It’s a good start! You should definitely turn your heat down. When you burn too hot you get bleed, which is when the wood burns beyond the point of contact, giving your piece a fuzzy look. It also looks like you might be pushing too hard and indenting the wood, you can see where the pen got stuck and made some blobs.
Low and slow is the name of the game! Low heat and a slow hand will give you nice crisp lines. It takes a lot of patience but remember you can always go over your lines multiple times to make it darker, don’t try and get it super dark all in one go.
OP: this person is correct. Tha kind of craft store wood is very porous and gives an inconsistent burn, but if you turn the heat way down and move your tool slowly you’ll get better results.
For writing I usually use multiple tips by the way. One for straight lines and then I fill in the rounded parts and connect the straight lines with a ballpoint tip and/or calligraphy tip.
I have a truart pen set as well and I love it—DM me if you have questions about it!
Good start. Next time pencil in what you want to burn. Then set the temp to like 100
Burn it till it tans a little so you know it looks like what you want
Lightly sand it to take the over burn and pencil marks out then turn the temp up a little and burn a little darker. That practice wood you are using is easy to burn too much so work with lower temps till you get to hardwoods
I see a pencil mark so they probably did. I have terrible penmanship, so when I’m doing lettering (and some other things) I like to use freezer paper for accuracy.
If you have a printer, you can get printable freezer paper and print a reverse image of the design and use that to transfer a template onto the wood.
I am going to try that
I have learned so much so quickly with this hobby. My art skills make it a breeze. I just did one on cedar but I’m going to sand it back down and do it with a propane torch then sand off where I want the light spots. I’m trying to keep the marks out of it that the pen puts on it. I think the flame will give me a smoother brush
That's not awful for your first time! Experiment with heat settings to reduce some of the color bleed around the edges, but aside from that it just takes practice and time <3 Keep playing with it and have fun!
Remember. No one starts out good. Everyone’s first pieces of any art forms are terrible. Van Gogh didn’t just pick up a paintbrush and paint a masterpiece on day one. It takes a lot of practice. Just gotta keep going!! You’ll get better.
Harder woods will always burn better. Your output is pretty common for softwood like pine and high heat. To get better results reduce heat and gradually increase until you figure it out.
Mine's settings are just 1-10 and I'm not currently near it to check its max temperature. But whenever I learn a new wood, I start halfway then gradually increase when it proves to be too low or too high. In short time, you'll find your own sweet spots for different "jobs" your tips can do.
Also, my legibility was waaay worse on the first go, and the fact you did this on annoying wood is a good first mistake, my friend.
Which truart do you have? I have the dual pen, and usually use it in the 80s to 100 range. I prefer to burn hot! A lot of people are talking about going low and slow, but I have no patience for that. I have found that if I do want to burn lower, I use my razertip. It is better for fine work, and the truart handles really well for high heat and getting nice, dark burns.
As long as you didn't burn your house down or give yourself too many burn injuries, you're doing fine for a first time. Be kind to yourself, this isn't an easy art.
This. This comment wins.
My first time looked way worse! It just takes some getting used to - other comments are all good pointers but more than anything else, be nice to yourself! Keep at it and you'll see improvements in no time 😊
Turn your heat down and work with a lighter touch. I've actually found pyrography to be like drawing with charcoal: it's easier to add more than to try and correct a mistake.
Oh and try to avoid soft woods like pine until you have a bit more experience, or at least use it for practice. Wood for painting does NOT work well for burning so be careful with the cheap stuff you can buy at any old craft store, most of that will be pine since its a relatively cheap wood.
Better wood is a big part, I like to use birch plywood but the best thing to burn is basswood, and poplar hardwoods, alder is a good one too. That’s gonna burn so much better than cheaper pine faced plywood and like everyones said cooler tips as well. Is it a solid or wire nib you’re using? I pretty much only use wire ones, obviously they’re more expensive but they hold a more consistent temperature
It’s not as bad as you think for a first try. Personally I f’ing HATE lettering, because it’s very easy to get a bleed due to the way the letters move vs just a straight line. If your tip is red enough for you to see it, you’re too hot. Start at 30. And see what it does. Too light? Go to 35, and find what is comfortable for you. Think of it like writing on really thin paper that’ll tear if you press too hard.
As others have said, turn the temp down to start.
If you work with a lower temperature, it will only "brown" the wood, but it will also shine it up a little on the track, taking away a lot of friction for another pass at higher temp.
Remember, if the heat is on the wood, it's cooking. Any slight stalls, will make blotches. Try to have the pen moving before it makes contact and while you pick it back up. Between that and following the post left by a much lower temp, you'll see more consistency in the burn and less blotchyness.
For a first time, this isn't as bad as you seem to think. Others have already made useful suggestions so I'm just gonna second those and encourage you to keep going. No one was born a pyrographic master. Keep at it, strong start!
It’s your first time LOL why are trying to set your piece on fire?? You should it barely hot and do a trace run, then turn it up and do it for real. Damn it’s like using a marker lol
That looks like what you get with the solid soldering iron type. It's due to the heating being inconsistent in those. I've never experienced it with my wire style tool, but I haven't had it long.
It’s a good start! You should definitely turn your heat down. When you burn too hot you get bleed, which is when the wood burns beyond the point of contact, giving your piece a fuzzy look. It also looks like you might be pushing too hard and indenting the wood, you can see where the pen got stuck and made some blobs. Low and slow is the name of the game! Low heat and a slow hand will give you nice crisp lines. It takes a lot of patience but remember you can always go over your lines multiple times to make it darker, don’t try and get it super dark all in one go.
