Right after I received my 
and cutting the first three tutorial files, I decided to challenge myself to learn Adobe Illustrator by trying to reproduce something giftworthy.
The next birthday on the calendar was my sister in law, and she loves to paint, so I knew I had my challenge when I found the Painter’s Tool Trestle in the catalog.
Glowforge Catalog Painter’s Tool Trestle
This is what I managed to make during my learning process.
I made a prototype out of MDF where I learned to adjust kerf, and then cut the final in Baltic Birch, assembled, and stained lightly before coating with clear coat.
After I gifted it, she told me her brushes slipped from the bottom grooves, so I cut another base with deeper grooves and glued it on top of the original.
was to stop being a passive Netflix consuming couch potato and recover my creativity by challenging myself to learn new abilities and put them to use making customized gifts for friends and family.