Textures

A texture is flat; a ring is not. Texture mapping decides how the flat image wraps the geometry — and when a wood grain stretches or a pattern smears around a curve, the mapping is what needs fixing, not the texture. These commands control it directly from the ribbon.

See what you have

• Show MappingDisplay the mapping widget on the selected objects, so you can see and edit the projection.
• Hide MappingHide the mapping widget again once the projection is set.

Projections

How the image is projected onto the object — pick the one shaped like your geometry:

• Planar MappingProjected flat from one direction — for flat faces, signet tops, coins.
• Box MappingProjected from six sides — the safe default for chunky, angular forms.
• UV MappingThe texture follows the surface's own UV coordinates — it flows with the geometry.
• Spherical MappingWrapped around a sphere — beads, cabochons, pearls.
• Cylindrical MappingWrapped around a cylinder — bands, shanks, anything that goes around a finger.

Custom and precise

• Unwrap TextureFlatten the object's surface into UV space along seams you choose — full control for complex pieces.
• Edit Mapping CoordinatesEdit the mapping's control points directly on the object.
• Apply Custom MappingUse another object as the mapping shape — the texture wraps as if it were that object.
• Extract Custom MappingPull the mapping object back out of an object to edit or reuse it.
• Match Texture MappingCopy one object's mapping onto others — a matched pair maps identically.
• Remove Mapping ChannelDelete a mapping channel and fall back to the default.

Files and refresh

• Pack TexturesEmbed the texture image files inside the .3dm, so the file travels complete.
• Unpack TexturesExtract embedded textures back out to a folder on disk.
• Refresh All TexturesReload every texture from disk — after editing an image outside Rhino.