I was thinking about how a laser printer works, essentially it dumps powder from the cartridge onto the paper and uses a laser to burn it into the desired shape. By this logic, if one were to say take some colored Mica powder and put it onto the desired burn item, would that make a colored burn? Has anyone ever tried working with that? If so what were your results? To quote the late great Larry King " I’m curious!"
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People have discussed stuff like this. Mica probably not great because it’s mineral, toners are a powdered plastic I believe and it gets melted and stuck to the paper.
Ages ago @rbtdanforth discussed using ceramic glaze and trying to selectively fire it with the laser. Not sure that went anywhere.
I think there may have been discussions of a colored version of Cermark-like stuff. There are options but I don’t know that anyones posted a big success.
Here we go:
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I’m thinking the air assist fan would just blow the powder away but maybe if it were mixed with a liquid to make a paste?
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I don’t think that is how something like an Epson style laser printer works. As for Glowforge I am still thinking in terms of dried clay in a thin sheet creating insoluble metasilicate alongside the clay, so the regular clay will come loose and wash away.
Before the Glowforge arrives one thinks of all sorts of things, before the reality has a chance to catch up. That one is still on the list, but waiting till proper materials show up.
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Orrrr, magnetic iron power? 
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You are right, Epson is the exception to pretty much all the rules because of their incessant need to use air pressured tubes. I have sold repaired more Epsons in my retail years then I ever wanted to. Honestly unless you shell out for the big buck model Epson is not the way to go for home printing.
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Slightly off topic but a quick explainer of how laser printers work.
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I’m very well aware of how a laser printer works, I’ve repaired a few hundred in the last 15 years. Generalization for the sake of ease of reading to those who don’t know.
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Yeah I figured since you mentioned repairing epsons. I figured other people might be curious.
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@Xabbess did some post-laser experimenting with embossing powders : Still hung up
Here is pre-laser embossing thread: Budget metal etching/marking/engraving
And it looks like @smcgathyfay used the laser to sinter the powder: Laser Darc Colors / Powder Coating - #20 by smcgathyfay
There was also mention of powder coat experiments in those threads: handverker: laser cured powder coat on acrylic
I think the key here is using something sticky to keep the powder in the right place, or using a laser you can turn of the head fan!
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Welll …
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Years ago when I was exploring making powdered glass into solid I used gum tragacanth to bind the powders together. However, unless there is enough oxygen everything turns out black, and adding an oxygen source (saltpeter is one but I cannot remember what I used, and I don’t think it was that) would wipe out most colors and it would be white (fine bubbles meant it would never be clear) so it was a very fine balance. In a Glowforge there are other chemical considerations not found in a firing oven as well. But there are leadless frits for ceramics that might work on steel which has a very low coefficient of expansion as do the frits or tiles vs regular enamels for copper that are ~ 100 times as much.
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