Every since I heard about laser cutters I knew I wanted one. I've done a lot of wood working with traditional tools (table saw, band saw, jig saw, etc.) but the level of detail and precision that can be had using a laser is unsurpassed. The first project I ever did was the NeoPixel Christmas tree shown in the images below. For that I had to go to the public library to use their laser cutter because the cost of these machines at that time was out of my reach. Things, thankfully, have changed and I now own a Creality Falcon 2 with a 40 watt diode laser. With this new machine I can do amazing things in my own garage.
You know you are living in the 21st century when you have a machine in your garage that can cut materials with light. Technology is amazing.
The images below show some of the projects I have done. For Christmas 2023, I made a lot of gifts that people really seemed to appreciate.
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This is a circular tea light. It is made of
inexpensive 5mm Indonesian plywood (called underlayment)
I purchased at Home Depot, $21 for a 4' x 8' sheet.
After laser cutting and sanding, I sprayed it with a few
coats of gloss lacquer. I think it has a very graceful shape which flows as you turn the piece around. |
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My first attempt at a multi layer mountain scene. It
is made up of 7 layers of Baltic Birch with each layer
dyed to a specific color. This image doesn't do it
justice as the colors and the 3D effect are much more
pronounced in person. I think it turned out well despite all of the problems I had making it. |
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A beautiful creation by Hora de Tallar which I found
on Etsy and made on my Creality Falcon 2 40 watt
laser cutter. This is a unique design made from 4
layers of thin plywood and incorporating 21 NeoPixels. I modified her design to make it motion sensitive by adding a PIR motion sensor and an ESP32 micro controller. This piece has 30 some lighting patterns which are selected randomly when motion is detected. This turned out great (if you don't look to closely) At night the tree in this piece really seems to jump out of it surroundings. |
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This is a jewelry or knickknack tree I made for
Heather. She liked it so well she made me make quite a
few more to give away as presents . I have given many of
these away to our close friends. This is made from 3mm Baltic Birch. |
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I made this tissue box holder for our friend
Barbara. She asked me to make it for a Christmas present
in September so her present came a little early. Hope
she likes it. This is made out of 3 mm Baltic Birch. |
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5 layer moon created from cheap underlayment plywood
from Home Depot. Soon this will be paired with a
multi-layer Sun. |
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And here is the mating Sun. It is made up of 3
layers of the same wood used above. This piece was a real challenge to make. It was meant to be as large as the Moon above but somehow got reduced in size making the fine details really small and delicate. As a result I had to throw away one of the layers because it broke apart in my hands. I still think it turned out OK but I would never make another at this scale. |
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I made a rocket because I could. Reminds me of the
stylized rockets of the 1950's. |
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A beautiful Mandala made from six layers of 2mm
Indonesian plywood from Home Depot. I didn't design this piece, I
bought the design on Etsy where there are 100's of laser
cutter files available for next to nothing. I fabricated this art piece on my Creality Falcon 2 40 watt laser cutter. It turned out great though it was a lot of work to build, glue up and frame. This is now hanging on the wall in my dining room for all to see and you really have to see this up close to appreciate the detail. |
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This is a triptich with each of the three panels
made from six layers of 2 mm Indonesian plywood. This piece is also now hanging on the wall in my dining room. |
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Another piece of abstract wall art |
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A 8 layer Mandala from two types of wood. |
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Detail of the Mandala above |
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Another 6 layer wooden art piece. If you block out
the bottom of this piece it reminds me of an owl. Does
it to you? |
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This piece I call Sun Waves |
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Sun Waves detail |
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Ringed Tea Light Made from Baltic birch and scrap Masonite. |
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Ringed Tea Light Bottom View |
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I made this pseudo Antique Radio music player which
provides music on my desk while I am working. This
project is documented here. I laser
cut the complete cabinet and then painted it with amber
shellac to give it an antique look. This thing is the
size of a large coffee cup. |
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I built this speaker box to go along with the
antique radio so I didn't always have to use head phones
to listen to music. All cutting and engraving was done
on my Ortur Laser Master 2 machine. |
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I engraved this piece for my friends Bob and Nikki
for their house concert company they run. I took the
image from their web site, processed it and then
engraved it onto 1/8" baltic birch. |
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This is a night light lamp I designed and built. It
is hung over a hallway in our house and lights up
whenever it senses motion beneath it. It first lights up full white to allow safe passage in the dark and then fades to a new color then eventually fades to black. Very useful. It's shape reminds me of a hot air balloon. |
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This is a icosahedron made up of 19 individual laser
cut pieces. Even the connector pieces that hold this
thing together were laser cut. This is baltic birch as
well. This has no purpose other than it is amazing to look at. |
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A napkin holder laser cut from oiled 2mm Indonesian
plywood. We use one of these to hold napkins on our
dinner table and I use another one on my desk to hold
various pads of papers. |
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This was the first project I ever attempted with a
laser cutter. I found the model for the tree and cut it
at my local library. I added the NeoPixel rings and the
microcontroller used to control them. The tree is motion
sensitive and will display a unique pattern of flashing
lights anytime it is triggered. It is very beautiful in
operation. This project is described here. I made the first of these for myself years ago but for Christmas 2023 I made others for my two sisters. |
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I thought this a nice saying so I designed a large
guitar pick like shape and engraved the saying onto it. |
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I made multiple sets of these coasters for our
friends for Christmas. They are made from 2mm Indonesian
plywood which stains nicely. |
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This is what I call a treasure box and they turned
out beautifully when cut from baltic birch. They
have what is called live hinges which allows the
wood to be bent around the corners of the box. These
boxes hold together on their own without any kind of
glue and can be taken apart and flattened if necessary.
Another Etsy find. |