Decorative Board

I created a decorative board with moon phases and the hands from the art piece Creation of Adam by Michelangelo in the Sistine Chapel.

Supplies:

• Wood (any type, I used cherry)
• Wood glue
• Gem tack
• Plywood
• Polyurethane
• Epoxy
• Denatured alcohol
• Mica powder
• Acrylic paint
• Clamps

Machines:

• Epilog laser
• CNC router
• Miter saw
• Heat gun
• Surfacer

To start this project I was required to learn to use machinery in a wood shop so I would be able to create my project. I began this process by learning how to use a miter saw. Once I completely understood how to use the miter saw I learned how to use the CNC router. After the router I learned how to use the Epilog Laser. In order to begin physically making my board I picked out a type of wood I liked best, cherry. I then cut it to the size of my project in Illustrator using the miter saw. After cutting the pieces I glued them together using wood glue. To keep the board from moving around while trying to glue it I used four clamps, three holding it so the wood couldn't shift vertically and one so it couldn't shift horizontally. After my glue was dried I used the Surfacer machine to make my board the same thickness.

To start out this project I learned how to use Adobe Illustrator to design my board. To learn how to use illustrator I competed practice assignments on basic illustrator tools. After I was proficient in utilizing illustrator and all of its tools, I began to think about what I wanted my project to look like. For this assignment we were instructed to use three ways of designing the board; inlay, overlay and raster imaging. I used the pen tool within illustrator to trace the hands. Once the hands were connected, I outlined the tool path so I could change the color of the lines so they would cut right when I used the laser later in the process. After the hands were finished, I decided to add the circles which will later be moon phases created utilizing epoxy.

Once my board was fully designed, I imported it into Fusion 360 where I added in the measurements of the board I glued up so I could see exactly how my designs would be placed. After I had a board in fusion the same size as my actual board I created tool paths so I could export it to the router to cut out the circles and profile of my board.

Once my project was finished in Fusion I exported it onto the router. I used a 1/8 size bit to create the profile and moon phase circles.

To use the laser I changed the colors of my lines so it would cut the outside outline the inside and burn the space in between. Red lines cut the outside, blue create outlines and black does the burning. After the hands were finished I sanded them to remove any burn marks the laser made on the wood.

Before epoxying I needed to ensure that the epoxy wouldn't leak into the wood, so I used polyurethane to seal the wood. I did multiple coats on both my board and the hands. I focused especially on the circles on the board because that's where the epoxy will be poured.

To create the moon phases within the circles I used transfer paper to create forms so I could pour the epoxy and have it in the different moon phase shapes. In order to dye the epoxy white I used mica powder and acrylic paint to give it a moon like effect. Once the white was dried I painted the empty spaces black then poured the black epoxy. After pouring the epoxy I used a heat gun to smooth out the surface and remove any bubbles that were created as I was pouring it. I then used denatured alcohol to remove any epoxy on the surrounding wood.

To attach the hands to the board I used gem tack as glue. I put small little dots around the perimeter of the hands then placed them onto the board. After placing them onto the board I added a heavy object on top so they would adhere to the board.