[WOODIE13]

Not yet, may have to try it.

[sueo]

Hi! I'm new to this site. My name is sueo. I have done some burning on tree fungi, with good results. I just made sure the fungi was dry and kept my burner on low and after I was done with the burning I brushed the surface lightly with a soft brush to blend the lines. Then I sprayed it with a sealer to keep the dust off. This is mostly trial and error, but I had good results.

[Sharynideas]

I finally finished burning my conk.

It didn't turn out great but it was a great learning experience.1) Apparently there were dark areas that weren't standing out too much when I was burning, but as soon as I put a finish coat on the conk, they really stood out. 2)I was using a pen and ink drawing as a pattern, and the flowers and water threw me. They aren't nearly as nice as I would like them to be, but I'm not an artist and I couldn't figure out how to correct the look without ruining the rest so I finished it the way it was.
3. Conk is irreversible. Once there's a mark on it, there's no way to remove it.

[sueo]

Txs for your reply. I have done two pieces, one with pyrograph and one using ink. Both turned out well. They are touchy to work.

[Lindy]

Sharynideas - that is drop dead gorgeous! You should be really proud it.

Thanks for sharing!

Lindy

[brian@goldennorth]

Up here in Alaska, we get conks (fungas) that are very hearty from birch trees. The upper shell is as hard as wood, and the underbelly is a beautiful light tan. I have burned quite a few. There is no preparation needed. The ones I burned 10 years ago still look fresh. I mainly burn wildlife on them (grizzly, wolf, moose, owl, eagle). Those are easy because your basically burning light and dark tones of brown. The toughest one was a breaching bowhead whale. I won an award at a fair for that one in the catagory of natural carved items, I was competing against scrimshawed ivory.

It takes a while to find the right ones. There are softer fungus, or old and grey fungus that are useless to attempt burning on. But when I find a nice one, My imagination runs and i can't wait to start burning.

Good luck. I hope this helps.

[Ron T]

Hi Brian,

Welcome. Your burnings sound superb. I would love to see some if you're able to post some photos.

[brian@goldennorth]

Hello, Ron. I have some photos I will put onto my computer. I may need help on how to post them on this site. I should be ready by tomorrow (at work right now). Thanks for the comments. I hope you find they look as interesting as they sound.

Brian

[Ron T]

Hi Brian,

thanks a lot. I'm sure I'm not alone on this, but whenever I hear someone mention a "new" (to me) wood or stick I get excited.

[TreeWizard]

I've never burned one but as a little guy we used to collect them in dad's woods while they were fresh and draw what we wanted on the soft underside. You then set it aside and when it drys the disturbed area will turn brown and look like it was burned.