ok. So after struggling on exactly which project to share with the community, and for this contest, I decided to show the project that brought me the most joy… the joy and excitement we only ever get to experience ONCE in our lifetime.
It was my very first project.
(These were the actual pictures of the moment I made my 1st laser cut)
There are a lot of them on the web. Just Google it. When I’ve done Gallifreyan projects I tend to pick whichever one comes up first in the Google results 
it does qualify, it is the GIFT of good meaure
I’m really loving seeing all of these amazing projects, some I have seen before and still blown away just as much the second time, and some I’m seeing for the first time. They’re all such a joy!
This was a 50th birthday gift for my cousin in the UK who has a home in the Canary Islands, she really loved it.
I ‘mass liked’ everyones posts earlier, but I must step aside to say this is excellent! What a great idea…and a perfect name for it.
Wow, what a wonderful idea!
@Xabbess, thanks for the vote of confidence, I must confess I enjoy most 
proyects I make, but this particular one brought me great memories as my childhood friend and I stayed in touch through the decades and despite life taking us all over the map.
As for the term “Lifemap”, I came up this that all by myself, only to realize that the net uses that term for a whole bunch of other things.
Travelling from Mexico to Canada to his B-Day on Feb. 2020 was the last trip I made before the pandemic shut us all down.
I was only a small part of this gift but it was by far my favorite GF made gift.
The favorite gifts I’ve made are not complicated, challenging or difficult. They were the most meaningful!
My first favorite is: Bye Bye Chemo pins and unicorn earrings
In Feb 2020, my daughter finished > 27 months of chemo (for leukemia). After isolating for over 2 years to keep her safe, we had a “Bye Bye Chemo!” party. She was 4 at the time. (Little did we know that would be the only time we’ve seen most of our friends for the next 2 years lol) I had only had my Glowforge for a short time, but I made these pins.
Her party theme was rainbows and unicorns 
and I made her these unicorn earrings as well (which ironically I’ve just submitted to the catalog this past weekend).
i’ll post my other favorite separately.
I made this wall hanger for my mom for Christmas last year! Her mother had the most beautiful garden that attracted SO MANY hummingbirds. In her garden, her mother, my mom’s grandmother, had incredible blue hydrangeas. So I designed this wall hanging for my mom & dad’s upcoming new house, so they could have a little bit of familiarity in their new home. I had a lot of fun making it and am proud of how it turned out!
My second favorite are these memorial angels I made. (Again, not complicated or difficult, but for their MEANINGFULNESS.)
When my daughter was diagnosed with leukemia, she and I lived at the hospital for one month during her first phase of treatment. That first week, it was so hard. The social worker invited me to this parents’ group. It was the only time I went to that group, but I met two other moms there. They asked me to tell my story and I burst out in tears before they realized that we had been diagnosed just that week. They were both so amazing. They hugged me . They understood what I was going through in a way that most people could not.
Unfortunately, they both lost their precious little ones that had been there fighting. Out of the three of us there that day, I’m the only one who still has my fighter. I can’t put into words all of the emotions that brings up for me, but I am heartbroken for both of them. I will continue to advocate and speak up for their beautiful angels, and spread awareness.
I sent them each an angel to serve as a small memorial token to do with as they wished. One of them has a special table with a candle and other items and this stands on that table.
P.S. Please forgive the poor photo quality. And that’s a stray piece of glitter that somehow found its way onto the boy angel. I removed it before sending it off to my friend. lol
i really considered adding a post about this one, too. a lot of fun pieces in there.
full post w/more pics here:
What a beautiful and thoughtful gift. Thanks so much for sharing your first post on this thread–welcome!
These are beautiful, they must treasure them 
I’ve had so much fun making stuff with the Glowforge, but by far my favorites have been veg-tanned leather. I made hand-bound leather books for the whole family for Christmas last year.
Thank you! It was a lot of fun to think of and then see come to fruition just like I imagined.
I’m so glad you posted this here. I remember seeing mentions of this project, but never saw the reveal video and photos. Just PHENOMENAL!!! I love everything about it, & about this forum. So much amazing talent, and so many AWESOME creatives & techies who are so generous with their knowledge and time. So happy to be a tiny part of this amazing community.
hook holder for my wife.
