Sub Surface Engraving

Decoration in a new Dimension

Sub surface decorated products can be truly amazing. Images, text and logos can float inside a crystal block like magic, but it’s a wizardry we can perform at Crystal Galleries.

We’ve invested in our in-house equipment so we can now offer you sub surface engraving for both 2D and 3D images across a wider range of products and with shorter lead times. This means you have more to offer your customers and can respond to urgent enquiries, giving you the potential to secure more business.

How It Works

All the magic is worked by lasers. When two laser beams focus onto the same spot they effectively shatter a tiny fraction of the crystal and create a dot. Using lasers means the surrounded substance is left untouched and the accuracy is outstanding. By building up the dots it’s possible to create a full three dimensional image that has lifelike properties when viewed from all angles.

If all this talk about dots sounds a bit like traditional printing, then that’s because it is. Just as with printing a 2D image onto paper where you can print the dots at different densities, e.g. 75dpi (dots per inch), 300 dpi; you can do the same with 3D. And, just as with 2D, the higher the number the more detailed the image will be.

What You Need

Artwork

To create your chosen image, if you are looking for a three dimensional shape, you need to have 3D compatible artwork. It is possible to create three dimensional images from some two dimensional ones, e.g. logos and even some photos, but the best results come from artwork that has been especially created for the purpose. For two dimensional text we can work from high quality vector files. If you’re not sure if your artwork will be suitable send it over to us and we’ll let you know.

Products

Anything that is to be decorated with a 3D sub surface image needs to be thick enough to contain it. We usually start from around 20mm but, depending on your image, the size may have to be larger. There’s around 200 products suitable for this decoration technique in our current catalogue but if you are looking to decorate something not included ask us and we’ll let you know if that’s possible.

FAQs

You can read the answers to some of the most frequently asked questions here. If you don’t find the answers you are looking for, email us and we’ll do our best to give you a quick and simple response.

3D Product Groups

3D engraving can be applied to a variety of product types.

View our range