Handmade Slate Signs | Traditional V-Cut Engraving | North Wales
The machine nobody wanted
When stone masons modernised, they scrapped their pantograph engraving machines. It made sense — carving a headstone by hand took days. Sandblasting took hours. The old machines gathered dust, then disappeared.
We went looking for them.
Tucked away in workshops across the country, we tracked down the remaining Incimar pantograph engravers — the same machines that carved the lettering on gravestones, war memorials and church plaques for over a century. Machines built to last forever, operated by craftsmen who learned their trade by feel and eye. We bought the ones that were left.
That decision is the reason every slate sign we make looks the way it does.
Why it matters
There are two ways to put lettering on slate. The modern way uses a laser or a rubber stencil and sandblast. It's fast, consistent, and produces flat, shallow lettering that does the job.
The old way — our way — cuts a deep V into the surface of the stone. Each letter has sharp, clean edges and a natural shadow that makes it legible from a distance and genuinely beautiful up close. Run your finger across a laser-engraved sign and you feel almost nothing. Run it across ours and you feel real depth. Real craft.
You cannot replicate a V-cut with a laser. You cannot replicate it with sandblasting. The only way to get it is with a pantograph machine operated by a skilled human hand — and there are very few of those left in the world.
Who we are
We're a small three-person business based in North Wales. Two of us run the workshop and engrave. One of us keeps everything else moving. We don't have a factory. We don't have a warehouse full of stock. Every order is made when you place it, by hand, in our workshop, by someone who takes genuine pride in what they make.
We started small — very small — with a passion for traditional craft and a belief that there was still a market for things made properly. We're still small. We like it that way. It means we can read every message, answer every question, and make sure every order leaves our workshop exactly as it should.
What we make
Our slate house numbers and house signs are cut from premium honed slate, precision-cut to size with pre-drilled fixing holes. Honing the surface gives our engraving extraordinary crispness — the contrast between the polished slate and the raw V-cut is what makes our signs so striking. Slate is naturally weatherproof, frost-resistant and UV stable. It doesn't fade. It doesn't rust. It doesn't need replacing.
We make things that last.
