If you missed my previous post, I talk about how I was recuperating from the PA Gourd fest.  It was a great time, but does leave me exhausted afterwards!  In that post, you will see some photos of my "best of show" gourd, Pangur Ban.  I will link to it here.  

In this post, I want to also share with you the other gourd I entered, I call it Tern, Tern, Tern.

This design actually started on a different gourd.  The shape had a bit of a strange curve on the top that reminded me of a wave, and I thought I could carve it that way.  I was so excited after drawing out all my ideas including lots of seabirds for this that I was just crushed when I cut and cleaned the gourd and not only was it too thin to handle this design, but it broke during the cleaning process.  

So, I just picked a different gourd and it turned out to be a better choice.  Or terned (haha bad pun!) The whole gourd was a sort of a mixed media experiment.  I threw a lot of different art supplies at this!  I was still able to keep my carved wave idea, and I sectioned off the gourd to have pyrography and color.  One strip at the center and the bottom is done with transparent acrylics, while the rest is painted with watercolor over a ground.

The terns themselves are pyrography, with colored pencil, and also inktense to really bring out the white highlights.

My favorite detail on this gourd is not of the birds at all, but the whales that are swimming under them.  

This was an incredibly challenging, yet fun gourd to work on!  It was a bit experimental as I have not done watercolor on a gourd to this level before.  Working watercolor on a ground is a very different from working on paper and takes some getting used to.  But I really love the effects that can be had with this technique.

The PA Gourd Fest was last weekend and I needed a few days to recover!  It was a great time and I always enjoy spending time with other gourd enthusiasts.  The four classes I taught were full and so much fun.  It was delightful to reconnect with gourd friends I have not seen since last year, and meet new ones!
I entered two gourds in the competition, and intentionally kept them a secret until afterwards.  Let me tell you about the first one, Pangur Ban.

This is Pangur Ban, The Monk's Cat.  This gourd actually won Best of Show!  I have done a gourd on this theme many years ago, and it still is an idea that I get excited about.  There is a poem written by a medieval monk in the margins of his grammar book (I guess he got bored with his grammar haha!) about his cat, Pangur Ban.  It is about how he and his cat go about their appointed work, the monk with his words and the cat hunting mice.  I imagine that the monk was also a scribe, surrounded by piles of parchment and books in various stages of completion, and his cat prowling and keeping an eye out for any mice that may come to nibble at his master's work.  

Here is a closer look at the three sides.  The first being Pangur, perched atop the open book (and the detail of the book is a bit of the poem in Irish Gaelic.  Look closely and you will see a little mouse peeking over the border at the top.  This is all done with pyrography, and a touch of gold leaf.

This next side is of the little mouse, safe at the moment.  I decided to make use of a Celtic spiral design for his backdrop. 

The third side is Pangur again, taking a little rest atop a closed book.  My own cat was the model for both sides, although I changed the coloring because Pangur is technically supposed to be white.  

Here is the original poem, and translation following:

Messe ocus Pangur Bán,
cechtar nathar fria saindán;
bíth a menma-sam fri seilgg,
mu menma céin im saincheirdd

Caraim-se fos, ferr cach clú,
oc mu lebrán léir ingnu;
ní foirmtech frimm Pangur bán,
caraid cesin a maccdán.

Ó ru·biam — scél cen scís —
innar tegdais ar n-óendís,
táithiunn — díchríchide clius —
ní fris tarddam ar n-áthius.

Gnáth-húaraib ar gressaib gal
glenaid luch inna lín-sam;
os mé, du·fuit im lín chéin
dliged n-doraid cu n-dronchéill.

Fúachid-sem fri frega fál
a rosc anglése comlán;
fúachimm chéin fri fégi fis
mu rosc réil, cesu imdis,

Fáelid-sem cu n-déne dul
hi·n-glen luch inna gérchrub;
hi·tucu cheist n-doraid n-dil,
os mé chene am fáelid.

Cía beimmi amin nach ré,
ní·derban cách ar chéle.
Maith la cechtar nár a dán,
subaigthius a óenurán.

