Don't Quit Poem

[Steve Clarkson]

Here is a picture (and .cdr file in v10) of a poem I engraved on a white ceramic tile painted black. Really liked the poem, so I thought I would share it.

EDIT: I couldn't upload the cdr because my security token is missing.....uh, oh!

[Steve Clarkson]

OK, I painted the tile yesterday and engraved it this morning......now I just got a fingerprint on it!!!!! It FEELS dry......if I just wait a few days will the paint cure such that fingerprints won't get on it.....or should I spray it with a laquer or polyurathane to seal it?

[Dave Garcia]

Steve,

Weren't you the individual that was thinking of bailing out of the laser engraving business a couple of months ago?

I guess you read your poem!!!

All the best.

Dave Garcia :)
The Wood Block, Ltd

[Phyllis Meyer]

Great job Steve! I was thinking of the same thing...don't quit! My engraved motto is: Failure Is Not An Option! Have a great day!

Phyllis:)

[Mark Ross]

Mine is from a quote from the book Atlas Shrugged and I have entitled it "Perseverance"

[Dee Gallo]

Mine is from a donut shop in NYC from the 50s:

"As you travel down the road of life, whatever be your goal,
Keep your eye upon the donut and not upon the hole."

:) dee

[Dave Garcia]

Steve and Dee,

Did "we" open Pandora's Box with these writings????

Here's a couple for you. Direct from Hawaii:

1. The best things in life aren't things.

2. There are two ways to be rich - make more or desire less.

And my all time favorite from Yogi Bera:

"When you come to a fork in the road, take it!"

Dave Garcia :)
The Wood Block, Ltd

[Steve Clarkson]

Mine is from a donut shop in NYC from the 50s:

"As you travel down the road of life, whatever be your goal,
Keep your eye upon the donut and not upon the hole."

:) dee

Dee, that reminds me of the donut hole diet that I was on once.....it would have worked if I didn't have to eat the outside part to get to the donut hole.......

[Dan Hintz]

Reminds me of the glasses of OJ mom would make me share with my brother... he was bigger, got the glass first, and his half was at the bottom. I didn't get much OJ...

[Steve Clarkson]

OK, I painted the tile yesterday and engraved it this morning......now I just got a fingerprint on it!!!!! It FEELS dry......if I just wait a few days will the paint cure such that fingerprints won't get on it.....or should I spray it with a laquer or polyurathane to seal it?


I used regular krylon paint and it scratches off easily.....anyone know what I can do to prevent that?

......and don't say "Duh, don't scratch it!"

[Dee Gallo]

Steve,

It sounds like you did not prepare the tile for painting correctly. You have to sand it with 220 to give it some tooth, then prime it with high adhesion primer and then paint.

:) dee

[Steve Clarkson]

Steve,

It sounds like you did not prepare the tile for painting correctly. You have to sand it with 220 to give it some tooth, then prime it with high adhesion primer and then paint.

:) dee

Ahhhh....no one mentioned THAT before! Thanks Dee!

[Dan Hintz]

Dee beat me to it... the glaze on the tile isn't designed to hold paint (which makes cleaning your shower easier), so you gotta scuff it up.

[James A. Wolfe]

Steve,
I've lasered this onto several plaques. Seems whenever someone sees it in my shop, they want one. Kind of a long poem but lays out nicely on a 5x7.
Jim
It Couldn't Be Done
Edgar Guest

Somebody said that it couldn't be done,
But he with a chuckle replied
That "maybe it couldn't," but he would be one
Who wouldn't say so till he'd tried.
So he buckled right in with the trace of a grin
On his face. If he worried he hid it.
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
That couldn't be done, and he did it.

Somebody scoffed: "Oh, you'll never do that;
At least no one ever has done it";
But he took off his coat and he took off his hat,
And the first thing we knew he'd begun it.
With a lift of his chin and a bit of a grin,
Without any doubting or quiddit,
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
That couldn't be done, and he did it.

There are thousands to tell you it cannot be done,
There are thousands to prophesy failure;
There are thousands to point out to you, one by one,
The dangers that wait to assail you.
But just buckle in with a bit of a grin,
Just take off your coat and go to it;
Just start to sing as you tackle the thing
That "cannot be done," and you'll do it.

[Steve Clarkson]

I thought I had posted these, but maybe not.....if I did, my apologies.

Just used basic $0.50 tiles from Home Depot and Krylon paint. I definitely need to tweek the settings.

[Dee Gallo]

Nice work, Steve!

[bill gervais]

Hi Steve, Nice work with the Hd tiles in post #15. What exactly is the process to get those results? Is the tile painted first then cut through to expose the tile beneath? I had bought a few of these tiles several months ago and would like to know at at least the general idea on how to start.

[Ian Wilson (AUST)]

They are awesome Steve!!!

[Steve Clarkson]

Hi Steve, Nice work with the Hd tiles in post #15. What exactly is the process to get those results? Is the tile painted first then cut through to expose the tile beneath? I had bought a few of these tiles several months ago and would like to know at at least the general idea on how to start.

That's it Bill.....just paint and engrave away. The only thing is, if there is any part of the tile that isn't hit by the laser, the paint will easily scratch off. Any part that IS hit by the laser almost gets bonded to the tile.

I really didn't do much to be honest......the tiles are only as good as the picture you start with. And thanks to Frank for sharing that white tiger photo with me.