Homemade Wood Inlays

Simple Designs

• Start with a simple design such as a chessboard. Use woods of contrasting colors. The chessboard can be done either as marquetry or inlay. Although marquetry is often referred to as inlay, according to the University of Illinois library, the two are not the same. Marquetry is the process of fitting pieces of veneer together onto a flat surface to form a pattern or design in a manner similar to working a jigsaw puzzle. Inlay is the process of fitting one material into a recess in another to form a design. The inlay material can be wood (veneer of a contrasting color) or some other material such as mother of pearl, tortoise shell or gold. Inlay can be an intricate work of art, but much satisfaction can be gained with simple tools and design.

Simple Tools for Inlays

• Many power tools are available to woodworkers, but long-ago craftsmen, with only simple tools at their disposal, created beautiful inlays. Even now hand tools are sometimes preferred. For example, when routing out a cavity where inlay will be placed, a hand router is often employed because of the ease of control in tight places. A rat-tail file gets into tight corners to smooth the wood. Use a fret saw when cutting a curve in a piece of veneer, or make use of the very sharp blade of a utility knife to cut through thin veneer to make a cut-out of the design. There are many beautiful woods available from woodcraft suppliers. Choose woods of distinct contrasting colors.

Inlay and the Beginner

• Inlay can be as simple as the dots on the fretboard of a guitar, inlaid there to identify the maker, or they can be as complex as the elaborate designs made of mother of pearl by prominent inlay artist Larry Robinson. Robinson is self-taught, an inspiration to anyone just starting to do inlay work. He suggests equipping yourself with a respirator mask before attempting to inlay wood with shell or mother of pearl from abalone. Shell dust can be harmful to the lungs. You can cut your own abalone blanks or obtain blanks from a dealer -- a wiser choice for a beginner, but abalone is brittle and hard to work with. Stick to wood for your first attempts at inlay artistry.

Selecting Tools and Wood

• Add a chisel, a gouge and sandpaper to your list of tools, as well as some wood clamps to hold the wood in place as some of the cuts are made. A vise isn't always necessary but is a handy tool to have, especially when cutting curves with a fretsaw. After a cavity has been created in the wood to be inlaid, cut the design from the contrasting veneer. Coat the cavity with carpenters glue and set the cut-out into it. Patterns can be purchased for creating designs for inlay. Some beautiful woods include black ebony, reddish mahogany and the warm rose-tinted cherry. Teak is a tawny, golden color. Amaranth wood is purple. Look for attractive wood grains, too; laurel has a wavy grain. Zebra wood's grain is tight stripes of brown on yellow. Inlay is worth time spent.