Hé fesin as choimsid dáu
in muid du·n-gní cach óenláu;
du thabairt doraid du glé
for mu mud céin am messe.

Translation: Robin Flower 1912 The Poem Book of the Gael
​
I and Pangur Bán my cat,
'Tis a like task we are at:
Hunting mice is his delight,
Hunting words I sit all night.
Better far than praise of men
'Tis to sit with book and pen;
Pangur bears me no ill-will,
He too plies his simple skill.
'Tis a merry task to see
At our tasks how glad are we,
When at home we sit and find
Entertainment to our mind.
Oftentimes a mouse will stray
In the hero Pangur's way;
Oftentimes my keen thought set
Takes a meaning in its net.
'Gainst the wall he sets his eye
Full and fierce and sharp and sly;
'Gainst the wall of knowledge I
All my little wisdom try.
When a mouse darts from its den,
O how glad is Pangur then!
O what gladness do I prove
When I solve the doubts I love!
So in peace our task we ply,
Pangur Ban, my cat, and I;
In our arts we find our bliss,
I have mine and he has his.
Practice every day has made
Pangur perfect in his trade;
I get wisdom day and night
Turning darkness into light.

You may also like this little clip from The Secret of Kells, a beautiful animation by Tomm Moore.  If you at all love the history of illuminated manuscripts, and love animation, this one will knock your socks off.  One of my all time favorites!

Ok, I have another gourd to share with you, but I will do this in another post since this one got so very long!
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As I write this, I am listening to the sound of a mourning dove calling.  A familiar spring sound that I have quite forgotten about over the winter.  The local greenhouses are filling up with beautiful plants and I am finding myself browsing them and using all my willpower not to buy more than I have room for this year!

​My attentions have been divided,  one part of me working on gourd art, one part trying to work on nature studies/sketches/watercolor, and my. newest passion, baking with wheat that I am milling myself! 

While I stuff myself with fresh milled banana muffins, I am staring at a gourd that I have an idea for.  Although, this gourd is my second choice, my first one didn't make the cut, literally.  After I cut the gourd and started cleaning it,  the side broke as it really was too thin to use.  But I am pretty excited about what it is going to be, I still have some compositional issues to work out, and that is all I am going to share about that for now!
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I have several gourds all in different stages of completion.  Some are done except for the rims.  Some have drawings but I have not started burning yet.  And too many just cut and waiting for me to figure them out.  Along with that my sketchbooks have been the most active, as I have been drawing out lots of ideas and studies but not quite sure where they are going yet.    One thing is for sure, after working on classes and smaller artworks and studies, I am gearing up to work on some larger, more involved pieces.
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Last month I started this barn owl gourd as a livestream pyrography demo, it seems like ages ago but I finally finished the gourd!  I wanted to keep it looking mostly dark with the barn owl being the focus.  It is too easy to be fancy with the Celtic border and have it vie for the attention.  I opted for an unobtrusive pop of copper leaf to give it just a little shine.

This is another from the chipmunk livestream, all finished.  I gave him a nice fancy swirly border.

And this one finished, you may have also seen me working on in a couple YouTube videos.  This one has a fox on the one side, and a rabbit on the other, with Celtic knotwork and a pine needle rim.

I will begin with the classes that I will be teaching at the PA Gourd Festival.  This year I will be teaching 4 classes over the June 11-13 event.    The theme of this year's fest is Furry & Feathered Friends, so right up my alley!

CHIPMUNK NEST

This class is a pyrography wall hanging from a cut gourd.  I have taught this class before, but for updated for this year.  
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I have changed the pattern slightly and also am including the use of colored pencil to accent the pyrography.

This is a class for those who really want to know their shading, create fur texture and work with negative space.  Lots to do with tonal values in this class and most suitable for students who are intermediate level.

SUPERB FAIRYWREN

I am currently obsessed with these birds and this is the first one that I made, and the intention to teach this one came as an afterthought.  Adding mixed media to pyrography has been a keen interest of mine and this project gives just a tiny touch of that without being overwhelming. 
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This class is another intermediate level as we will be using a shader to create a bit of detail in the wren.  A little finesse in the painting is also required, but the end result is beautiful and lifelike.

