DIY Typographic Character Coasters

Here is how you can start this DIY project:

The coasters were laser cut from 1/8″ thick cork. The fonts represented include Times New Roman, Gill Sans, Courier New Bold, Futura Bold Italic, and Miso. We picked characters that seemed appropriate for making into single-piece coasters, and scaled them to size, assuming a 3″ diameter glass could be placed on top. For the caret, that meant a larger font size than for the octothorpe.

The 1/8″ cork sheets cut well with a hobby knife if you have a steady hand. 

Besides plywood and cork, we also made coasters out of medium-density fiberboard (MDF). Both MDF and plywood are susceptible to moisture damage (an operational hazard for coasters!) so we sprayed them with a clear acrylic coating to make them water resistant.

Done! You can keep the custom coasters or give your family or friends as the personalized gifts.