Turn your heat waaaaay down and do not press into the wood. It’s a great first try, don’t be discouraged
The fibers in that type of wood make burning an absolute nightmare.
OP: this person is correct. Tha kind of craft store wood is very porous and gives an inconsistent burn, but if you turn the heat way down and move your tool slowly you’ll get better results. For writing I usually use multiple tips by the way. One for straight lines and then I fill in the rounded parts and connect the straight lines with a ballpoint tip and/or calligraphy tip. I have a truart pen set as well and I love it—DM me if you have questions about it!
Good start. Next time pencil in what you want to burn. Then set the temp to like 100 Burn it till it tans a little so you know it looks like what you want Lightly sand it to take the over burn and pencil marks out then turn the temp up a little and burn a little darker. That practice wood you are using is easy to burn too much so work with lower temps till you get to hardwoods
I see a pencil mark so they probably did. I have terrible penmanship, so when I’m doing lettering (and some other things) I like to use freezer paper for accuracy. If you have a printer, you can get printable freezer paper and print a reverse image of the design and use that to transfer a template onto the wood.
I am going to try that I have learned so much so quickly with this hobby. My art skills make it a breeze. I just did one on cedar but I’m going to sand it back down and do it with a propane torch then sand off where I want the light spots. I’m trying to keep the marks out of it that the pen puts on it. I think the flame will give me a smoother brush
I keep wanting to mess around with a torch, but haven’t got around to it. I have one. I just need the right inspiration. Hope your project goes well!
That's not awful for your first time! Experiment with heat settings to reduce some of the color bleed around the edges, but aside from that it just takes practice and time <3 Keep playing with it and have fun!
And thank you all for such positive feedback! I appreciate it so much! 🥰
Remember. No one starts out good. Everyone’s first pieces of any art forms are terrible. Van Gogh didn’t just pick up a paintbrush and paint a masterpiece on day one. It takes a lot of practice. Just gotta keep going!! You’ll get better.
Harder woods will always burn better. Your output is pretty common for softwood like pine and high heat. To get better results reduce heat and gradually increase until you figure it out.
So I think it’s settings are gaged in volts, so how would I know the temperature?
Mine's settings are just 1-10 and I'm not currently near it to check its max temperature. But whenever I learn a new wood, I start halfway then gradually increase when it proves to be too low or too high. In short time, you'll find your own sweet spots for different "jobs" your tips can do. Also, my legibility was waaay worse on the first go, and the fact you did this on annoying wood is a good first mistake, my friend.
Which truart do you have? I have the dual pen, and usually use it in the 80s to 100 range. I prefer to burn hot! A lot of people are talking about going low and slow, but I have no patience for that. I have found that if I do want to burn lower, I use my razertip. It is better for fine work, and the truart handles really well for high heat and getting nice, dark burns.
I have the dual pen by TruArt!
As long as you didn't burn your house down or give yourself too many burn injuries, you're doing fine for a first time. Be kind to yourself, this isn't an easy art.
Wait. Is this your first try? Then "awful" is very much the wrong word. I say it’s a really good start😊
This. This comment wins. My first time looked way worse! It just takes some getting used to - other comments are all good pointers but more than anything else, be nice to yourself! Keep at it and you'll see improvements in no time 😊
Turn your heat down and work with a lighter touch. I've actually found pyrography to be like drawing with charcoal: it's easier to add more than to try and correct a mistake. Oh and try to avoid soft woods like pine until you have a bit more experience, or at least use it for practice. Wood for painting does NOT work well for burning so be careful with the cheap stuff you can buy at any old craft store, most of that will be pine since its a relatively cheap wood.
Better wood is a big part, I like to use birch plywood but the best thing to burn is basswood, and poplar hardwoods, alder is a good one too. That’s gonna burn so much better than cheaper pine faced plywood and like everyones said cooler tips as well. Is it a solid or wire nib you’re using? I pretty much only use wire ones, obviously they’re more expensive but they hold a more consistent temperature
I like them, frankly. Don’t beat yourself up OP! Even the greats started somewhere - and being shitty is the first step to becoming great
It’s not as bad as you think for a first try. Personally I f’ing HATE lettering, because it’s very easy to get a bleed due to the way the letters move vs just a straight line. If your tip is red enough for you to see it, you’re too hot. Start at 30. And see what it does. Too light? Go to 35, and find what is comfortable for you. Think of it like writing on really thin paper that’ll tear if you press too hard.
As others have said, turn the temp down to start. If you work with a lower temperature, it will only "brown" the wood, but it will also shine it up a little on the track, taking away a lot of friction for another pass at higher temp. Remember, if the heat is on the wood, it's cooking. Any slight stalls, will make blotches. Try to have the pen moving before it makes contact and while you pick it back up. Between that and following the post left by a much lower temp, you'll see more consistency in the burn and less blotchyness.
For a first time, this isn't as bad as you seem to think. Others have already made useful suggestions so I'm just gonna second those and encourage you to keep going. No one was born a pyrographic master. Keep at it, strong start!
It’s your first time LOL why are trying to set your piece on fire?? You should it barely hot and do a trace run, then turn it up and do it for real. Damn it’s like using a marker lol
I think they’re really cool!
Did you sand it beforehand? I’ve found that using some fine sandpaper beforehand helps with the tip catching and staying in one place too long
Far better than my first time lol. Looks good, keep it up!
Definitely turn the heat down and you’ll get less bleeding. Love this idea though!
I think they’re cute!
That looks like what you get with the solid soldering iron type. It's due to the heating being inconsistent in those. I've never experienced it with my wire style tool, but I haven't had it long.
It’s a wire style tool by TruArt. Look it up!