CELTIC FOX

For this new class I had the beginner in mind, but an intermediate pyrographer will find this enjoyable too. 

​Many people are intimidated by using the shading pen and I decided to tailor this project to using only one pen, the ball tip.  The beginner pyrographer will find the ball tip very forgiving. 

​This is a perfect class for someone who just bought a burning kit and just wants to invest in a simple pen that you can do a lot with. 

BARN OWL

For more information on the PA Gourd Fest, and to register for classes click the button below. 
​Registration opens up on April 1st.

Now, let's move on to my online classes on Gourd Studio Workshop.  These classes are on the theme of Enhanced Pyrography and were developed on classes that I have taught in person in the past.  I chose these three classes because they were my most popular. 

​ Not all of these are available yet but will be very soon as I am currently working on setting them up on the website.  If you are signed up for my newsletter, you will get a notification when they open up.

 BLUE MORPHO available now!

EMBOSSED CELTIC DRAGON just launched!

DRAGONFLY SOLIEL coming soon!

I am excited to share all these new classes with you and I hope I will see you in one of them, either in person or online!  Happy Gourding!!

**Note: You can watch the accompanying video now on YouTube here: ​https://youtu.be/8BQ7x-Cnou4 

As the each show season came and went; the rest of my art progressed while this gourd stood still frozen in time.  The more my other art improved with new experimentations the less appealing this poor gourd started to appear.  There was not anything wrong with it.  It just wasn't up to par with the rest of my work.  I was beginning to feel embarrassed for even displaying it anymore.  That is when I decided to do something bold.
​

I pulled the gourd and decided to give it an overhaul.  I took it into the shed and sanded the finish off.  Then I repainted the inside and put weights in the bottom.  I put weights in all my gourds now but this was made before then.

I scoured my old photo files to find my original reference photo.  Then I pulled out my woodburner and re-pyrographied the herons on both sides.  It had faded and also lost color when I sanded the finish off.  so I set to darken all the pyrography back in.

Next, I went in with colored pencils, and then with transparent acrylic paints.  

When this was done, I set to work on the carved panels.  When I first carved these, I wasn't using much color overall, so I had opted for a yellow ochre tinge to the entire panel. Now I thought it needed to stand out more, so I wanted to paint in the rainbow trout.  I wanted the trout to really look metallic and reflective, so I first added a layer of silver leaf before I started painting.

Below are the before and after photos of this gourd.

So what do you think of the transformation?  This gourd almost went into the trash, but as you can see it was worth giving it some love!  If you would like to see more and watch over my shoulder while I worked on this you can view the companion video here: https://youtu.be/8BQ7x-Cnou4

I do wonder though how much of what we artists "put out there" are really seen.  When we post a photo on insta, that photo is buried under millions of other posts and ads, even if you "follow' me, you may not ever see it.  Or just scroll quickly past, as these aps are designed to make you do.  Even though this blog is here and available for masses of views, you still may never find the link or even bother to look.  If you are on my newsletter list you will have the best chance of seeing my newest work, since I will send you an email directly to your inbox with a message and link for you to follow and look.  But even then, not everyone looks.  So in that sense, if somehow you found this blog post,  even with all the noise that is out there, you have an exclusive look at my new art before anyone else sees it.  And I am very glad you are here.

First, some ornaments.  I make these all year round and try to make enough but I do limit how much I make so I don't burn out.  It is a fine tightrope I balance here.  I never want to make art that feels trudgey to make.  I know I made up a word here.  Trudgey, like trudging through mud and kind of uninspired.  I want to be excited about all the pieces I make so when I share it with you, it will be exciting to share and hopefully you will also be excited to see it.  Anyway, I have made probably over a thousand ornaments over the years.  And I am still excited to show you my new ornaments, I have made many of them with new art nouveau style borders.  Here is a few:

Now, on to a few larger pieces (below).  If you click the photos, you will be able to read the caption for each with more detail.  I will talk a little more about a couple of them here.

