Press Release
Andrea Ragazzo Receives the Silver A' Design Award for Coral Cufflinks in Jewelry Design
Andrea Ragazzo recognized for jewelry design by the international grand jury of the 2019 - 2020 A' Design Award & Competition
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
COMO, Italy, April 23, 2020 /DesignNewswire/ A' Design Award & Competition has announced that Coral Cufflinks by Andrea Ragazzo, designed for Ragazzo Design Studio, has been granted the Silver A' Design Award in the Jewelry Design category. The award was conferred within the 2019 - 2020 A' Design Award & Competition and was determined through blind peer review by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members, who scored anonymized entries against predetermined criteria.
What the Silver A' Design Award Means
The Silver A' Design Award celebrates top-tier designs that embody excellence and innovation. This award acknowledges creations that are not only aesthetically pleasing but also highly functional, reflecting the designer's deep understanding and skill. Silver A' Design Award recipients are recognized for their contribution to raising industry standards and advancing the practice of design. Their work often incorporates original innovations and elicits a strong emotional response, making a notable impact on the improvement of everyday life.
Regarding Coral Cufflinks
Coral is a pair of cufflinks made to hold the cuffs of a shirt together. Many cufflinks are bulky and heavy. Coral instead follows an Italian tradition of simplicity and respect for organic shapes. The open, see-through form gives a light appearance, while the rough inner texture adds contrast. Each cufflink is hand made from sterling silver by lost wax casting. Each piece is polished and plated with platinum or rose gold to keep the shine. The flat, fin-like stem prevents rotation and makes the cufflinks easy to put on and take off.
About Andrea Ragazzo
Seasoned Mechanical Engineer turned Entrepreneur with an MBA in Innovation & Design Management, having 25 years of experience of working within the design and product development industry of various product categories. A dynamic and multi-talented innovator used to work effectively in a fast-paced environment. Adept at creating product roadmaps and successfully bringing complete product ranges to life from initial idea to final production, while working closely with all internal and external stakeholders and managing the innovation process from beginning to end. Skilled at problem-solving, creating designs cost- and time efficiently and driving the whole creative process.
Award Record
Andrea Ragazzo is a winner of 1 A' Design Award, including this recognition.
About the A' Jewelry Design Award
The A' Jewelry Design Award is an international jewelry design competition recognizing good jewelry designs by best jewelry designers worldwide. It is organized within the A' Design Award & Competition and is open to jewelry designers, jewelry brands, jewelers and goldsmiths from all countries. Typical entries include rings, necklaces, bracelets, earrings, brooches and pendants. The awarded jewelry designs are published at https://designers.org/design-category/jewelry
About A' Design Award & Competition
Organized annually since 2008, A' Design Award & Competition is an international, juried design accolade. The competition is open to entries from all countries. The philanthropic mission of the A' Design Award is to advance society through good design, by recognizing and promoting superior products, projects and services that benefit society, and by creating a global awareness and appreciation for good design practices and principles. Nominations are peer reviewed and evaluated anonymously by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members against predetermined criteria such as functionality, ergonomics, engineering, presentation, innovation, usability, sustainability and technology, with score normalization applied to remove biases. Awards are conferred at Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze and Iron levels. Eligible laureates receive the A' Design Prize, which includes the award trophy, the certificate of design excellence, the hardcover yearbook, a lifetime license to use the A' Design Award winner logo, exhibition of awarded works, an invitation to the gala night and award ceremony in Italy, inclusion in the World Design Rankings and Designer Rankings, and public relations and publicity services. Registration, uploading a work and receiving a preliminary score are free of charge, and Professional and Digital Edition laureates are not contractually obliged to pay further fees to claim the A' Design Prize. More information is available at https://competition.adesignaward.com
Press Resources
- Winner Page: https://designers.org/91583
- A' Design Award Page: https://competition.adesignaward.com/91583
- Media Showcase: https://www.designnewsroom.com/!91583
- Laureate Profile: https://designers.org/d/258886
- Further Information from the Laureate: http://bit.ly/RagazzoDS
Media Contact
Giulia Ferrari, Press Office
Designers.Org
Via Leone Leoni 32, 22100 Como, Italy
press@designers.org
+39 031 4491953
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Fact Sheet
The Work
- Project
- Coral Cufflinks
- Function
- Cufflinks
- Category
- Jewelry Design
- Discipline
- Fashion Design
- Industry
- Luxury and Fashion
- Colors
- Gray, Dim Gray, Dark Slate Gray, Light Gray and Rosy Brown
- Images
- 5
- Client
- Ragazzo Design Studio
The Recognition
- Laureate
- Andrea Ragazzo
- Country
- Hong Kong (China)
- Recognition
- Silver A' Design Award
- Edition
- 2019 - 2020
- Design ID
- #91583
Credits
- Image Credits
- #1: Maxime Chambigneulle, 2019 #2: Andrea Ragazzo, 2019 #3: Andrea Ragazzo, 2019 #4: Andrea Ragazzo, 2019 #5: Maxime Chambigneulle, 2019
Design Details
- Unique Properties
- These cufflinks are designed in the best tradition of Italian love for simplicity and respect for organic shapes. They are featuring a unique see-through look, which creates lightness, while the rough inner texture creates added contrast. Each cufflink is hand made from Sterling Silver. To keep its shine, they are individually polished and either Platinum or Rose Gold plated. The flat, fin-like stem prevents them from rotating while making it easy to put on and take off.
- Inspiration
- Cufflinks in itself are meant to hold the cuffs of a shirt together. The tighter, the better. They can be bulky and overloaded, usually made of expensive materials to show the status of its wearer. The inspiration was to create something opposite to that. Something that still made of a single, pure material and which replicated lightness. Something that even when holding the cuffs, would so not by weight, but by its structural integrity.
- Research
- During the initial phase of the design, several directions were taken, including designs featuring enamel. The enamel was placed in the inner part of the cufflinks, creating contrast and making the design feel alive. The idea came from the underside of a starfish, which reveals an inner color, different from the outer skin. It makes it more vulnerable and fragile, enhancing its lightness even more. Unfortunately, it was not possible from a technical point of view, since reaching the inner surface was very difficult and time-consuming.
- Challenge
- There was not much of a research challenge for this project since cufflinks have been around for a very long time. Also in terms of manufacturing and materials, the choice to use Sterling Silver and Lost Casting were straight forward. A high-quality material was necessary, and therefore, only silver or gold would have been appropriate. Using pure gold would set a too high selling price. Therefore the choice to use Sterling Silver and gold plate them.
- Realization and Technology
- The cufflinks are made by lost wax casting, which is commonplace in jewelry making. All files were created in Creo 4.0 and rendered in Keyshot to get an accurate representation of the final design before production. A Makerbot 3D-printer was also used, to get preliminary parts made in PLA. These were used to fine-tune the look and size.
- Operation and Interaction
- There are several types of cufflinks - Whale Back, Bullet Back, Chain Link, Ball Return, ... The Coral Cufflinks come as Fixed Backing design, which usually is a little harder to put on. Due to the slim design and functional shape; however, this is not the case. These cufflinks slide easily into the cuffs cuts, keeping them tightly together.
- Project Duration and Location
- The project started in September 2018 and the first production of three SKU's (Rose Gold, Silver, Gun Metal) arrived in Hong Kong around March 2019.
- Specifications
- Sterling Silver with Rhodium plating and Rose Gold plating, ∅20 x 22mm
- Keywords
- Cufflinks, Men's Accessories, Sterling Silver, Gold Plated, Italian Design, Luxury Accessories, Men's Fashion, Modern Design
