Home Get Inspired Pendants Letter C Pendant with Heart Cutout in Sterling Silver

A polished sterling silver pendant in the shape of a script letter C with a solid circle at its base containing a cutout heart, hanging from a silver wheat chain against a white marble background.

Letter C Pendant with Heart Cutout in Sterling Silver

Sterling silver

A client wanted a pendant built around his daughter's initial — a cursive C with a circle and heart worked into the design. He approved the first render without changes, calling the proportions perfect, and later said the piece "grows on you" for its simplicity and quality. He came back about a month later to order it again as a single repeat piece and mentioned plans for additional ring and pendant designs tied to a personal project launching later that year.

'I love it! You got the proportions perfect on the first try!' — on seeing the first render

'Looks great! Thanks' — on delivery

Start your project

Daily wear For himself For Our Family Children's names / initials

Quick specs

Design type

Pendants

Primary Metal

Sterling silver

Primary Stone

No stone

Accent Stones

None

Style

Abstract symbol Cut out Heart Letter initial Word text

Design Complexity

Moderate

Intent

For Our Family Children's names / initials

Intent: Certainty

High

Size

Pendant approximately 1 inch. Chain: sterling silver 2.25mm, 18 inch wheat chain.

How they made it distinctive

01
Cursive letter form chosen specifically to represent a personal initial rather than a plain block letter
02
Heart cutout nested inside a circle within the letter's curve, giving the design a layered focal point without added engraving
03
Kept to a compact one-inch scale to stay wearable and proportionate, with engraved text dropped once the size tradeoff was explained
04
Polished sterling silver finish throughout for a clean, consistent surface across the letter, circle, and cutout edges

How you'd make it yours

Pendant size: this piece is about one inch — a new commission could be sized larger to accommodate engraved text

Metal: this piece is sterling silver — the same cutout design works in gold-plated silver or solid gold

Chain: this piece uses a 2.25mm wheat chain — a new piece could use a wider or different chain style

Letter and motif: this piece uses a cursive C with a heart cutout — a new commission could use a different letter or cutout symbol

One of a kind: this exact pendant was designed for one client's daughter's initial and is not reproduced — a new commission is an original piece inspired by this one, not a copy

Design changes made

The client initially asked to add engraved text ("Cosmic Love," "Caring," "Sharing") around the heart, but this was dropped after learning the text would be illegible at this pendant's one-inch size without significantly enlarging the piece. The design otherwise matched the first approved render with no changes.

Who this is for

This piece is for someone who wants a personal, meaningful initial on a pendant without it looking like typical name jewelry. It's especially right if you want something that reads as a clean, modern design first and a personal reference second — simple enough for daily wear, but with a detail that means something only to you.

How it's made

The approved design was first produced as a 3D-printed wax model, which was attached to a wax tree and invested in plaster. The mold was fired in a kiln to burn out the wax, leaving a hollow cavity, and molten sterling silver was then cast into the mold under pressure. Once cooled, the raw pendant was broken out of the investment and prepared for finishing. The cast pendant was cleaned of casting texture, then polished to a uniform mirror finish across the letter, circle, and heart cutout edges. The heart and the circle's interior opening were cut through in production so the cutout reads cleanly with no rough or sharp edges. The bail was finished and stamped with a sterling silver hallmark before the finished pendant was strung on its wheat chain.

Key note

The pendant was deliberately kept to roughly an inch so the cursive letterform would stay crisp and legible — any added engraved text would have required significantly enlarging the piece to remain readable.

Pricing guidance

A sterling silver initial pendant of this size and moderate design complexity sits toward the lower end of custom pendant pricing. Most of the cost comes from the 3D modeling and hand-finishing needed to keep a cutout design like this clean and legible at a compact scale, plus the chain selected to complete the piece. Chain style and width are the biggest variable on top of the base pendant price.

Moves price up ↑

↑
Increasing the pendant size to accommodate additional engraved text
↑
Upgrading from sterling silver to gold-plated silver or solid gold
↑
Choosing a heavier or wider chain width
↑
Adding stone accents within the open cutout areas
↑
Requesting a two-sided design with engraving on the reverse

Moves price down ↓

↓
Reducing the pendant to a simpler single-letter design without the heart cutout
↓
Choosing a thinner, lighter-weight chain
↓
Omitting the chain and using an existing one
↓
Simplifying the cutout detail to a single opening rather than two nested shapes
↓
Selecting a shorter chain length

Questions people ask

Can you make a pendant with a letter and a heart cutout like this?

Yes, combining a cursive letter with a nested circle and heart cutout is a straightforward design for custom pendant work. The letter and circle are modeled together in 3D, and the heart is cut through as an open space rather than engraved on the surface. At around an inch in size, the proportions need to be carefully balanced so the cutout stays clean and doesn't weaken the metal around it. This kind of layered cutout design works well in sterling silver or gold.

Why couldn't engraved text fit on a pendant this size?

Engraved text requires a minimum amount of surface area to stay legible once cast and polished, and a one-inch pendant simply doesn't have enough room for multiple words without making the letters too small to read. The alternative is to increase the overall pendant size, which changes the proportions and cost. Many clients choose to keep the pendant compact and skip the engraving rather than scale up the piece. This is a common tradeoff in small personalized jewelry.

Is sterling silver a good choice for a pendant like this?

Sterling silver is a durable, widely used metal for pendants and holds a polished finish well over time with normal care. It can tarnish slightly with air exposure, which is resolved with periodic polishing, but it does not flake or wear away the way plated metals can. For a cutout design like this one, sterling silver is strong enough to support the open heart and circle details without the metal becoming too thin or fragile. It's a solid choice for a piece meant to be worn daily.

What does a custom initial pendant like this typically cost?

A sterling silver pendant with this level of cutout detail and a chain included falls toward the lower end of the custom pendant price range. The bulk of the cost is in the design and finishing work required to keep a compact cutout piece looking clean, rather than in the raw material itself. Chain choice adds an additional cost on top of the base pendant price. Reordering an already-designed piece is typically less expensive than the first commission since the 3D model already exists.

How long does it take to make a pendant like this?

From deposit to shipping, a piece like this typically takes about four to six weeks. The first one to two weeks cover the 3D design and render approval stage, where the client reviews and signs off on the design before any metal is cast. Production, including wax printing, casting, and finishing, generally takes another few weeks after approval. A repeat order of an existing design can sometimes move faster since the modeling work is already complete.

Can I reorder the same pendant design again later?

Yes, once a pendant design has been modeled and approved, it can be produced again as a repeat order, typically at a lower cost than the original commission since the design work doesn't need to be redone. Each piece is still cast and finished individually to order. This is a common request from clients who want to give the same design as a gift to someone else or replace a piece. Turnaround for a repeat piece is generally a few weeks.

Can this design be made into a ring or earrings too?

A cutout letter-and-heart motif like this can be adapted into other jewelry types such as a ring or earrings, though the design needs to be reworked for each format since proportions and structural requirements differ significantly between a pendant, a ring band, and an earring. A pendant hangs freely and can support more open cutout space, while a ring needs enough structural metal to hold its shape under daily wear. Each new format is treated as its own design project.