of the interesting things I noticed is way back you had posted that you guys, had started accepting Bitcoin at the time. is that correct? It's, we did for a little bit. I built the extra cuz I w like I got into it just like everybody else. I didn't buy it. I ended up building, a minor. Bitcoin minor instead. Okay. So I was having fun with that. I did do a few sales with Bitcoin, but I don't do it anymore. 
There's no chance that would've hurt me. Yeah, I did do a few small things though like that, but my, I don't have too many customers that would wanna come and do that. I was, yeah, I was curious about that, of how many people would've, been, transacting in Bitcoin back then. I know for me, I hadn't gotten into it until much later, but, I thought that was unique when I saw it and I saw that you had been mining it at the time.
What was that kind of like back then? That was fun. It was like at the peak and the height of everything. I bought a bunch of graphics cards for, I went the microcenter bought every graphics card that they [00:14:00] had. just sat it like, it was just a hobby that I had. I built a, I built it. I like, like building things Before I had a 3D printer, so I built a minor.
And put it together. And it worked. It worked fantastic. It definitely made money and then it stopped. So it's actually sitting in the basement now cause I can't use it anymore now. Okay. So you can't use it anymore. Do things like that? I think I've heard that you need to really increase the computing powder power as time goes on.
yeah. So I did the graphics card once,so I was mining Ethereum and Ethereum. You cannot mine anymore. okay. That's basically it. You just can't mind it anymore. They don't do it anymore. They changed to, what's called proof of steak, which means you just have to have a lot of it. Interesting. You were pioneered to that back then.
I think it's a little more standard now, but, I know even, a couple years ago, I think it was seen as a pretty alternative, method. Yeah. Pretty radical thing. Yeah, I still like it. I'm still, I still follow it, but I don't like preach it. Staying on that same note, getting away from traditional [00:15:00] banking and with 

everything that has happened over the last couple of months, in particular with the banking system, I know you guys also buy and sell gold. 
Yeah. Have you seen a surge in people having interest in that with everything happening right now? Yeah. So the gold is at over $2,000 right now. Let me check, which is all time high. yeah, 2000 do $2,005 right now. When gold hits spikes this high, usually once it gets past 19, 18, $1,900, a lot of people come and sell their old gold.
So we do buy gold over the counter. also a lot of people come in and want gold coins and silver. Okay. So I, I always have 'em on hand. So I got a lot of gold coins, a lot of silver coins just in the safer these times. So I buy 'em, like I have 'em from years ago, so we bought 'em when gold was a lot less.
So It's nice to have. But yeah, we do see it when it's a gold's high right now, so we're getting a lot of people. And speaking of nerd investments, I collect a lot of, silver nerd stuff. Like I have, [00:16:00] this is my favorite one. It's a two, five ounce Millennium Falcon Oh, wow. In silver. My favorite piece.
Now, seeing something like that is that I should have prefaced this by saying I am, I consider myself a nerd, but I. Never have seen any of the Marvel movies. And I've also only seen one of the Star Wars movies, so I'm a little bit out of touch. So which kind of nerd are you? I am, I like to, what's your nerd?
I, of course, a 3D printing nerd. I am a nerd. That devils in a little bit of everything. I think movies were the one thing that always,it escaped me. I never got super into movies, but,I love science, I love history. I love, really everything. Except not that I don't have an appreciation for it, but yeah, I've never seen any of the Marvel movies.
That's okay. You could start anytime. They're all in Disney Plus. that's true. I promise you'll like them. 
With that center, those, I know you had the Millennium Falcon. Is that, something that you guys carry in your shop or in your business? That's, I don't necessarily carry 'em. I have a [00:17:00] lot of them under there, but I keep 'em for me. But if people wanna buy 'em, I do. I would sell 'em. But, right now they're mine.
That's good. That's cool. As you're doing these custom creations for people 

