After the critiques, I’ve decided to modify my design slightly. Someone asked about the thickness of each layer, and I think it would be interesting to incorporate different material thicknesses. ( 1/4″ plywood and 1/8″ acrylic panels)
I designed four layers in Inkscape and wanted to see if I could make the top layer a cut instead of engraving. This way I could make two layers for the land part and three for the ocean. The top layer with the cutout roads would also be attached to the title and frame. I haven’t tried that on the laser cutter yet though, so I will update you if it works!
This weekend I was able to make a test cut on acrylic, just to try out the medium! It turned out really good and I’m excited to work more on this project!
I have an suggestion for the project. Maybe try adding landmarks to the map! Like in google maps. If a place in that map is important you can add a little landmark to the place!
Yes definitely! I think that could help the art pop more too if I add them to a separate layer maybe!
Another cool addition to this would be to add a layer of acrylic that acts as a “filter layer” where it has different stars or landmarks pointed out that you could add on top of the piece as an optional addition. but overall acrylic seems very cool medium and I enjoyed what you’ve created so far and look forward to trying it myself.
Thats a great idea!! Maybe I could add the title on the top layer with some other landmark details
Your project is very intricately detailed and that makes it look very interesting. What plans do you have for the color scheme?
Honestly, not sure yet! I’m hoping to incorporate wood and acrylic together, and maybe paint the bottom of the acrylic a little to add depth.
Opinion, I really like the concept, but it would be cool if the line thickness was reduced. Practically the only way to likely achieve this would be to scale up the entire piece.
I agree. I’m hoping the final piece will be a lot bigger so each line will stand out more
I think it looks really good so far! It might be helpful to do less power because, on the test cut on the acrylic, it looks like some of the lines almost blend together?
I like that idea I will definitely try that for my next cut!
I really appreciate how intricate the roads are as I am also doing a map for this project, which includes less intricate roads. How did you draw the roads in Inkscape? I tried tracing the bitmap of my roads but it didn’t have the effect I wanted, and I am wondering if you were able to successfully use that tool.