Everything You Need to Know About Pyrography

If you love burning things (for recreation), pyrography is the best hobby for you! It involves a lot
of burning on wood surfaces to create patternized decorations using a heated instrument called
poker or any improvised heated object to that effect. One can even use a magnifying glass!
Pyrography is also known as pokerwork or simply as wood burning.

Pyrography literally means writing with fire and it came from two Greek words: (1) pur which
means fire and (2) graphos which means write. Officially, pyrography began in the 17th century
and was known as pokerwork. However, recent breakthroughs in archeology suggests that
cavemen burnt walls to create decorations depicting their lifestyle which may include hunting
and migration.

Using different equipment on different types of wood yield different tones and shades. To
achieve light-colored result, hardwood such as basswood and sycamore are often used by
seasoned pyrographers. The art is also practiced on leather surface although it is not as popular
because leather is typically more challenging to decorate and is usually more expensive to
outsource than wood.

History

The earliest surviving sample of pyrography came from Peru which is believed to be the
birthplace of the art. The sample is a container decorated with birds (humming birds) and flowers
and is dated to before 700AD but the practice was already popular among the Peruvians 2300
years back. Pyrography was used to decorate artifacts such musical instruments and kitchenware
in Europe, Australia, and Asia.

Pyrography was known as pokerwork in the Victorian era (17th century – 18th century). It was
coined as such because the pyrographers of this time used a charcoal stove with perforations
around it into which pokers of various sizes and shapes were heated. This process is crude and at
the same time challenging because a constant temperature had to be maintained to make sure
the poker will not cool down. Pyrography was first taught as a profession in this era.

Early in the 20th Century soldering iron types of pyrography tool were developed, a type still in
use today. Later in the century low voltage devices were developed with heat control with both
solid point and later hot wire type nibs, and these are the tools most used by pyrographers today.

How to Make a Simple Pyrography (Using Wood)

A. Materials
1. Pyrography Tool
2. Wooden Blank
3. 25mm Split Ring
 4. Pencil
5. Paper (for designing)
B. Instructions
1. Decide on the wooden shape you wish to use.
2. Work out what image you want to burn onto your wood shape.
3. Carefully draw your design onto your woodshape using a pencil.
4. The Pyrography tool has different nibs that can give different effects on your wood.
5. Select the tip that gives you the type of effect you want and attach it to the tool.
6. Burn the design onto your wood shape.
7. Open a split ring and thread your wooden shape onto the ring.

Pyrography as a hobby can be a good source of challenge and fulfillment. One can derive pleasure
in every pattern successfully done or desperation in every pattern ruined! As a profession,
pyrography can be quite promising (in some cases, lucrative) most especially if you have plenty
of wood to burn!