Examples of Inlays and the effects of detail and multiple materials

  Basic vines, traditional materials.

An inlay can be cut in different ways that can effect the amount of time that goes into the cutting, thereby, changing the final cost. For instance, if I cut a typical vine inlay from a single material it costs less because no time is required to match colors or to fit the second material into the first material. Sometimes there is so little extra work the price doesn't change. In this inlay even though the vine is one material and the flowers another the price isn't changed because the materials cost the same and require the same amount of time to cut and inlay.

Complex vine, basic materials.

This pattern is far more complex, requiring one material to be cut and then inlaid into another material. Also contributing to the cost is the finer dimensions of the vine and the fact that it weaves back and forth. Finally, another costly detail is the amount of layout required.

 Complex vine, realistic materials.

These two are virtually the same pattern but using more realistic materials vs. traditional shell.