[Irish]

Step 49: I am working the sides and bottom area of the acorn, still at temp setting 5 and using the pull line stroke.

Step 49A: You can see in this photo where I have added those new shading layers. I have worked the mid-tone area under the center highlights, along both sides of the acorn and a little on the side of the tip.

Step 50: I believe that I have enough of the mid tones in the acorn worked to remove my pencil tracing lines.

Step 51: I have moved my temp setting up to 7 to work those really deep shadow areas. Notice that I have kept that darkness away from the very edge of the acorn.

Step 52: Even at the higher temps I do work in layers. Here I am adding a second layer to the darkest tones. Notice the new mid tone strips or lines on the left side of the tip. These were areas that were still fairly pale from the last layer burning. They caught my attention and I decided to keep them by not burning over them in this layer. They seem to add a nice unexpected color change and line to an otherwise flat area.

Susan

[Irish]

Step 53: The last area of the acorn to add an extra level is under the cap. Just as on the body of the acorn the cap has it's darkest shadows along the edge then lightens slightly towards the center point.

Step 54: An over view of where we are at in the burning.

Step 55A - 55C: My general working patterns is to tuck first then work the highlights and shadows to give shape. Here's a quick look at how that works in what we have already done.

Remember that the mapping stage is over the entire pattern to establish where each element lies within the design ... it's a tuck burn. Since I am working the entire pattern the shadow stage came when I burned the dark background to the project.

Next I tucked the leaves under the acorn and branch then did the shadow stage by adding the shaping to the leaves.

In the third photo here the tuck stage is to firmly put the acorn into the cap by working the cap shadow. Then I added the shaping to the rest of the acorn.

Susan

[Irish]

Step 56: I am far enough along, finally, to check my gray scale values. Some times the color of the burning can be a little deceiving. So an easy way to check if I am getting strong pale, medium and dark tones is for me to either photograph or scan the work then gray scale the photo.

By removing the color information I can check for bright white areas, mid tone values and black values. Right now the blackest tone is in the background just above the mouse and the palest is the three highlights in the acorn.

Step 57: While we are doing value checks I also want to check how much room I have left for the final shadow stages which I will burn once the branch and mouse have been shaped.

The easiest way to do this is with a piece of white paper and scissors. By cutting small holes in the paper I can compare one small spot of tonal coloring to another without the pattern work interfering. I can see that I have lots of room for richer, deeper coloring in the coming stages.

Back to burning... Susan

[chpster90bu]

Susan....I just have to tell you this is the most fantastic tutorial I have ever seen.....watching this in awe! Can't thank you enough for all this information. Will continue to follow!! Bonnie

[Irish]

Step 58: I am going to add another texture stroke to my practice board, the scribble line. This is just a quick, back and forth, tight line texture that works well for me to fill in an area with fairly even coloring at medium temperature settings. At high temp setting it can create a mosaic or tile pattern in the burning.

Step 58A: I thought I would throw this photo in also ... this is what my burning area really looks like when I am working. Often I will move the board onto the edge of my table so the board has some tilt or angle to it. This
give me a more comfortable hand position. I can easily turn the project as I work so the strokes are always pulled toward me, never away.

The heavy tile is a left over habit from my one temp burning tool. It's a half inch thick, glazed stoneware floor tile that seems impervious to heat.

The early models of one temp tools (about 25 years ago) did not come with a stand or prop for the tool tip. So when you were finished burning or needed to change tips there was no safe place to put the tool down on the table.

That heavy tile has meant that even though I have left carving cuts in my table, magic marker strokes from pattern work and even big stains from my oil paints and turpentine there are no wood burning scorches. I still use that tile with any burning just for my safety and piece of mind.

I do keep notes with any wood burning. Just very simple ones as Acorn cap - write - write - doodle - #7 which, of course, reads I am using the writing position in a random doodle stroke at temp setting #7 and the writing tip.
After the burn is completed I throw those notes into my file box with the patterns, reference photos and any paper maps that I created.

This way if I accidental do something different or create an area that I really want to use again I can go back and figure out just how I did it. No guessing and no depending on memory.

Susan

Editing Notes: That little finger in the work table photo is an invaluable asset to how I hold my tool. I don't want my tool holding fingers on the board and sure don't want the side of my hand set down. Both of these positions anchor my hand into one place and therefore limits the movement I can get with my pen tip.

But if I just keep my hand above the board with no anchor or support I don't have the control over smooth flowing strokes. So my solution is to anchor my hand with the tip of my little finger. It's a strong anchor that lefts me freely move the tool tip and to change the height of my hand and therefore the tool tip from the board.

[Irish]

Step 59: We will be working the acorn cap and branch in this series of photos.