​I had been experimenting with painting over gold leaf, and that has been interesting incorporating that in my gourd art style.  On the Iris (top far left) and the Barn Swallow (top far right) the backgrounds have been done with painted gold leaf.  At first I was a little nervous not to "mess up" the painting and was a bit tentative in my painting.  However, after my initial coat of paint, I wasn't very happy with, so as I continued to paint more and more I found I was covering up too much gold.  Did I forget that you can layer gold leaf over paint?  Yes I did.  Then I remembered.  And back it went, layered gold over the paint and started again.  Happy now.

The Rabbit and Peonies (bottom center) was completed on a fairly large size gourd that I had sitting on my shelf for a while.  It is one of those gourds that was so nice and I wanted to be sure my design would do it justice.  My peony blooms were lovely this year.  I have been trying to paint them in watercolor.  More on that another time if you are interested, let me know in the comments.  But as I was trimming off the old blooms and looking at the plant, with its drooping boughs arching over heavy with sweetly scented flowers, I thought, if I were small, like a rabbit, this is where I would go to rest.  ​

If you are reading to this part of the post, I thank you for taking the time.  And in case you were wondering, no AI was used in the writing of this post, 100% human here with all my flaws.
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​If you are further interested, I have made some short videos showing me working on a few of these gourds.  You can view them following the links below.

Earlier I was checking on my gourd vines that are growing lots of leaves and no fruit, which at this late in the season does not make me happy.  All of a sudden I saw something out of the corner of my eye.  And there it was - a hummingbird moth hovering around the butterfly bush that is planted next to the gourd patch.    At that moment I did not have my camera, but I did have my phone and was able to shoot a short video.   A little while later I brought my camera with the longer lens out with me as I tried to move some gourd vines that were going where I didn't want them.  Gotta train those unruly vines!  Well there she was again, these tiny flowers must have a lot of good stuff in them for her to have been hanging around so long.  

As I stood, perched precariously on the steep slope that is at the upper part of the gourd patch, with camera in hand, there also came a few little skipper butterflies.  I never looked so close to these.  After reviewing my photos, I was struck by how fluffy these are.  Here is a cropped photo so you can see the adorable fluff.  This little skipper was resting on a gourd leaf, how sweet.

A black swallowtail butterfly came to visit as well!  There were two of them but the other was a bit spazzy and wouldn't stay in one place long enough for me to get a photo.  I have some dill planted just for these, since it is a favorite host plants for the caterpillars.  I am checking every day for eggs!

I know this isn't like one of my usual posts, but I wanted to share.  Thankful for these little beauties to remind me of slowing down and enjoying God's creation 🧡

1. YOUR PEN IS TOO HOT

Many students turn up the heat too far and burn too hot. This results in hot spots or areas that get scorched and uneven.  If you want a gradient tone, you will never get it with a pen that is too hot.  
Not to state the obvious, but when you see hot spots and you cannot control it, your pen might be too hot.  Other signs are a glowing red tip, excessive smoke while burning, and a gourd that ignites.  

My suggestion to help this is to keep a tester piece, a scrap of gourd that you can try your heat before burning on your final gourd.  That way you can test the heat of the pen and make sure you are burning cool enough to make a mark, but not so hot that you cannot control it.

2. YOU ARE BURNING TOO FAST

This is kind of related to the first one.  Instead of building tone in layers, students try to achieve the tone in one go and usually burn too hot at the start.  What happens is the smooth tone you set out for will turn out splotchy and probably darker that you want.  Remember you can always go over it again for darker tones.  

To remedy, try to shoot for a shade or two light that you need, then slowly go over again until it darkens up.  Yes it takes longer, bur by going over it again you will fill in any holes and gaps and it will turn out smoother.