and,you're designing it from the scratch, do you ever feel like you have a hard time parting with those as they walk out your door? is it like a happy moment for you both. 
Oh, you, yeah. No one realize that once I finish a ring, like there's a ring that I have, it's my favorite one. It's, this is the big version of it. I have, every time I sell it, I have to make it again just so it's in my showcase, cuz it's a, like an, it's an original design of mine and it comes out perfect every time and I love it and every time I sell it I get so upset cuz then I'm gone.
It's gone for a month. it. So yes, I do. I do feel that way. but I guess like the biggest feeling I get, it's not necessarily the ring itself, it's more of like the person I'm selling it to. They like, they trust me wholeheartedly with the whole process. Cuz no, like everyone that comes in, they [00:18:00] do the research, but they all say, I have no idea what I'm doing here.
And they all, they're all happy with the process, that I, when I go through with them, and they're very happy and it's a very important moment in their life. They're about to get engaged. Yeah. So I get to be a part of that. That's like the more exciting thing for me. Yeah. I think that's a really special thing to get to be part of and, for possibly years or in some cases maybe the rest of their life, they're gonna have this.
living piece of art from you on them, which is, I think, a really unique thing that maybe a lot of artists, don't get to experience. So that's what I say. I'm like, that's gonna be on the fingering your finger. The rest of your life. You're gonna think of me. I made that for you. I get to say that to people and I love that.
Yeah, that's, that's definitely something that I think maybe would in some ways help Harding with something that is so special. And it's bittersweet. Yes. Now, one of the things I saw, you had this, ring. I, think maybe you had designed it, it had skulls on it and it was really unique.
It was unlike anything I've ever seen before. do you get to do things like that often where [00:19:00] it's, like what I consider like very unique, very custom? Yes, I do. I love it. actually I would've showed it to you, but he picked it up today. I just repaired it for him. I had the finish ring. I. Awesome ring.
It had two skulls on each side. It had a garnet stone, so it's a dark red stone in the middle and diamonds in the eyes of each skull. That was a cool ring. I do get to do a few of those a year because, I do a lot of custom work for jewelry 

stores around Chicago. Okay. And one of, is a very eclectic studio, so I get to make some weirder pieces for them. 
That's interesting. Now, you had said that it was in for repair. when you're doing kind of these more unique designs, do you ever run into situations like, with structural integrity? Do you have to be a little more mindful as you're designing these of how the, where and things like that are gonna affect, the design?
Yeah, so just like when, if you're ever modeling something for 3D printing, you have to think how it's gonna be printed on the printer. I have to think of how it's gonna be worn and how the stones are gonna get set into there. the 3D model's gonna look very ugly, but the finished piece is gonna be proper [00:20:00] because,you usually overbuild certain areas or under build certain areas to accommodate cuz there's shrinkage in the wax and then, or the hole's gotta be small enough or big enough to fit a particular size.
And the underneath,the underneath of the ring gets hit a lot. So you have to make that a little bit thicker, heavier typically. yeah, all that come comes into consideration. But, I do lifetime warranty for all my custom pieces, so as long as you bring it in, get it checked out.
Cause anything can happen to the ring. So I'll always take care of 'em. That's great. Yeah. I, I know from you, I'm always super hard on my stuff and I always look back at my jewelry and it gets a little, a little beat up. Would you say, is that one of the things you take into consideration when somebody's coming in for a more custom build maybe Yeah.
Their lifestyle or just what they do in the day-to-day? Very important part of it, yes. How rough are you with your hands? How often do you use your hands? What do you do for work? If you're a nurse, you know you're gonna get a different ring than someone that just sits at their computer all day.
do you work out? Do you take your clothes, like your rings get off when you work out? all that comes into consideration. a lot [00:21:00] of people want these very petite, thin bands. Yeah, those are very popular now, but they don't last the test of time. Now, over the years of you doing this, have you, seen big changes in what's popular and, do you have something that.
Yeah. right now you would say is the hot style that people are leaning towards. Maybe those more petite rings, the petites are actually starting to die out. 

Thank goodness. right now it's solitaire, believe it or not. Oh, solitaire are super popular. So nothing on the band, just the diamond itself. 
Otherwise, there's, the design called the hidden halo. That one is very hot right now. Whereas, the halo, if you're familiar with the halo coming on the outside, the diamond's pointing up the hidden halo, the diamonds are. Under the halo is underneath the center, diamond facing sideways,like this guide.
So the diamonds are sideways, so when you look straight at it and you don't see it, oh, okay. But when you luci 'em, they're on the side. So that's the most popular diamond design right now. so yeah, it's very cyclical. I'd say every three years. It's a brand new design. Interesting. and Centerstone shape [00:22:00] changes every three years pop in popularity.
 Is there something you consider the most timeless look or something that's really classical for somebody who wants something not is, I guess in the trend right now? Yeah. A a round solitaire is as timeless as it gets. So round diamond, yellow gold band with white gold prongs is this time is the most classic ring you can get.
That makes sense. If I think in my head of a diamond ring, that's the image that pops into my head, yep. yeah, One of the things I see occasionally now, and I think it's starting to become more popular with the engage oranges. Maybe you can correct me if I'm wrong, but, Color, maybe colored diamonds or gemstones or, yeah.
just more unique things. Are you starting to see more of that? I'm starting, I'm actually like, I love when people use gemstones in the, in their engage rinks because it's very different. diamonds are great. Diamonds are forever, diamonds. You cannot, you can't really hurt them. you could hurt 'em, you could break 'em, but, the gemstones are, there's no two gemstones that'll ever look alike If they're large enough.
Diamonds eventually all blend [00:23:00] together. Even though they're brilliant, beautiful, like gemstones, I wish more people wanted to use 'em in their engagement rings. I do have a collection of 'em. I also have empty rings and I have gemstones right next to them, so to encourage people to try that out.
but yeah, I do, there is starting, it's a very small uptick, but it is happening. And the people to do by them, they're very big gaudy rings. Okay. Yeah. Yeah I don't 

