Engrave a list of names on blanks, with a jig that lines them up, free
Free and in your browser, with nothing uploaded: paste a list of names, set your blank and your bed, and get the engrave file for each sheet, a jig to cut so every blank sits where its name lands, and the order list. Ornaments, coasters, place cards and tags.
Faster with the free Chrome extension: right-click any picture on a website and send it straight to the batch name jig maker. Add to Chrome · what it does
Extension installed. Right-click any picture on a website and choose Makerfern → Open this picture in… to bring it here.
Fifty names, one setup
A batch of personalised ornaments or place cards means typing each name, sizing it to the blank, lining it up in a grid on the bed and making sure the blanks sit in exactly the same grid. Most makers end up cutting a cardboard jig by hand for it. This tool sets the whole list at once: the names, the grid and the jig come from the same numbers, so they agree.
What you get
- An engrave file for each sheet, SVG or DXF, at true size, every name fitted and centred in its blank.
- A jig: the pockets to cut from cardboard or scrap, with corner marks that match the engrave files.
- The blanks as a cut file, if you cut your own from wood or acrylic.
- An order list (CSV) of which name is on which sheet, row and column.
How to use it
- Paste the names, one per line or as the names column copied from a spreadsheet; pick a font.
- Choose the blank's shape and measure a real one for its size.
- Pick your machine or type its bed size, and set the margin and gap.
- Cut the jig, leave it in place, drop in the blanks and engrave sheet 1, then reload the jig for sheet 2.
What it does not do
- It does not give engraving settings: those depend on your machine and the blank, so follow their makers and test on a spare.
- It does not know your kerf or your blanks' true size: measure them, and cut one pocket first.
- It sets each name in one font from the list. Letters the font doesn't have are left out, and the tool says so.
Questions
How does the jig keep every name centred?
The jig file and the engrave file are made on the same page, the size of your bed, with the same corner marks. Cut the pockets from cardboard or scrap, leave the sheet where it is, drop a blank into each pocket and engrave. Each name lands in the middle of its pocket because both files put it there. Don't move the jig or change the origin between the two jobs.
What is the pocket clearance?
Each pocket is cut a little bigger than the blank, 0.4 mm all round to start, so the blank drops in and still can't slide. Kerf, material and how true your blanks are all change the fit, so cut one pocket first and change the clearance if it is tight or loose.
How big are the names?
Each name is set as big as it fits inside the blank, less the space to the edge you choose, and never taller than the tallest letters you set. Choose Every name the same size and the longest name sets the size for all of them, which looks better on a set of place cards. A long name with a space can go on two lines when that makes the letters bigger.
Honeycomb or rows?
Round and oval blanks often fit more to a sheet when every other row is shifted half a step, like a honeycomb. Most blanks picks whichever packing fits more on your bed; you can choose either one.
What size is my bed?
Use the area your machine actually works in. The presets are the makers' published cut areas:
- Cricut 12 × 12 in mat (cuts 11.5 × 11.5 in): 292 × 292 mm
- Cricut 12 × 24 in mat (cuts 11.5 × 23.5 in): 292 × 597 mm
- Glowforge Basic, Plus or Pro (about 19.5 × 11 in): 495 × 279 mm
For any other laser, choose My bed and type its working area.
Does it work on a Cricut?
The files are the size of the mat, with the names where the blanks sit. In Design Space, select everything and Attach before you make it, so the names keep their places on the mat; Design Space can still shift a job a little, so check the first blank before doing the rest. We can't promise how Design Space places a job.
What is the order list for?
The CSV lists every name with its sheet, row and column, so you can find who goes where when you pack the order. Up to 500 names at a time; a name that starts like a spreadsheet formula is written so a spreadsheet shows it as text.
Is anything uploaded?
No. Your list is read and set in your browser, and the files are made on your device.