Cutting boards incorporate art with natural grain

A picture is worth a thousand words, right? Well, these stunningly beautiful cutting boards are doing all the talking.

When I first stumbled upon that image, my first reaction was that it was an illustration of an astronaut walking on Jupiter. Too colorful to be the moon, not red enough to be Mars. It had to at least be an extra-terrestrial background. Even though Jupiter would be pretty hard to walk on, it looks like a tourist shot straight from the Great Red Spot. Of course, it turns out to be right from our own backyard.

Constructed of wood from the acacia tree, these cutting boards also come in other varieties, all of which incorporate their designs with the grain of the wood. Whether you chose Astronaut, Vespa, Skier, Fishing Eskimo, or Diver, the spot for the design is hand-positioned. After choosing an appropriate location, each board is laser engraved, giving each one a truly unique appearance. Available from Up To You in Toronto, the boards measure 23 centimeters wide by 34 centimeters long by 1.5 centimeters thick.

The astronaut is by far my favorite, but the other designs integrate well with the natural grain, too. Of note are the Vespa speeding along a two tone highway of grain, or a diver leaping into a tree ring--even if they are more of the earth-bound variety.

(Via Boing Boing)