ONE RING...TO RULE THEM ALL...

Now, with future technology, we can create objects that are incredibly customized. Let's apply this to...jewelry! Hand candy! Finger blingers! Digit...smidgens...

OK, I'm out of metaphors.

Let's do this!

Step 1: Choose Material for Your Ring

You could go with wood ply, a common laserable material, but that would leave a dark brown edge as the main part of the ring that would be visible. Sanding that off would only reveal ply edging.

An alternative is to make the ring out of acrylic, which comes in a wide range of fun colors.

Another alternative is to make the ring out of solid wood & then sand off the burned edge. This would leave an awesome wood grain, if you choose the right wood.

I chose this route. I found a nice scrap of roasted wood...an interesting new process that turns wood brown throughout. Used to make less expensive woods turn a rich deep brown shade. Raaaaad.

Step 2: Choose the Width of Your Material

The thicker your material, the wider your ring. I chose a material that's thick enough to give a cool effect, but thin enough that I don’t feel like my finger is entombed in plastic sausage casing.

Step 3: Create a File & Laser Cut the Material

If you know the diameter of your finger, create a file & laser away! If you need help figuring out a ring size, check out my ring sizer tutorial:

Based on my ring sizer, I made my ring file with an interior diameter of 1.78cm, or 17.8mm. I then added 2mm on each side to make the outside circle, which ended up being 2.18cm, or 21.8mm. So, my ring ends up being 2mm thick.

Your settings for this will depend on the power of your laser, user discretion is advised, always ask a laser elder for help.

Here we have the Awesome laser of Breath-taking Beauty, at work. I lasered this baby at TechShop, land of the free, home of the brave.

Step 4: Sand the Edge...or Not....

So, I laser cut my new ring & tried to sand it...but...the wood ring totally shattered! Into pieces! If you still want to use wood to make a laser cut ring, perhaps you could experiment with: a) making a thicker ring, or b) using a harder wood. Then, it may not shatter like mine did...@___@ Live and learn! Yay for experiments!

Now, time to reassess my materials...

Step 5: Choose a New Material, If Necessary

Using the same file, I laser cut another ring, out of acrylic. This one is a smoky gray color, and happily, it doesn't need sanding, and it's strong enough to stand up to the rigors of Being A Ring.

Step 6: Admire Your Handiwork

Look at my ring! It’s like instant jewelry! My precious!

You could make, like, a bajillion of these in different colors, for different outfits, or stack 'em, or...or...whatever you can dream of. The world is your oyster.

Congratulations. You are now the proud owner of a custom, perfectly sized ring.