Fancy getting started with Pyrography? Pyrography – also known as wood burning, is creatively burning designs into wood. There are so many things you can do with this craft – from creating key rings to bookmarks and even photo frames!
Equipment
- Wood – of any sort! It’s also handy to have a scrap piece you can use to experiment on.
- Soldering iron or pyrography tool
- A clear workspace
- Pencil and other drawing materials
- Fine sandpaper & clear varnish (optional)
1. Start by marking your design onto the wood. If you’re feeling confident, feel free to draw straight onto the wood. Greaseproof also works well if you want to transfer your design on.
2. Once you have an outline drawn onto your wood, it’s time to turn on your soldering iron. It’s best to start at a medium-low temperature to begin with – about 350oC. Outlines or anything you need completely “black” is the best place to start. That means you can get a feel for the right pressure and temperature that will give you the design you’re after. Starting like this, gives you the room for mistakes!
3. Your soldering iron is now line your pen. The most important thing to bear in mind is that to create a darker line you don’t need to press harder. To do this – simply keep the soldering iron on the surface for longer. If you were to press hard you run the risk of damaging your nibs and also creating indents in the wood rather than the coloured lines you need.
Above: a couple of examples of some designs I’ve done using pyrography – one on a handmade doorbell and the other a gorilla coaster.
4. Once you have the design you’re after, it’s time for the finishing touches! If you have some fine sandpaper to hand, run the sandpaper over the surface of your design. This will help to create a finished look. You can then complete your project with a coat of varnish.
A note on health and safety…
It goes without saying that whether you’re using a soldering iron or a specific pyrography tool it’s hot!
Before you start, make sure you have a clean workspace set up. Make sure you don’t have anything flammable floating about.