How to Make a Wood & Resin Cutting/Serving Board

For an event that was going to be held at a wine and cheese shop, I decided to make a wood and resin cutting/serving board or could also be called a charcuterie board. For this specific board I was feeling very inspired by the ocean and really wanted to capture that with the project. So, I capture that with both the shape of the board and the colors used for the resin.

Step 1: Cutting Wood to Shape

Okay, so when I think of the ocean, the first thing that comes to mind are surf boards. To get this vibe I cut some curves into the wood board with my jigsaw and planned to make an oblong curved mold to place it in. For the wood, I went with a piece of spalted hard maple that I had lying around the shop.

Step 2: Making the Mold

Since I was going for a shape similar to a surfboard, which would require curves, I could not go with the more standard melamine to make the mold. I used a corrugated plastic instead to make the mold so that I could bend it to a curve. The corrugated plastic is super easy to work with. I used hot glue to hold the curved sides in place. Then I seal the seam along the bottom inside of the mold with clear silicone. This ensured that no resin would be leaking out through the joint at the side to the bottom. Lastly, I covered the bottom and sides of the mold with furniture paste wax just to be extra sure that the resin would not adhere to the corrugated plastic.

Step 3: Mixing/Pouring the Resin

For this project I chose to use Ecopoxy Liquid Plastic 2:1 Ratio for the resin. This resin can be poured up to 3 inches thick without cracking and with very few bubbles. To get that ocean feel I used a blue tint for the majority of the resin. I set aside about 2 ounces of resin to mix in some mica powder. I mixed 1 oz of a green mica powder and 1 oz of a silver mica powder. After pouring in the blue tinted resin, I added both the green and silver mica powder resin in a few different spots. This resin takes about 36 hours to cure. After the first 18 hours, I mixed the resin up a bit where the mica powder had settled to put in some swirls that would stay in place without further settling. Then I left it alone to finish curing. After it cured, I removed it from the mold which was super easy. I just used a box cutter to cut along the hot glue line on the outside and it easily came apart and the board popped out.

Step 4: Carving Dip Dish!!

Since the board is meant to serve meats and cheeses, I wanted to add a bit of a built-in spot for placing softer cheeses or dipping type sauces and concoctions. I used my small grinder to carve out a circular dish shape on the top of the board. To create a nice little spot to hold the board or to hang it, I just used a spade bit to drill a 1.25-inch diameter hole through the resin.

Step 5: Finish

To finish the board, I sanded it up to 600 grit, starting at 40 grit to remove any uneven spots between the resin and the wood. After it was sanded to 600, I used my electric branding iron to place my logo on the bottom of the board and then I finished it with cutting board oil.

Step 6: Conclusion

This board makes an excellent serving board or charcuterie board for when you have guests over. It’s a rather easy project that any beginner woodworker can accomplish.