Clean alabaster dust from your rasps and files. It attracts moisture: your tools can rust in the toolbox.

Cloth sandbags can retain small particles that can aggravate final polishing efforts. Put them in plastic bags when polishing.

When pushing or pulling a tool, make sure it has a safe place to go when the chip breaks loose.

The edge of a core drill can leave interesting curly shapes as texturing.

Hand held cup wheels can be used for “planing” if you don’t have flat greenstones.

There’s less chance of scratching interior surfaces if they’re done before the outside.

Packaging/shipping exposure may necessitate more robust design elements.

Chipped edge on a square base? Rounding can be tedious. Consider a chamfered edge or a groove parallel to the edge with a saw blade.

From Silver Falls: 1.) be careful when polishing in a thong, and 2.) don’t get it caught.