Introduction: Rhinestone and 3D Print Spider Web Earrings

By Etsy Store
About: Community Manager for Instructables and Tinkercad.
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I was looking at Halloween jewelry when I came across a pair of spider web earrings. They made me really want to make a design of my own. So after some tests, I came up with a simple 3D printable spider web design that allowed for a bead to dangle off the bottom and cutouts for rhinestones.

Instructable 285

Step 1: Supplies

I'll provide the basic spider web design, as well as the one that allows for rhinestones. You can try either one out or alter them to fit your style.

Supplies:

  • 3D printer
  • Black filament, or any color of choice; silver, white, bronze, etc. would also look nice.
  • Earrings
  • Flat Back Clear Rhinestones - you can get cheap or really nice, your choice, there are some nice variety packs out there too
    • 2 5mm flat back rhinestones (size 20ss) - the package says 5mm, but they are slightly smaller than that, because of this, they fit nicely into a 5mm inset spot
    • 6 4mm flat back rhinestones (size 16ss) - these are smaller than 4mm just like the 5mm, so again, they fit because they are smaller
  • Dangling rhinestones - or something else you would like to hang from the bottom of the earring
  • I used 2 4mm jump rings to attach the dangling rhinestones, but I just attached the spider web right to the earring part
  • Glue
  • Needle nose pliers
  • Tweezers - they can be helpful when working with small pieces

Step 2: Design

Tinkercad link

I started by drawing out a spider web design with a 5mm hole using Silhouette Studio. I then exported a PNG and converted it into an SVG to bring into Tinkercad.

In Tinkercad, I made the webs 0.80mm thick, put in holes for the top and bottom, and added additional cylinders for the rhinestones.

As you can see in the second image, to create the spots for the rhinestones, I brought in a cylinder that was 4mm wide and .5mm tall. On top of that, I added a hole cylinder that was 4mm wide, .4mm tall and up by 5mm so that it sat on top of the other cylinder. I put these on the spider web where I wanted them and then joined them to the web. This created a cylinder for the rhinestone to sit on and then a hole on top to create a little inset for the rhinestone.

When I tested and finalized the design, I flipped it for the second earring so they would mirror each other. Printed them in black and done!

This design is very thin and light. You can make it thicker if you want.

Attached you can find the Rhinestone version of the spider web and the one without the additional inserts so it just has a hole in the center.

You can also take the basic spider web and add rhinestones in the sizes you want and in the places you want!

Attachments

Step 3: Print!

Here is a look at what the earrings are like when they come off the printer.

Step 4: Rhinestones and Jewelry Findings

Glue on the rhinestones before assembling your earrings. You may want to invest in applicators for your glue (I'm going to now). I had such a difficult time getting the glue in those little spots.

Once you have the rhinestones glued on and you are sure they won't fall off, attach your bead to the bottom of the web, and your earring to the top.

Step 5: Spider Web Earrings

Here is another look at the webs and this should give you a better idea of how big they are. Remember, they are fairly big at 2.419" by 1.546" but they are very thin so they aren't heavy at all.