Introduction: Homemade Glasses With Laser Cutter
I had an extra pair of lenses from my the glasses store fixing my frames... so I made a pair of wooden glasses.
Supplies
Wood and lenses
Tools: Laser cutter, Dremel, Sandpaper, clear coat, sander,
Step 1: Create the CAD
First i had to make the file to laser cut
- I scanned my lenses on a flatbed scanner next to a ruler so i could scale them when I imported the image into SolidWorks.
- I traced the lens shape and then drew the profile I wanted for the glasses "free hand" in the CAD software.
- I then exported a cut pattern for my laser cutter.
Step 2: Laser Cut the Pieces
- I cut the pieces out of material that was about .5 inches thick with the laser. The pieces can then be sanded down for a round shape rather then cut them out of thin material and trying to bend them.
Step 3: Shape the Pieces
- Shape the glasses on a belt sander to give them a rounded shape so they fit around your head. This is a lot better then just flat panels.
- Use a Dremel to do some of the find sanding and shaping.
- For the groove to fit the lenses in, Use a cutter bit on the Dremel and cut a channel to would allow the lenses to pop in from the inside.
Step 4: Clear Coat and Assemble
- Since the wood was laser cut, it was leaving black marks on my nose and smelled like a camp fire. I used some clear coat to trap in the smell and seal them after wiping them down.
Step 5: Nose Guards and Assembly
- Pop in the lenses and secured with a couple drops of wood glue
- Added the glasses arms
- ... after all that... they weren't sitting perfectly on my nose so I cut a couple pieces of rubber with a razor knife for nose guards and super glued them to the frame.... now they are just right.

Participated in the
Woodworking Contest
4 Comments
2 years ago
These are great! Do you have the laser cut files you designed?
Reply 2 years ago
I do. I could share them if you want. They will be specific to my lens shape but I suppose people could alter them
Reply 2 years ago
Yeah, even if you have to altern them, it's nice to have a starting point :)
Reply 2 years ago
I uploaded a DXF and STL file under the make file step. Hopefully that inspires more making. Enjoy.