know if, social media has any sort of influence on that, but I started seeing it more and more of, people going that route. 
And it seems like, I'm one of the sub hobbies that I've to nerd out about is house plans, but something that I see a lot of people who are interested in that, also be interested in is, gemstones have you. Also had more of an interest in people just across the board, interested in, crystals gems. They, it seems to be like a hot trend I'm seeing online Recently. That hasn't hit my, my market yet. That's a huge West coast thing when I go to California.
That's huge over [00:24:00] there. you're on the West Coast, I'm assuming. Yeah, I dunno if you're California or whatnot, but when I go to la in, in, San Francisco, there's gemstone stores, the crystal shops and all that. I see a lot of that. I don't see any of that here. And if I do see,like a crystal shop here, it's, it's not in a very, prominent area.
So it's just in a random, plaza or whatnot. But I do see that could start to uptick. I don't see me jumping on that trend. because that's just another thing that I have to buy and sell. . A big portion of your business is doing the custom, rings for people.
Do you try and stay,narrow in what you do in the industry, or how do you manage like what you keep in your, as inventory and what you decide not to dabble into? How does that kind of work for you? Okay, that's a great question. I personally do a lot of the custom. That's just one of the things we offer.
We're a full store. we're a full store here and we also have a workshop too, in a, in the downtown Chicago area where we do our cus where we actually do the fabrication in all of our repairs. So [00:25:00] in, in the store here, I have a lot of jewelry collections, different designers. We specialize in gold.
So gold like metal, like gold chains, heavy gold chains. Specifically from Italy. our store is called Oso Jewelers. We're named after the town in Tuscany, Italy, Uhhuh, Oso, Italy, which is actually known as the gold capital of the world. Most of the gold manufacturing comes out of there. So we buy a lot of gold from there.
We have in, we have forever. So that's where a lot of, that comes from. Then we buy a lot of Johnstone jewelry, a lot of diamond jewelry. it's very exclusive, so we try to pick everything here that you can't get anywhere else. The only common, jewelry item that we carry here is the Pandora collection, which is 

very popular. 
Gotcha. it's, yeah. It's interesting to hear how, you guys have your specific niche in the industry. do you find,we've talked a little bit about social media trends and things like that. I know one of the things that I've seen recently is, particularly on TikTok, they started rolling out more features for businesses, to [00:26:00] promote different items that they have.
Now, obviously, you guys are a lot more high ticket, but do you ever see yourself, leaning more into things like that to promote the business yes. I definitely try and TikTok, I haven't, I'm really trying to push myself onto it. I don't know what, if it's a confidence singer or not.
I can't, I'm trying to get myself onto it cause I see how important it is. I do a lot of Instagram, Instagram reels and Facebook, and I tag my products in there. My website is directly connected to Facebook, Google, Instagram, so my products are always, always uploaded, so they're always on there.
I'm able to link everything onto there, so it does help. I do make sales through Instagram. Interesting. yeah, it's, one of those channels like, Instagram and TikTok particularly. I always feel like for people, businesses who are selling to consumers, it, I think it's hard to track sometimes, always how much of your effort is actually driving those sales.
But it seems like just such a great platform for, storytelling and brand awareness and things like that. So I'm excited to see over the next couple years how brands are able to [00:27:00] leverage that and just grow their business with it. Cause it seems like same year there's a lot of potential for that same year.
I'm trying to push myself to do more of it. Be like you, I want to be on, be as popular as you on TikTok. Yeah. Hey, I'm, I'm new to it too. I just got into TikTok a couple months ago and, I consider myself like an introvert. So getting into doing social media was, it was definitely a different thing for me, but, It's, it's been a great experience so far and,it's been a really fun journey and especially in the nerd community.
I don't know how much you engage with the 3D printing side of things, but it's just a great community of people. I wouldn't have known that you were new to TikTok cuz you were all over my for you page before. Before I started following you, so you seem like you were famous already. Oh, thank you.

