Capstone Kickoff: Design Brief and Blockout

Quick Review

In the last lesson you learned three tools that give jewelry its look: loop cuts place control lines, bevels add the small polished radius on edges, and subdivision smooths a blocky model. Hold that thought, because this lesson asks you to do the opposite of smoothing: you will build the chunkiest, simplest version of your capstone piece and make it correct to the millimeter.

The Project: Why a Brief Comes First

Your capstone is a single piece of jewelry that goes into a portfolio render at the end of Module 3. Before any of that, it needs numbers.

A design brief is a one-page document that answers: what is the piece, what is it made of, and how big is every important feature? Without it, you will model by eye, and by eye is how a 17 mm ring becomes a 22 mm ring that no finger fits.

The blockout is the second half of this lesson. It is a rough massing model built from three to six simple primitives: no bevels, no subdivision, no materials. Its only job is to prove that the proportions in your brief look right in 3D. ==A blockout is a measuring tool, not a model.==

Requirements and Spec

Your brief must contain these fields. Use the example column as a guide, then fill in your own design.

Then apply these scene rules:

• Unit System: Metric. Length: Millimeters. Unit Scale: 0.001, so one Blender unit equals one millimeter.
• Collection named CAPSTONE. Objects named with a CAP_ prefix, for example CAP_Band, CAP_Stone.
• One object per mass. Do not join them yet.
• Mirror modifier on X for anything that must be symmetrical.
• No bevels, no Subdivision Surface, no shaders on the blockout.

Milestones: Suggested Order of Work

flowchart TD
    Brief["📝<br/>Write the brief"] --> Dims["📏<br/>List every dimension"]
    Dims --> Scene["🎯<br/>Set units and reference"]
    Scene --> Block["🧱<br/>Blockout masses"]
    Block --> Check["🔍<br/>Measure and compare"]
    Check --> Save["💾<br/>Save and screenshot"]

1. Write the brief (about 8 minutes). Fill every row of the table. If a number is missing, invent a sensible one now. You can change it later, but it must be written down.
2. Set the scene (about 4 minutes). New file, set millimeters, create the CAPSTONE collection, add the Mirror modifier to a placeholder empty if you are not sure yet which half you will model.
3. Block the masses (about 10 minutes). Add a cylinder for the band, a cylinder or sphere for the stone, and a cube or extruded shape for the shoulders. Set dimensions in the N-panel sidebar, not by dragging with the mouse.
4. Measure and compare (about 5 minutes). Switch to front orthographic view with Numpad 1, enable the ruler or use the sidebar dimensions, and compare each number to the brief.
5. Save and capture (about 3 minutes). Save as capstone_blockout.blend and capture a front and a perspective screenshot into a references folder.

Acceptance Criteria

You are done with this lesson when every line below is true. Check them honestly, one at a time.

• The brief is written and every row of the table is filled with a number or a name.
• Scene units read in millimeters and the sidebar shows values in mm.
• The object exists in a collection named CAPSTONE, with CAP_ prefixed names.
• Overall dimensions match the brief within ±0.5 mm.
• The blockout reads correctly in front orthographic view at the intended viewing angle.
• Symmetrical parts are identical on both sides (Mirror modifier present).
• No bevel, no Subdivision Surface, no material is applied.
• capstone_blockout.blend exists on disk, plus the two screenshots.

[!NOTE] The ±0.5 mm tolerance is for the blockout only. Precision modeling and stone seating come later, where the tolerances tighten.

Hints and Common Pitfalls

Modeling before measuring. If you open Blender first and type numbers second, you will usually redo the mass. Write the brief while Blender is closed.

Working in meters by accident. A fresh file is in meters by default, and a 17 mm ring becomes a speck. Set millimeters before adding the first primitive, not after.

Adding detail too early. Bevels and subdivision feel productive and they are traps here. Every bevel you add to a wrong proportion has to be added again after you fix it.

Object scale instead of dimensions. If you scale an object rather than typing its dimensions, the applied scale stays non-uniform and later modifiers behave strangely. Type values into the Transform panel and leave Scale at 1.0.

Skipping the orthographic check. Perspective view is forgiving and hides proportion errors. The front orthographic view is the one that tells the truth.

Losing track of masses. Five unnamed cubes become a puzzle. Name each one the moment you add it.

Check Yourself

Before touching a single vertex, a jewelry piece is defined by a dimensioned {{c1::design brief}}.
In Blender, set Unit System to Metric, Length to Millimeters and Unit Scale to {{c2::0.001}} so that one unit equals one millimeter.
The first pass of the capstone is built from simple {{c3::primitives}} such as cylinders, cubes and spheres.
A {{c4::Mirror}} modifier across the X axis keeps the left and right halves of a piece identical.
Overall width and height are checked in the {{c5::front orthographic}} view, reached with Numpad 1.
The blockout is accepted when every listed dimension is within {{c6::±0.5 mm}}.

[
  { "front": "What is a blockout?", "back": "A rough massing model built from simple primitives to check proportion, scale and silhouette before detail." },
  { "front": "Which Blender setting makes one Blender unit equal one millimeter?", "back": "Unit System Metric, Length Millimeters, Unit Scale 0.001." },
  { "front": "Why write a dimensioned brief before modeling?", "back": "It gives you written numbers to model and measure against, so proportion checks are objective instead of by eye." },
  { "front": "Which modifier makes the left and right halves of a jewelry piece identical?", "back": "The Mirror modifier, usually across the X axis." },
  { "front": "What dimension tolerance counts as on spec for this blockout?", "back": "Plus or minus 0.5 mm on the overall dimensions." },
  { "front": "What is the inner diameter of a US ring size 7?", "back": "About 17.3 mm." },
  { "front": "Which view is used to judge the silhouette of the blockout?", "back": "Front orthographic view, reached with Numpad 1." },
  { "front": "Name four fields a jewelry design brief should contain.", "back": "Piece type, metal, primary dimensions, and stone or center feature detail." },
  { "front": "Which detail must stay out of the blockout?", "back": "Bevels, Subdivision Surface, shaders, and prong or bezel detail." },
  { "front": "Why keep one separately named object per mass, such as CAP_Band?", "back": "Each mass stays easy to select, measure and replace without rebuilding the scene." },
  { "front": "What goes wrong if you bevel or subdivide during blockout?", "back": "You commit detail to proportions that will likely change, so the work is thrown away." },
  { "front": "Where do you set Unit System and Unit Scale?", "back": "In the Scene Properties tab, under the Units panel." },
  { "front": "Which file is the deliverable from this lesson?", "back": "capstone_blockout.blend, plus front and perspective screenshots in a references folder." }
]

Summary and Next Steps

You turned an idea into a written brief with real numbers, then proved those numbers in Blender with a blockout of a few millimeters-accurate primitives. That file is now your measuring stick: every later version of the capstone will be checked against it.

Next comes the Checkpoint lesson, where you will verify your workspace settings, your scene organization and your blockout against the acceptance criteria, and fix anything that drifted. Bring capstone_blockout.blend and your two screenshots. After that, Module 2 begins with ring bands, profiles and symmetry, where the band mass you just blocked out becomes a finished shank.