baggetta

Modern darts was invented by a carpenter from Lancashire named Brian Gamlin in 1896. However the history goes back much farther. Darts began as a military pastime originating in England during the medieval era in the first couple of decades of the fourteenth century. And it is still popular today, especially in bar rooms around the world. I thought it was kind of interesting that the person throwing the darts in a game is referred to as the ARCHER. So that is where the name came up for the sign. I cut my sign from maple and used the off cut for the base of the sign. I also tinkered with the idea of making a 3D dart using compound cutting. It took me a while, but I finally came up with a pattern I liked, so I decided to incorporate it into the sign. The dart was cut from part of a 2 x 4 cut to size. After cutting the dart I sanded it and drill a hole in the sign base, part way, at a slight angle and glued the dart there. The whole thing was given several coats of satin clear spray. In the pattern I give you the sign and the pattern for the dart, in case you want to play around with it. If you don't know how to compound cut or would like some tips, check out my video on YouTube on how to make miniature vases compound cutting. Pattern

Presidents Day is recognized as part of February and honors our two greatest Presidents: Lincoln who saved the nation in dire times and Washington who made Lincoln's work possible. This sign honors both and would make a good display piece. It is a bit tricky on the star/flag cutout at the base of each President. You could use a really small drill to punch out the simulated stars, instead of trying to cut them exactly. Free download on Free Pattern Page

Hmmm. But if you have a lot aren't you back where you started? LOL

Thanks for the comments. Looking forward to seeing some of your cuts. Al B.

In 1967 Aretha Franklin asked for R-E-S-P-E-C-T in her song and since then everybody is hoping the next generation would have a little bit of it that is recognizable. Well, now you can have RESPECT and put it right on your desk top for everyone to see. I cut mine from a piece of 1/2" birch ply and used the off cut for a base (with some modification, of course). I thought a backer might prove helpful, so I took a piece of MDF and shaped it, painted it a dark red and glued it to the back of the base. I think it makes the letters (which are cut with accent markings). along with the flaming torches, jump out at you. Free pattern is available on my Free Pattern Page: http://baggetta.com/pebooks/puzzle_patterns.htm

Thanks for the comments on my crazy idea.

This fella's got a good body but his head seems to be nothing to look at. Look at those eyes. Ok, so much for the nonsense. Here's a kind of goofy scissor holder you can use to keep track of those cutters you are always looking for. I use a cheap pair of scissors I picked up at the Dollar Store, but I'm sure you can make it fit just about any type. I've included I cut mine from 1/4" birch ply, since the scissors are rather thin. You might want to use 1/2" for the center if you are using bigger scissors. Tutorial and Pattern available on my Free Pattern Page.

Spring Flower Outline Sign Pattern "Spring Is In the Air"...Ok, not quite yet, but here's a rather springy sign you might like to cut for a table display. It's a fairly easy sign to cut, but the flowers might be a bit tricky, if you are new to scroll sawing. You have to be sure to leave enough wood where the lines intersect, otherwise the flowers become very breakable. I cut mine out of 1/2" birch plywood and made a custom improvised base out of pine for the base. The entire project was sprayed with a clear spray (2 coats) to make it nice and smooth. Before spraying, make sure you round over the edges by giving it a good sanding. Free pattern is available on my Free Pattern Page: http://baggetta.com/pebooks/puzzle_patterns.htm

First Communion Wall Plaque Here's a little project you can sink your blade into. There are four basic parts: the text, stars, cross, children. Signs like these are usually very popular among parents and grand parents. I cut this from 1/4" birch pine and made a backing board from MDF painted a nice spring green. In the pattern I only have the front cutout areas. The backing board was made by drawing an outline around the front after it is cut out. The two were late glued together and I used my disk sander to go all around the perimeter to bring the top to match the bottom. Hope you like working with it. You can check out some other communion and religious patterns on my Religion Page by clicking here: http://baggetta.com/pebooks/Religious/ReligiousPatternsPage.htm This free pattern can be downloaded from my Free Pattern Page: http://baggetta.com/pebooks/puzzle_patterns.htm

Ok, I often sit at my desk and need to type some notes into the text editor, or enter a list of figures, or compose a note from a rough draft. I can place the sheet next to the keyboard and lean over again and again collecting the information to type, but it would be much easier if the sheet would stand up by itself. No can do. So I built this little stand that fills the bill. You can even use it in the kitchen when reading recopies while you work, or as a quick music stand as you practice. The trick to make the paper stand up without folding over backward or forward is to have a little arc in the base. When have you seen a piece of paper rolled up fold over on its own? Well here's the solution, if you want to build one. It's really easy but I created a short print tutorial. I used the heart design as ornamentation (might make a nice Valentine gift), but I've included a few other ornaments you can use instead. Pattern and Tutorial on my Free Pattern Page.

Dragons Table Sign Pattern The name dragon is derived from the Latin word 'draconem' which means 'huge serpent', so it isn't so odd that this dragon has the body of a serpent. I was experimenting with this sign. Instead of using regular wood choices, I cut the sign from 1/2" MDF. Not the greatest stuff for working with signs. It made the top of the wings a bit flimsy. I then decided to paint it differently, so I used some silver speckled paint and didn't use a base, since it can stand up pretty good on the attached base. This would probably make a nice sign cut from a better wood product. You decide. Available on my Free Patterns Page

Glad you are enjoying these. I might point out that there are actually two pages of free patterns, in case you missed the link at the top of the page.

