Maker Growth Hub

Member tool

Laser Lantern Generator

One lantern body sells all year if the panel that slides into it changes with the season.

Nothing is uploaded. It runs in your browser, so your files never leave your machine.

Part of the Maker Toolkit: fourteen tools that share one shop profile and one product list, so what you set up here is already known everywhere else.

Maker Toolkit v1.0 · August 2026

How it works

Laser Lantern Generator, step by step

Set the size, window style and top, and the assembled model updates beside you as you go. When it looks right, generate nested cut sheets, a fit test for your material, and a reusable insert template.

  1. Set your sizeStart from the reference preset, or enter your own dimensions.
  2. Choose the lookWindow style, top style, feet and frame border.
  3. Measure your materialEnter the thickness you actually measured. It matters more than the label on the sheet.
  4. Generate and cutRun the fit test on an offcut first, then the full project.

Why it is built this way

The decisions behind it

Test before you commitThe fit-test file checks your joints on a scrap offcut instead of a full sheet.
Swap the insertsThe insert template is reusable, so one lantern body carries a different panel every season.
Sized to your materialJoint geometry follows the thickness you measured, not the nominal number it was sold as.

Questions

Laser Lantern Generator — common questions

What is a parametric lantern generator?

You enter the finished size, material thickness and style, and the cut file is generated to match rather than scaled from a fixed template. Scaling a template breaks the joints, because finger joints have to stay the thickness of your actual material while everything else changes size.

Will the joints fit my material?

They are cut to the thickness you enter, so measure with calipers rather than trusting the label. "3 mm" plywood is routinely 2.7 to 3.2 mm, and that difference is the gap between a press fit and a lantern that falls apart. There is a fit-test export so you can prove one seam before cutting the whole thing.

Can I make my own insert panels?

Yes, that is what the Insert Generator is for. It builds cut-out panels at the exact size this lantern needs and verifies that no piece of the design falls out of the machine.

Do I need to be a member?

For this one, yes. The tools that get a file onto the machine correctly are free and stay free. The generators that turn a craft into a product line are part of Maker Growth Hub membership.

Next in the workflow

What most makers open after this

These are not a list of everything. They are the tools this one hands off to, and they already know what you did here.

MemberInsert GeneratorA new panel for every season, and none of it falls out of the machine.MemberShadow Box MakerLayered shadow boxes with slotted walls and tabs that don’t show.FreeSheet NesterFit more parts on less material, and see exactly what didn’t fit.

Members

Laser Lantern Generator is part of the Hub

Ten of the fourteen tools are free and stay free — everything that gets a file onto the machine correctly. The four generators and the planner are what turn a craft into a product line, and they come with the Hub.

Join the Maker Growth Hub