10/17 Christina's Crushed Stone Tutorial

[Christina]

Crushed Stone Inlay

by:

Christina Ellenburg 2007

 

***NOTE: These projects could also be made from Silver, Nickle, Brass, Copper...and even plexiglass.

 

Supplies:

 

Small rock rough….such as used for rock tumblers…soft stones such as turquoise crush better.

 

Hammer

 

Anvil….or another hard surface (I use the bottom of an old cast iron skillet)

 

5 Minute Epoxy Glue…the kind that you mix together two parts (glue and hardener)

 

Tooth picks

 

Colorant such as acrylic paint or powder made from finely grating pastels

 

Dremel tool with various bits

 

Sandpaper…various grits

 

Finish….such as water-based polyurethane

 

Various paint brushes

 

Small paper cups

 

Instructions:

 

1. Decide what shape and size you are going to cut your inlay holes and transfer, or mark it on your piece.

2. Choose your rock and place it on your anvil. Using your hammer, carefully crush your rock into tiny pieces….don’t worry about what turns to dust add it to your rock in a small paper cup.

3. Using your Dremel tool and the cutting bit of your choice, cut shallow holes in the desired shape…following your markings.

4. Sand your wood well.

5. In a small paper cup, mix small amounts of epoxy glue together following manufacturers instructions.

6. Stir in tiny amounts of acrylic paint using a toothpick…..or a very small amount of finely grated pastel chalk and mix well into your epoxy.

7. Add your crushed rock a little at a time until your epoxy is full but not so full that all the glue seems gone.

8. Using a toothpick, carefully add your crushed rock epoxy mix into the shallow holes you have created in your wood….making sure to fill it all the way(if you use it to fill holes, put a piece of tape on the back of your work to keep the stone glue in place.). You will have it over flow onto your surrounding wood a little….that’s okay. Just make sure the hole is filled completely. Set aside to dry completely.

9. When your piece has thoroughly dried….use your Dremel tool again and start cutting away the epoxy mix…..making it flush with the surface of your wood.

10. When your inlay is flush with your wood, sand very smooth using your sandpaper.

11. After you have finished sanding your inlay and everything is just how you wanted it……coat with several light coats of clear finish….sanding in between coats if desired. You have now created an inlayed piece of wood.

 

VARIATIONS:

 

I have also used this method but substituted tiny pieces of shell or coral….pretty glass, even tiny little plastic beads.

 

You can use the epoxy, by itself, that you color also, to simulate coral or turquoise, etc….

 

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This is a clock I did using my inlay method. It is a woodburned End of Trail silhoette. I had to remove the clock works to be able to scan it....sorry, I don't have a camera...lol. The lightening is colored using colored pencils. The inlay is at 12, 6,3 and 9.

 

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Here's a project with a pattern for you to try. Just print the pattern to whatever size you desire and follow the instructions.

 

 

Wooden Letter Opener With Inlay Instructions

 

**Note: I use very thin, solid wood....probably 1/8" thick....too thick would take forever to shape your blade. I have used maples, cherry, walnut and oak in the past to make these.

 

1. Stack cut 3 of these.

2. Cut out the black design on two and reserve the third piece to be used in the center as a backer for the other two (sandwich).

3. Sand well…..you want a nice smooth surface on both sides.

4. Glue all three together creating a sandwich….design cut, plain, design cut. Allow to dry thoroughly.

5. Following the above tutorial and finish your inlay.

6. Bevel the blade portion thin on the edges and thicker and rounded in the center of the blade….like a knife…..both sides.

7. Stain as desired and add final finish.

 

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Decorative Hair Combs

 

 

INSTRUCTIONS:

 

***Use only 1/4" Solid wood....not plywood.

 

1. Print pattern to desired size.

2. Cut comb shape first.

3. Carefully cut teeth.

4. Sand very smooth....you especially want the teeth to be smooth and rounded well....so that they don't snag in hair.

5. Transfer design onto combs.

6. Cut designs out following instructions for letter opener above.

7. Follow instructions above for inlay and finishing.

[ugsduck]

Thanks very much Christina

 

I will be using this for inlaying designs into my next Gypsy Caravan - it will be ideal.

