Hey everybody, I hope the weekend is treating you well and that you’ve had time to be creative and do something fun!

We’ve had this map done for some time but I haven’t wanted to spoil the surprise so I’m just posting it now.

We used 1/8” maple plywood for the water and side street layers, 1/8” walnut for the major road layer, and solid walnut stained ebony for the frame.

And we did some experimenting with intricate paper cutting too; I might put a few cards up for sale this year if I make too many; we’ll see. It has taken some time to find the right paper for this kind of card making but I finally found the weight and quality I’m looking for that will service both quilted as well as laser cut cards. I’m sorry to report that the card making blanks I’ve found at Michael’s have taken quite a dip in quality relative to weight and texture. That’s why I’m cutting my own blanks here, but hey, why be plain about your blanks if you don’t have to be!

What you’ll see here isn’t end product/final form; I’m still mulling. The major thrust here was to determine settings for this paper weight, achieve minimal charring, and assess how well Diablo would render this level of intricacy.

You can see some of our oaktag test cuts scattered about. If you don’t get char on the light colors you’re golden for darker colors. I think I’d do some of these in blue tones as well.

I’m also working on some sewing projects that really aren’t fare for this blog and we have some other projects in the pipe so, stay tuned for more.

Go make something that makes you or someone you love happy!

Dana