Ampersand: Self Promo Cover

I started production of the self-promotional project with a visit to Bring Recycling in Springfield. I knew that I wanted a large, thin board to use as a cover for the portfolio. After digging through rows of doors, shelves and furniture, I came across a shelf filled with random, discarded dresser drawers. I was looking for a big drawer with a nice, well-worn interior. I found an extra-ugly drawer for $3 that had a big, beautiful, dusty, crusty bottom piece.

I took the drawer home and extracted the nails and brads that held the bottom in place. I then looked around my garage and realized I didn't have any tools for cutting the board without it looking like a kindergartener chopped up some oak tag with safety scissors. I called my buddy Ames and traded a case of Sessions for the use of his table saw. We made the cuts, sanded the wood, then drank the beer and admired our craftsmanship.

I wanted it to look like my signature had been seared into the front cover with a cattle brand. It wasn't going to be practical for me to forge a metal brand, so I considered my alternatives. I visited Jeff Franklin at Refocus Engraving in Junction City to explore my options. I worked closely with Jeff on a piece of scrap wood from the drawer bottom to get the marks just right. He had to defocus the beam to make the lines look less exacting (and to char only the surface of the wood). The results exceeded my expectations.