Personalized utility knives using a laser

Have a problem with people stealing your utility knives?  Why not personalize them!  This may not stop someone from stealing them, but at least they might feel guilty about it later.

I made these personalized utility knives at the TechShop in Menlo Park, CA!  www.techshop.com

If you are working at TechShop, it is very important to ask a Dream Consultant if your material will be safe to cut/etch on a laser.  The TechShop laser cutters cannot cut/etch metal, but they can etch anodized aluminum or coated metals.  If you want to etch a coated metal, you should still ask a DC if the coating is OK to etch.

Step 1: Wrap the knife in painter's tape

The first step is to make sure the knife is clean; it's really best to have a brand new knife.  I wrapped the knives completely in painter's tape, making sure there were not parts showing.  I used extra tape to make a tab at the top, this made it easier to hang them up to paint later.