Laser engraving

What it is

Laser engraving uses a focused laser beam to mark or remove a thin layer of a material's surface, following your artwork. The result is permanent and does not wear off like a sticker or print can.

How an engraving looks depends a lot on the material. The same design can come out dark on one surface, light on another, or as a change in texture. If the look matters, tell us what you have in mind and we will tell you what to expect.

• Vector artwork (paths and shapes) gives the cleanest lines and text, and is needed for anything that should be traced as a line.
• Raster images (photos, pixel images) can be engraved too; the higher the resolution, the better the detail.

What to send us

1. Your artwork, ideally as a vector file with text converted to outlines. Tell us the file format.
2. What it goes on: the item or material, and a photo if you have one.
3. Engraving size and placement: how big, and where on the piece.
4. Quantity, and whether each piece is the same or personalized.
5. Deadline, and Austin-area meetup or shipping (US only).

Our file prep guide explains vector versus raster artwork and how to get text ready.

File formats we accept: SVG, DXF, AI, PDF and PNG. For photos and shaded artwork, send the highest resolution PNG you have.

Materials

We engrave with a Bambu Lab R1 (55 W CO2 laser) and an xTool F2 Ultra (fiber and diode lasers).

• Wood, acrylic, leather, fabric, paper, glass, ceramic and coated metal on the R1, with a working area of up to 600 x 300 mm (about 23.6 x 11.8 in).
• Bare metal (stainless steel, aluminum, brass, titanium, silver, gold) on the F2 Ultra, including color marking on stainless steel and titanium, with a working area of up to 220 x 220 mm (8.6 x 8.6 in).

These are the manufacturers' rated maximums. Tell us the material or item and we will confirm how it will look and what fits on your quote. Full specs are on machines and materials.

How quoting works

Every job is quoted individually. The price depends on your artwork, the material, the engraving size and the quantity. We review what you send, ask about anything unclear and reply with a quote. Nothing is engraved until you approve it.