Well, here's a little project you might enjoy working on. I have a bunch of keys on my key ring, but mainly use only one or two on a regular basis. The main one is the key to my house, but it looks just like two or three others I have on the same ring. Well I decided to make a key identifier, in the shape of a dog paw for my house key. It is a little more work than my usual signs, so I put together a print tutorial, which you can download here along with the patterns I used. This works for my house key and should with most others, but you might have to play around with the pattern to get it to work with yours if you have an unusual make. Pattern and tutorial are available on my Free Pattern Page: http://baggetta.com/pebooks/puzzle_patterns.htm

Here's a pattern keeping with the season coming up. Download on my free page

Valentine's Day is coming up so here's another nice little sign you might want to make. Might make a nice gift for a car fanatic. I cut mine from 1/4" birch ply and used the off cut for a base, then painted the works with a red claret satin color. Free pattern on my Free Pattern Page: http://baggetta.com/pebooks/puzzle_patterns.htm

If you have ever been down to the sea and watch the seagulls gliding in the air, you must have wondered where have these magnificent birds been, what adventures they must have experienced. So here's a sign accenting this bird of the sea, the drifter. I cut mine from maple and placed it on the off cut for a base. Pattern is a free download on my Free Pattern Page: http://baggetta.com/pebooks/puzzle_patterns.htm

That works, too.

"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder," so they say. Well one of the most beautiful creatures of nature is often seen in the summer as they fly from flower to flower. I tried to capture this fleeting spirit in this sign. I cut the sign from 1/4" maple wood and cut the butterflies at an angle on the scroll saw so they would project off the word BEAUTY. I coated the butterflies with a dark stain before reinserting them back into their openings. I then cut a rather winding top layer for the base and mounted the whole shebang on top of a slab of teak to complete the project. Hope you like it. The free pattern is available for download on my Free Pattern Page:http://baggetta.com/pebooks/puzzle_patterns.htm

The HeartKnob Here's a little project for Valentine's Day. You might want to make some of these little HeartKnobs for your scroll sawing Heartthrobs. This is for people who might be finding it a little less easy to tighten that little black knob on their Excalibur, Pegas, or Dewalt (the list goes on). Just insert this over the black knob and snug up your blade before cutting. Some people might find this a bit "heart wrenching" but others might use it and take your concern for them "to heart." Your heart might "sink" when a blade breaks, but.... ENOUGH WITH THE HEART JOKES!. Ok. I hope you like this project. I cut mine from 3/4" cherry and rounded the edges on my router -- you might want to do this if you are going to give it as a gift, but it can be cut from just about any wood. Also might have to adjust the size of the insert hole, depending on how close you cut it. You can download the pattern from my Free Pattern Page: http://baggetta.com/pebooks/puzzle_patterns.htm

One of the most popular signs in my Etsy store has been the table top Area 51 Sign I designed several years ago. I thought I'd update the sign a bit with a variation on the theme and also use a raised inlay to make the sign a bit more interesting. I cut the sign from maple, but I stained the raised inlays with a chestnut stain to make them stand out. Also cut a bazaar jagged base to accent the piece -- even left the blade burn marks as an accent. I have the pattern here for you if you would like to try it, but I have to make two notes here. First on the pattern I had a problem with the number 5, since the head of the alien is out in the open. The five becomes rather weak. You might want to include a little band of wood where the five opens, when cutting. Also I used 3 degrees on the saw tilt, might want to use 5 degrees instead. Experiment. Pattern can be downloaded from my Free Pattern Page: http://baggetta.com/pebooks/puzzle_patterns.htm Video: Also did a video as I constructed this sign. If you'd like to view it it is available on my YouTube Channel.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xdAq26AGCLE

Nice job. I haven't been brave enough to try it on the bandsaw.

Thank you. Glad you are enjoying it.

I've been experimenting with doing compound cuts and designing my own figures. You are severely limited on the size of the objects you can produce, but it is fun to experiment. I saw a heart figure which morphs into two lovers kissing, on line, so I thought I'd try making one of those. I didn't have a pattern so I designed my own. It was easy to make the side view, but when I had to do the back/front view I had to experiment. Didn't come out too bad, but might try again with some tweaks. Tried making my dragon (used as part of the pen holder), and same problem occurred. Had to experiment with the back/front view. Well, anyway, I thought I'd pass my findings along. You might find it fun to cut these. If you are not sure how to do these cuts check out my video on cutting vases. I cut my figures from 2 x 4" material cut to 1 1/2" x 1 1/2" about 6" long. Can download patterns from my Free Page: http://baggetta.com/pebooks/puzzle_patterns.htm

Well Spring is near and it won't be long before every owner of a golf club set will be heading for the links. Here's a nice sign you might want to make for your golfer. It's a little bit different than what I've been cutting. I cut the word golf as a hollow set of letters including 3 classic silhouettes from the game inside the letters. I cut mine from 1/4" maple wood and mounted it on a maple custom cut base tacked onto a rectangular base of teak. The teak gives the sign some weight so it won't topple. Makes a nice display piece.You can get the free pattern on my Free Pattern Page and sign up for alerts when new patterns are available: http://baggetta.com/pebooks/puzzle_patterns.htm

"However Far A Stream Flows, It Never Forgets Its Origin." This ancient African proverb has a lot of depth to it, and has a hypnotic feeling that makes it an ideal wall sign. Could also be made into a desktop sign as well. I used a large size for this pattern so you will have to print it out on legal sized paper 8.5" x 11". Not difficult on most printers. It would really be dynamic if it was made larger. I cut mine from Baltic birch ply and painted it black. Needed something to give the sign some support so I added the little star fish at the weak points, and it seems to have worked out well. Also added the African Marula tree as a support on the right side of the quote. Pattern available on my Free Pattern Page: http://baggetta.com/pebooks/puzzle_patterns.htm