Mesh: Plastic bottle curved indent, boolean or displacement map? Or maybe something else?

Question

I'm new to blender and I'm trying to make a 3d model of a complex-ish water bottle. Now I'm stuck at a part where there's an array of wavy lines that need to be indented at the top. I've tried a few things, some didn't work and other's didn't really look right. ...and now I'm left with the question, if what I'm trying to do is even possible. :)

First I tried using an array of curves and applying a boolean modifier to cut the waves into the bottle. But it instead ended up destroying the mesh. (Maybe by increasing the size of the bottle, cutting it and scaling it down?)

I also tried using a displacement map which actually works, but at rendering I run out of memory. Only when I turn off experimental mode can it render it and it doesn't look smooth enough either way:

My question, if it's possible and what's the best way of doing it is? I look forward to your replies, thank you.

Kind Regards, Peter

Answer 1

What you could do is:

• Create your pattern, make it repeatable, dig and bevel.

• Repeat with an Array modifier

• Bend it with the Simple Deform modifier (Bend mode)

• Give it a Subdivision Surface modifier, apply the Array and Simple Deform modifiers, remove the doubles.

• Not too much pinching with this topology.

• A bit less pinching with this solution.

• No pinching at all with this very heterodox topology.