Thank you. Yeah, it's, like I said, it's been a fun journey on there and I think, for, especially, like I said, for businesses over the next couple years, I think it's just gonna have the potential to bro, blow people up, which I'm excited about the, possibilities of that for a lot of people. 
What about you? How did you start 3D printing? or when I should say, yeah, so I've [00:28:00] actually only been 3D printing for a couple months now, so I'm still,getting into it and learning the ins and outs of it. But I had actually had a small house plant, shop at the time. And, that was initially what I thought I was gonna do with my 3D printers.
I had bought them to make. House plant pots and the deeper and deeper I got into it. First of all, I realized very quickly how long it takes to make a pot on a 3D printer, which is way longer than I expected. I think, I don't know, how long it takes to make a ring with a little bit smaller, but, that was one of the biggest things that shock me, right?
Alphabet. Its like, okay, maybe this isn't as practical as I, initially thought it was gonna be, but. Fortunately, I just, I ended up falling in love with it as a hobby. And, although I don't use it for any businesses purposes right now. I, yes. I just really love it yet. Yeah, that's a good point.
Yeah. my, my 3D printer, I use my envision tech for my, the jewelry to take, to make one little ring like this. It takes nine hours and then that old machine, nine hours. Wow. Now, [00:29:00] on the Mars, this would take, 45 minutes, like this took one hour. That's that's how much things have changed. That is, that's wild.
Yeah. it's, technology across the board has just moved so fast these days, but particularly in 3D printing, I know even on the hobby side, I mean seeing, the bamboo labs come out and so many things, it seems like over the next couple years, again, maybe what takes 45 minutes now and feels fast and a couple years will be four minutes.
It's thin. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Thank goodness for Bamboo Labs because not, not that I have one, but because they came out, it's making all the, like reality persa, they're making 'em change, making 'em update. Now technology has to get better because they exist. Yeah. It's, it's exciting to see different things just come into the marketplace like that.
Cuz like you said, I got into it at a time where there was a lot of change, but it 

sounded like for many years things were stagnant and they're. wasn't a lot of innovation in the 3D printing space. no, it's, it's cool to be part of it as all of this is happening. 
I get I, there was [00:30:00] innovation, but on the very, very high end part of it, like they, now the consumer part is starting to take Peter. They are starting to notice there's money there. The now on the designing side. How, how long did it take you to get acclimated into being able to start with a vision and bring that to life for a project?
A full design will probably take me about three hours to do up until about 10 hours on a very complicated one. it's hard to say now because I've done like it, like literally tens of thousands of designs where I already have a lot of the bases set. So I fly into it and I go with I like so much.
So I even I have like silver models of rings in my showcase where they could pop the head off. Like stuff that I've made over here. So a lot of the work I is done already. in the beginning it would take me a lot longer to do because I'd have to come up with something from scratch and make a new appointment with the customer to come and see what I've made or email back and forth.
Now I could ev most of my appointments. I could do it all in one appointment now. So it's [00:31:00] pretty expedited now. I've had a, I've been doing it for 10 years, so the system's in place, yeah, I'd say a one hour appointment with the customer is more than enough. I'll know what they want due to,they'll know what the design I'm gonna make for them, and I just make it.
It's pretty, it's simple now. it sh it sounds like it should be more complicated, but it's not. Yeah. It's, it's strangely simple and, similar to, is somebody who 3D prints like, it sounds like something that is similar to a day-to-day workflow that I have. So it's cool to hear that.
Before, 3D printers were, applicable in this space and design softwares like this. How was that done before? This was like the commonplace method, hand carving waxes. Oh my god. so either, so there was milling machines where, the needle, they, it spins and carves the wax. That's, the older way of doing the older version of 3D printing.
But you're very limited. But like you had nice designs, but you were very limited, [00:32:00] was a bunch of basics designs you were able to do. other than that, it was hand carving wax and then, saving the mold. We, I have 