 

Thanks again

Keith

[Christina]

You're quite welcome Keith, glad you like it and can use it.

Christina

[paul44224]

Thank you so much, Christina! You always have some really neat, and creative ideas you share with everyone. I have a couple of craft shows coming up, but have this inlay on my to-do list!

 

Paul

[wood-n-things]

Very well written and it is appreciated. Thanks for taking the time to share.

[Christina]

Thanks Paul and Wood-n-things....always glad to help. I thought this would come in handy for a lot of things......but especially for those interested in making the inlaid rings.

Christina

[Dan]

Yes, indeed, a great idea! Do you know if the crushed rock inlays can be scrolled? You have given me some ideas...

[Christina]

No Dan, I have no idea. I would think it would be like cutting through a stone, or glass..........you would need a wet saw. The blade would heat up too much otherwise, I think. But there really is no need to cut it. It's meant to fill spaces............it's crushed stone mixed with epoxy. Then you grind it down smooth. Like in silver jewelry.

Christina

[Travis]

Wonderful tutorial. You've given me a few ideas as well! Thanks for sharing.

[Christina]

Thanks Travis, I'm glad you like it. I posted this on my site a couple years ago, but when I saw the inlaid wooden rings on some of the sites I posted links to here, I thought it would help out anyone who wanted to try it. It's really pretty easy to do depending on the hardness of the stones you're trying to crush.

Christina

[Vector01]

Hi Christina:

 

That's great! I have a question on the stone material. I found a site that sells pre-crushed material. I was thinking for the rings that using the powdered stone would work better for such a small area. I'm wondering if the powdered stone would look as nice?

 

Thanks!

[Christina]

I don't know Vector..........I think it would depend on if it was uniformly crushed and what the size is. You want a variation of sizes..........that's why I crush my own for each project. When you grind away the excess that sticks up it reveals different size stones in the epoxy background........that's what makes it look so awesome. And, of course, I like being in control of what goes into my project. I just buy stones for the rock tumbler.....or sometimes you can buy small rough............especially turquoise. Turquoise is my favorite to use......it's easily crushed and looks awesome in just about any project. Likewise coral is pretty cool and such pretty reds and pinks. Both have been used in crushed stone inlays for many many years in silver jewelry. I like to tint my epoxy black for both..........it really makes the colors pop! I've also used fire opal rough samples that I've ordered through magazine ads. You gotta kinda weed out the plain white matrix when you crush opal..........and be careful not to crush it completely, it's a rather soft stone. But it's so pretty.

 

If it's not super expensive or huge amounts of crushed material I'd say give it a try! You just never know. If you do, be sure to let us know how it worked for you.

Christina

[BuLLdoGG]

Very good i love the combs

[amazingkevin]

I've been wondering why the combs were displayed as they are not the kind of scroll work i thought would be displayed there .I'm learning. Now it all come together.I need to write down all these niffty ideas and use often to accentuate my work more .Briten it up. I did 50 #!moms and one of them had a hole right on top of the base ,right out in front.I was scrambleing to find a quick fix.An idea came to mind was to put a cats eye marble on top of the 5/16th's hole and glue it.When i showed my works for sale just before mom's day the lady at the laundry mat,owner decided that the one with the marble had her name all over it.that was the decideing factor for her out of 50 examples.My thought's were that nobody would want that one ,and thats the one that sold first.Your idea of the cut ,crushed stones might have been the wild card to sell the rest!Given so many choices i guess you look for the most unique one.Can't wait to try you scheme.Want ever floats the boat. I really love the site.So much to learn and learn from others mistakes too if need be.I looked at the ring site and was flabergasted at the prices of their exquizive rings .I know they did their homework to get them that way.i'd love to know the process of making one of them.Thanks for all the wonderfull info ,your good at it .