The acorn cap is probably the most textured element in the pattern and I want to capture that texturing right away. So I turned up my temp setting to 7 1/2 for a fairly hot tip. This is a touch and pull line stroke that leaves a dark spot at the beginning of the burn. I have started each stroke at the top of each individual acorn cap 'petal' then pull the stroke in a soft curve that matches that petal shape.

These lines are the darkest in the burning to this point and about as dark as the background. By burning them first I can work the entire cap as one unit yet keep the individual petal look.

Step 60: Very hot burns not only create dark visual textures they also create actual textures in the work. You can see that in both the touch and lift spot background and the touch and pull line work in the cap that the tool tip is burning deep into the wood.

Step 61: If I want finer lines I lift the tool upright onto its tip. This is the paint brush position where the tool is perpendicular to the wood. If I want wider lines I drop the tool tip into a writing position. For extra wide deep lines I just pull that tip, in the writing position, with a slower pace.

Susan

[Irish]

Step 62: There are two things happening in this photo step. First I have begun to work some shading into the cap petals. I am using a temp setting of just below #7 and a scribble line texture. The scribble line is just a quick
short back and forth line that you would use to fill in a doodle on a piece of paper. It works wonderfully for even shading in tight areas as this.

Because the stroke is created with a fairly fast motion I need to keep the temp setting up for a mid-range tonal value.

I am working that scribble line from the top edge of each petal where it tucks under the petal above it. Plus I am leaving a thin edge at the bottom of each petal unburned. So even though I am getting a shaded coloring that I would get on a slower motion stroke at temp setting 5 1/2 or 6 I need to adjust the temp setting to compensate for this quick little line work.

As I was working the cap petals along the edge of the acorn I began leaving my thin area of reflected light, a small sliver of unburned area on the cap between the cap and the tucked leaf. Yet I could see that the leaf tones just
were not dark enough now with the addition of shading in the cap. In the photo you can that I am adding another layer of shading to the tucked leaf area to drop that tonal value into a darker coloring.

I could have done this later in the work, during the final toning stage but often I will add this type of quick color change while I can see it and am thinking about it.

Step 63: While I am working the cap area for shaping I want to add the mouse's shadow. I am working this in the same scribble line that I am using for the rest of the cap and I have a reason for that ... There are two shadows
happening in the acorn cap. The first is the shadows that are cast by cap petals onto other cap petals. The second is the mouse's shadow cast onto the cap shadows.

How a shadow looks is dependent not on what casts the shadow but on the surface that holds that shadow. So it is not important that the shadows are creating by two different elements. Our shadows on the cap, both the petal
and mouse, need to be textured in the same way.

If a shadow falls on a smooth surface the Shadow will be smooth. If the surface has grid lines in it the shadow will have grid lines.

Step 64: I have finished the mouse shadow and the right side of the cap. The middle area of the cap has just a little shading in it at this moment. I have worked enough shading in to define the cap petals so I am going to erase my pattern lines now.

Step 65: So, Susan, now that just threw in that mouse's shadow on us ... how did you decide where it belonged ?" Good question! Notice in the photo there are three arrows. Arrow 1 points toward two cap petals that sticks up in front of the mouse's belly. Those petals are in front of the mouse and raised to cover part of his body. So they are too high to have a shadow cast upon them.

Arrow 2 shows the shadow cast from the mouse's head area. Because the head is large that shadow needs to be large. Also the area where the shadow from the head is cast is a trapped area ... that part of the cap is between his head and his arm ... the entire area would become shadowed.

Arrow 3 shows that shadow cast by his arm. Since I am assuming a light source - we have no firm light direction - I can assume a shadow that is no thicker or wider then the element that cast the Shadow. So the shadow from his arm on the cap is burned about the same size as his arm.

Susan

[Irish]

Step 66: I am doing a general, overall medium temp burning with the scribble stroke to blend in my shadows on the acorn cap.

Step 67: Here's a quick look with a scan of where we are so far. Notice the very nice deep texture lines in the acorn cap and how they have held their integrity through the other burnings laid upon them.

Step 68: I am using that same scribble stroke along the sides of the branch. Since I scorched part of the branch when I burned the background I scribble this area first to even out the burning. Then I worked both sides of the branch.

Step 69: After the sides of the branch were worked I added a little scribble shadows around the base of the side branches and at the end of the large b ranch.

Susan

[Irish]

Step 70: I decided that I needed my background inner circle darker so I have set the temp up to 9 and am re-working with the touch and lift spot.

Step 71: Here's a quick check of today's work.

Susan

So at this point I am making a quick note here that my Colwood Detailer is doing a wonderful job. It has done everything that I have asked concerning temperature control, evenness of the tip temp, little or no heat lose from touching the wood and a very comfortable grip in both hand position and grip temperature ... Very, very nice so far! I am quite pleased.

Edit Notes: Please go to posting #132 for the next WIP steps.

[WOODIE13]

Nice to see Susan, very nice work