Champaign-Urbana Community Fab Lab

Beginner Projects:

Intro to Inkscape: An introduction to using Inkscape to create pdfs that the Epilog Laser will be happy to etch & cut. Tutorial by Jeff Ginger.

Make Your Own Ruler: This is a good first project once you've got some understanding of Inkscape's tools. You can find a piece of scrap wood or acrylic to practice with - there are buckets of scrap located under the tables near the Epilog Laser. Thanks to Chris Nixon for this tutorial.

Making a Pressfit Box: Learn how you can make handsome wooden boxes of any dimension (well, up to the limits of the Epilog, that is) in this tutorial by Robert McGrath.

Create a Keychain: A helpful guide with an attached example file so you can make a keychain right away, see how it works, and then make one of your own design!

Butterfly Pin: Make a pin with an inset to give it more than one color.

Etch Designs onto Glass: A Flickr gallery showing one way to make designs on any kind of glass using glass paint.

Advanced Projects:

Create a "3D" edge with a "2D" laser cutter: A brief overview using gradients to achieve 3D effects. Link goes to FabLab Amsterdam's site.

Engrave a Water Bottle: Use the laser engraver to etch an image into a painted metal water bottle.