Design something cool and then get crafty with the materials! Once you’ve drawn up your vector file for laser cutting or laser engraving we have so many options when it comes to what materials you can use. You can engrave on surfaces that are hard, soft, and even foods like ham! Keep reading to learn about the rich palette of materials available at Hot Pop. 

Plywood

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Our most popular material and one of the most affordable and versatile. Plywood cuts quickly with an attractive finish. The edge takes on a golden-brown look, engraving and scoring operations have a similar effect on the surface of the material. We stock Baltic Birch plywood in 1/8″ and 1/4″ thicknesses. We strongly recommend this species as other plywood types contain adhesives which don’t cut as well in terms of speed and cut quality.

Laser engraved wood gives a natural but finished look to anything you are designing. Recently we’ve worked on beautifully engraved illustrations and handwriting, as well as engraved gifts and signage, but the possibilities are endless! 

Here’s a video of engraving in action on a piece of bamboo.

Hardwood

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If you’re looking for a more premium finish, or have a slab of wood you’d like to work with, consider hardwood for laser engraving. You can supply it in sheet for (less than 3/16″) for laser cutting and engraving, or you can supply it as an existing product like a gift box, baseball bat or cutting board. To add a bit of local flavour to your project, Hot Pop has also teamed up with Leaf so designers can use urban wood from Toronto. Thousands of Toronto trees die of natural causes each year, and the city saves this material so designers and artists can reuse it in new ways.

Acrylic

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Also known by the tradename Plexiglass, acrylic is another very popular material for laser cutting. This is a rigid plastic material with a premium looking high gloss finish. Acrylic is available in many different colours and finishes, which makes it great for applications like custom Acrylic signage and displays. Laser cutting is the best way to cut this material as you end up with an extremely high quality ‘flame-polished’ edge inherent to the laser cutting process.

We’ve see it used to make really professional packaging, signage, point of sale displays, jewelry and even ornaments. Engraving on acrylic is a great way to introduce a polished and colourful retail look to your projects.

For a handy reference of our selection of our stock material finish and colour options, you can order a sample ring below! 25 colours for $25. Shipping or pick up at the studio available.

Leather 

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Great for use in luxury tags and accessories such as bags, wallets, scarves, etc. Laser cutting is a fantastic way to cut intricate designs in leather products, as well as logos and other branding for labels and tags. Leather is such an interesting material to work with because it’s both soft and durable. Because of the material’s softness, laser engraving is the best way to making precise markings without causing damage. 

Thick Card

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Though most papers can only be laser cut, really thick card can also be engraved. Laser engraving can be a cheaper alternative to embossing for stationary or tags, and is also an excellent way to add finer details or textures to designs such as architectural models, premium wedding invitations, and paper based art work. 

 

Metal

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Although we do not offer metal cutting, we can engrave onto most types of metal. Stainless steel and aluminium work especially well. We can also mark on coatings such anodized finishes for a fantastic two-toned look on your product. Laser engraved metal gives a sharp look to professional and corporate gifts. We’ve recently seen it used for bottle-opening business cards. 

Glass

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Designers don’t often realize that glass can be engraved, even if there’s a slight curve to the surface. Engraving glass is an easy way to make elegant signage or to brand and label containers for packaging.

Laserable Rubber

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One of the best kept laser engraving secrets is rubber! Laser engraved rubber is most commonly used to design stamps for branding and crafts. We’ve seen these stamps used to create business cards, put patterns on fabric, and to design wrapping paper. Because rubber is flexible it’s also a great way to test prototypes, and we’ve even seen it used for jewelry prototyping. Rubber can be laser engraved to create custom gaskets and other protective parts.

Natural Stone and Concrete

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We offer laser engraving services for stone which renders beautifully, especially if your stone product has a smooth or polished surface. The laser engraving leaves a rougher textured finish which contrasts beautifully with the surface of most stone products. We’ve seen engraving used to brand construction companies, but also in personal projects such as custom chess boards.

Wild & Wonderful

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We’re constantly adding more things to the list of what can be laser engraved. The only way to find out what works is to give it a try. We’ve laser engraved lots of unexpected things like bread for branded hors d’oeuvres and coconuts for customized drinks! If you have a new material in mind that you’d like to experiment with get in touch.

Want to see all of our materials in person, drop by our Toronto studio or contact us for a free quote today!

Designer Projects: The Juicepunk, Swaine Street and Daneson