Behind the Scenes, Case Studies
The Pavilion: Making an Oak Cricket Bat Bar Sign
Nov
A bar called The Pavilion needed an internal sign with a cricketing connection. We made it in oak, shaped it like a cricket bat and picked out the engraved lettering in metallic gold. Here is how the sign took shape in the Enigma Signs workshop.
Watch The Pavilion sign being made
Watch the process film on YouTube, with narration and English subtitles.
Two pieces of oak, 24 hours in clamps
The job started with two pieces of oak. We glued them together, clamped them and left the assembly for 24 hours before moving on to machining.
That first stage built up the timber for the sign. The photographs show the clamps holding the two pieces together, followed by the prepared oak blank ready for engraving and cutting.
Engraving the name and cutting the bat shape
Next, the oak went onto the CNC router. We engraved “THE PAVILION” into the face, together with the recessed lines above and below the name, then cut the cricket bat outline.
The design combines a broad blade with a narrower handle and rounded ends. The lettering is cut into the oak itself, leaving the natural grain and knots visible around it.
Clear lacquer, then metallic gold
Once the sign was engraved and cut to shape, we sprayed it with clear lacquer to seal the wood. The engraved lettering and border lines were then infilled with a metallic gold colour.
The gold gives the recessed details definition against the oak. It is part of the finishing sequence: the clear lacquer used at this stage was followed by sanding and an oak oil finish.
Sanding back and applying oak oil
After the gold infill, we sanded the surface of the bat, removing the clear lacquer from the face. The gold remained in the engraved recesses.
We then applied oak oil. The finished photographs show the warmer tone of the timber, with its individual grain and knots still visible and the metallic gold picking out the name and border lines.
The finished Pavilion sign
The result is a bespoke internal bar sign that carries The Pavilion name in both its lettering and its cricket bat shape. Views from the front and at an angle show the engraved details, the natural character of the oak and the depth of the timber.
More photographs from the workshop
Further views follow the oak from the glue-up and machining stages to the finished gold-filled sign.
Workshop backgrounds and workbench marks in the photographs have been digitally tidied for presentation.
A distinctive sign for your own space
A custom shape and engraved finish can make a sign feel closely connected to the place it is made for. Explore our engraved signs and plaques, or see another oak project in our CNC-engraved desktop blocks case study.