Wood Lasering (Pew Pew)

I spend way too much time on my computer.

To clarify, I'm not talking about binging on Netflix.

As a designer, when you like what you do, none of it feels like work and it's easy to follow inspiration late into the evening.

This year I decided I needed a creative outlet that didn't require electricity. I started with a simple resolution:

In 2015... I will whittle a spoon.

While that specific goal has yet to come to fruition, just speaking the intention into the air has brought some interesting woodworking opportunities my way. Through a series of fortunate connections, I gained access to a wood laser and have had the chance to bring several of my ideas to life.

The first piece I worked on was a customized cutting board for wine and cheese parties. Similar to the premise of the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, this cutting board was designed to pass among a group of friends to whomever was hosting the next party.

The work flow for this is pretty simple. The lasering program requires vector artwork, which can be designed in Adobe Illustrator and exported as an .EPS file. The speed and power of the laser can be adjusted to achieve the desired depth of the cut. Several test runs are necessary to determine the best configuration for the density of the wood being used as a base.

So while I am not spending any less time on the computer yet, I have married a new hobby with an old passion.