Marquetry Tutorial

Veneer Choices
 

Choosing the veneer
Once you have chosen the design you want it's time to choose the veneer. There are different shades that go well together and then there are those that clash, just like choosing a color scheme for decorating a room. If you are going to do something abstract then you could really do anything you like, but keeping it simple, not using too many different species often has a more pleasing result and is easier to combine.

The thickness of the veneer is also very important. I find 1/32" (about 0.7mm) is an easy thickness to work with. Any thicker than that and it is too difficult to cut with a blade.

Lacewood is one of my favorites, but it is very difficult to work with when doing small projects as it is brittle, does not cut well, and is apt to just crumble into little bits.

There are of course very many different types of veneer, as many as there are different species of trees. When doing intricate, small designs in Marquetry go with plain grains and concentrate on varying colors. There are many figured, burl, wavy, curly, quilted, among other grain variations, that are both beautiful and unusual but these tend to work better when used as large pieces. These grain variations also tend to make the veneer more difficult to work with as they often splinter and crack due to the crossed grain formations, but not always.

Maple, in all its variations, tends to be easy to work with.  It has a fine grain which means it does not splinter and is therefore nice for doing intricate designs.

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