marquetry and parquetry

There is a book called "The Marquetry Course" by Jack Metcalfe and John Apps that would probably be of interest to you. The book, which contains many nice photos, is not too expensive. Getting set up to actually do the work seems more extensive/expensive than you might suspect at first guess. I haven't made it that far.

Bill

the parquetry that i saw requireed very little in tools materials

small long triangular shaped pieces of different wood species glue black paper which is still not known and may be cloth a wide hand plane to plane a very thin sheet of the glued up pieces a vise to secure the glued up pieces while planing the veneers

now the boxes that he affixed the veneers are another topic altogether

may need a vice after ruining the glue ups while trying to make the veneers and having to start all over

See also - intarsia.

John T.

Try prostitution.

At first glance, nothing in woodworking should require very much in tools, right? After all, how difficult could it be to attach/fit 2 pieces of wood together? IIRC, the "vacuum bag" (I forget the exact term for it) and a glue pot will have you over $300 right there.

the parquetry i saw used a brush to brush on glue from a bottle and used string as clamps

wood was the big expense

has a more whimsical feel to it but is nice have seen some beautiful pieces in this 3d style

good example of one of these boxes

btw there are some that have over one hundred sequences required to open them

they were once used by nobility etc to store secrets

It's a game of artistry and precision. Relatively speaking, the cost of the wood will seem minuscule. I still recommend the book.

for someone with skills unlike the master box makers that may be true

but when you have done it for 30 years and made all the mistakes then wood is the biggest expense

You would know...