molds, the silicon molds from when I was a kid that we still use. Wow. Yeah. the we, we have, the Dewey Decibel system downtown at our office over there. 
With, every, basically every ring we've ever made. Interesting. So you have just, it sounds like almo, a warehouse of these molds that you have. it's on a warehouse. it's my workshop. It's my office, slash workshop where we do it all. And I just have a big giant, so like a, an old I bought an old car catalog from a library?
Yeah. And just, it's stacked up against the wall, floor to ceiling. There's about, there's 10,000 molds there. Interesting. Now, have you ever had somebody, I, I hate to say, but lose a ring and come back to get one remolded or something like that? Oh, yeah. Yeah. Wow. Absolutely. Interesting. People lose a ring.
Yeah, I've been, I've, I had, I'm doing it for somebody right now that had their dad's bracelet bought 20 something years ago. I have to remake it. I [00:33:00] still have the molds, that absolutely blows my mind. I, again, there's so many things that we've talked through that I had no idea that's how it works, but, so I guess in theory, somebody could come to you 20 years in the future and have the same thing recreated that they Yeah.
Have back in the day. Wow. if I made it for them. Yes. Wow. Yeah, it's easier now. if I made a CAD design for them. Yeah, it's easy. It's much easier now cuz I can have a digital copy. It's something to disappear. and then they want to get a matching ring made to it. I just pop open the CAD and make a perfect match.
Yeah. nowaday with, nowadays with the digital files, I guess it's probably less storage space that you have to have less physical storage space. you, I need the molds. The molds are Oh, okay. That's how you make the finished product. Gotcha, gotcha. But if, like a customer lost something, it's like a contingency.
Okay. Wow. Again. I had no idea that's how it happened now. Okay. So in there you talked about, you guys have potentially molds from you when you were a kid. Yeah. You have kids yourself are, do they have interest in, what you [00:34:00] do? Do they have interest in jewelry? they're five and seven, so they lo they say, they both say they want to be a jeweler when they grow up.
But they're five and seven, so we'll see. They also want to be Harry Potter too, when they grow up. Yes. Yeah. But they do come with me to work. I try to bring 'em here as much as possible. They love coming here. They clean, they help out. they greet customers as Oh, wow. And they come in, so I bet the 

customers love that too. 
they love 'em. Yeah. And I, you've probably seen 'em on my Instagram. I put jewelry all over 'em. Now, as a little kid, do they realize exactly like what, Like how, I guess spectacular the jewelry is or to them? Has that just become a normal part of their life now? I pr I probably just the normal part of their life.
Yeah. I don't know, I don't see it through their eyes. I guess they see jewelry, but, like they'll go to my case and they'll have no problem reaching their hand in there and I have to stop them cuz they, they look at it, it's just jewelry. What's the big deal? Oh, they cost, no, it's a lot of money.
Yeah. Donk. So that don't, yeah, they have no concept of value. They just like how it looks. My [00:35:00] younger daughter hates necklaces and I, and it try, it breaks my heart. She does not like wearing necklaces and that's like my favorite thing for them to wear. Yeah. Yeah. what a plot twist there. It's, it's funny you say, they don't realize it.
I remember, I was pretty young at the time. I know how old I was, but my uncle had bought me my first pair ever of like actual diamond earrings and. being young, I just thought like they were just earrings. I didn't think anything of it and I had actually gave them to my friend that I used to hand it down all my stuff too.
So my mom was very upset with me. I just given them away, thought, nothing of it. So yeah. I can see how, maybe your daughters could go into the case and not think anything of it. Exactly. See, you gotta grow into those, that appreciation for sure. For sure. Yeah. Awesome. Vincent, I feel like I've learned so much talking to you today.
I had no idea how any of this were before hopping on here, so I really appreciate you,talking us through your side of 3D printing and what it's,evolving into and how, I guess unexpectedly [00:36:00] similar is to the hobby hobbyist 3D printing space. With that said, can you tell people a little bit more about where to find you, where to search you out on the internet, if they maybe wanna get something custom built from you guys?
Sure. you could look me up on my personal Instagram, v for Vincent. It's v dot f o r dot Vincent. that's my personal, or you could you, I'm in, I run my, works Instagram. That's Azo Jewelers, A R E Z O Jewelers. I'm, you could reach me on both of those. check out my portfolio on, on both profiles, see the things that 

I've made, people I've helped. 
and yeah, I'm happy to help and if you ever want anything, I would be happy to make something for you. Awesome. maybe we'll have to work on a project together in the future. I'd love to, have a custom piece for you. Beautiful work. So Vincent, thank you again so much for coming on today. It was a great time.
Thanks for having you. Yeah, my pleasure. Of course. Course. that is Meet the Makers and we will see you guys next time.[00:37:00]