I've always enjoyed making custom posters, and when I came across the opportunity to take Dale Carnegie's "How To Win Friends and Influence People" and make it into an inspirational poster I of course obliged.

Full Discloser: I made it at Techshop and I highly recommend anyone near one to check them out.

Materials List:

Wood for a frame: roughly 1" x 1" and should be made of some kind of hardwood
Wood for the poster: I used a walnut plywood with 3/16" thickness
Wood glue
Routing bit that matches the thickness of your wood for the poster
Sandpaper

Techshop Classes Needed:

LAS101: Laser Cutting and Etching SBU
WOD101: Wood Shop SBU
WOD201: Jointer, Planer and Table Router SBU

Step 1: Design and Laser Etch Your Poster

Using the Epilog Laser cutter, laser etch your design. I've attached all the information you would need to exactly replicate this what I've created here including power and speed settings. I ended up making two passes, both of which took about 30 minutes. I didn't want to generate any smoke or burn marks in the wood, which I opted for the two passes.

htwfaip REV001.cdr
Download

Step 2: Make the Frame

Once you have your poster finished, it's time to make the frame.

1. Router out slots for the poster
Note: Run a test piece first to figure out how much material you can take away at a time. For me, these frame pieces took about 8 passes to do a 1/4 inch of depth.

2. Cut 45 degree angles using the chop saw
Note: Be sure to take into account the depth you routed out on the table router.

Step 3: Glue Everything Together

Using a light mallet or hammer, do a test fit any make sure everything fits together alright. Now is the time to sand and adjust to get those corners to mate up a flush as possible.

Once you're sure you've got good alignment, add some glue in the frame slots and carefully press everything into place. I had super tight fits to begin with, so once I had the frame where I wanted it, there was no need to clamp anything.

Step 4: Enjoy a Job Well Done!

Once the glue was dry, I decided this project was done. I had considered finishing it with Mineral Oil, but I had a test piece of the same walnut and just didn't like how it came out. It ended up ruining the contract with the laser etched sections, so I figured I'll keep the contract and stick with this simpler look.

Enjoy!