We need a wedding gift for our nephew who is getting married in September, and on viewing the wedding present list, most items were pretty ephemeral - like zip wire rides on honeymoon. We want to give something that will last a little longer so I have decided to make them an end grain cutting board. Never having made one before, I used a free plan from MTM Wood for a 3D cutting board.
The instructions are pretty easy to follow so I won't repeat them excessively here.
I had some American Cherry and Beech left over from previous projects which pretty much dictated what the 2 contrasting timbers were going to be. Unfortunately I didn't have enough beech from one plank to ensure consistency of colour, but hoped that the difference wouldn't be too displeasing.
Ideally the plan calls for a 13 inch planer, but I just have the standard 10 inch. However, I do have a 16 inch drum sander and that is good enough when combined with the planer. Whilst ideally the planks you are cutting from should be the same thickness, it doesn't matter if they are not. I'm quite pleased with the result, but when I make one for ourselves I will make sure that all pieces come from the same planks.