As many of you know, I am a huge fan of adding color to your Pyrography Art. Not only does it make your work more dramatic, but definitely more appealing. The key to remember when adding color to Pyrography work is to do the wood burning first! Paint and burning on stains can be toxic and you definitely want to make sure all burning is complete before adding any color mediums...and as I always say--wear your masks!
What type of mediums or color should I use?
There are many types of mediums you can use to add a pop of color to your work and I will discuss a few of them below:
Basic Colored Pencils: These are nice if you are just beginning wood burning and are interested in adding some color. The issue I have with them is that they do not blend well and they just add a very basic color structure. But, if you are new to wood burning, this is a great way to get started in adding color to your work.
Water Color Pencils: These are a fabulous choice for adding color to your Pyrography Art. They offer bright, beautiful, bold colors. Most of all, they blend beautifully with water and are very easy to control. I highly recommend water color pencils for wood burning projects.
Acrylic Paint: Acrylic Paint is another fabulous choice to add bold color to your work. However, paint tends to work better for larger areas while color pencils work much better for finer detailing. Acrylic Paint dries quicker and is very easy clean up.
Oil Pencils: Oil Pencils are more for an advanced Artist. Oil pencils work very well for adding beautiful colors to your artwork. They are not as soft as water color pencils and they do not blend as easily. However, the advantage of oil pencils is that they do not create a "wax bloom" on your work. A wax bloom is a hazy white glaze that tends to show up after using water color and basic color pencils. This is very good if you are doing large artwork or very detailed work. Oil pencils do tend to cost more than most other colored pencils, which I recommend them for more advanced artists.
Oil Paint: Oil paint is another option I recommend for a more advanced artist. Oil paint is a fabulous choice for wood. However, you must prime the wood before painting with oil paint. Once your surface has been primed, it can be painted with oil paints quite easily and they look fabulous!
Also, after using any type of color on your Artwork, make sure you seal your work to avoid humidity, mold and other problems.
I do hope this encourages you to try to add some color to your Pyrography Artwork....It does add much to your Artwork and I think you will be quite impressed by how it looks.
--M Zwierko
Pyrography Artist