3. YOU ARE IMPATIENT

I know it is difficult but trying to get your burning done in one sitting is most likely not going to happen unless your gourd is very small.  Impatience will lead to you being tempted to do what we talked about in points 1 and 2, as well as not paying close attention to where your tonal values are and burning it just to "get it done".  Pyrography and rushing just do not go hand in hand.  
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The solution?  Learn to love the process.  Although you may be anxious to see your idea burn in you mind come to life under your fingers, this is a special thing and not to be rushes.  I love the time I can sit and work on a gourd burning, watching my design unfold and enter into this calm feeling of timelessness.  Even if you are on a limited time frame to work on your gourd pyrography, set realistic goals for yourself in the time you have to give.  Know and accept that in this time you may only complete a few square inches, and that is ok.

4. YOU ARE COVERING TOO MUCH GROUND

This one I see all too frequently.  Students moving the pen, frantically this way and that and not giving the pen time to do its work.  Or using wide swift strokes, the pen's contact mostly being at the beginning and end of the stroke resulting in spots as the pen swings back and forth.

​The fix here Is to keep your pen In contact with the gourd, and use small strokes close together.

5. INCONSISTENT SPEED

When you are burning, keep an eye on the speed you are moving your pen.   Do you move the pen fast, then slow down and then proceed to move it fast again?  This could be another culprit of why your shading is turning out spotty and uneven.  Sometimes a design or the gourd itself necessitates a change in pen speed bur this is when it is controlled and intentional.  Again, temperature plays a big role here.  If you like to keep your pen fairly hot then you will need to move your pen faster, hence if you keep the pen cooler you will need to slow it down, in either case, try to keep it moving at a steady, consistent pace.

6. IT'S NOT YOU, IT'S YOUR PEN

Several reasons could point to why it's your pen.  First is to check your connections.  A sloppy connection from the cord to the pen, or the pen to the burner regulator would cause it not not heat properly, or not at all.  Make sure the cords are pushed in all the way.  This is more common than you think, and like turning your computer off and on again will solve the issue!

​Another common issue is your pen is simply dirty.  Excess carbon build up will definitely decrease the smoothness of your burning, as there is now a grit on your pen that you are trying to scrape across the gourd.  If you are burning and it feels gritty, it is time to clean your pen.  Long periods of neglect will require a good cleaning with something abrasive.  I use a piece of leather with a tiny bit of fine honing compound added to it.  But beware of doing this too often, as it will cause more wear and tear on your pen. 

The best thing to do is frequently wipe your pen down on a piece of thick cloth, I like to use a piece of denim cut from old jeans.  That way the carbon will not build up over time and you will save the life of your pen.

7. IT'S NOT YOU, IT'S YOUR GOURD

When all else fails, it just may be your gourd.  I hate to lay the blame on the poor gourd but there you have it.  I have had to put a few gourds aside because they just were not burning well.  Some varieties, such as cannonball and basketball, are well known for their waxy residue on their shell. Some gourds have a more pronounces crackly appearance, like leather that causes fine lines when you burn over them as the heat does not get to the recessed areas.  If this is the case, you can either "go with the flow" and incorporate that into your design.  Or you can just use this gourd for a different type of project, listen to what your gourd wants!
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Another tip here, mold patterns can also alter the density or how quickly a gourd burns, sometimes the light areas burn fast, or even the darker ones may.  That is yet another reason to start with a lower heat while you get to know the idioyncrities of the gourd you are working on.

Hope this helped you!  Is gourd shading difficult for you?  Or maybe something else?  Let's talk about it, leave a comment and let me know!
Until next time, 
​Happy Gourding!

​After about 10 years of heavy use my Burnmaster was asking to be retired.  She still works, but is not at the optimum efficiency.  She buzzes, her cords get hot, and pens are not retaining their heat as consistently as they used to. 

​So the little lady will have a rest, and if she is willing she might be helpful as a lender if someone is in need during a class. 

​I decided to purchase a Razertip SL3. 
 
Briefly, I like the Razertip SL3. There are 3 ports for pens, and a memory for each port so it retains the same heat level when you turn the unit off and on again.  There is a fan that will run to protect against “internal thermal overload”.  And my favorite, the lowest settings are very low allowing for a greater range for cool burning.  In the video below I will go into more details about how she works and how I am liking her so far. 
 
Along with the burner unit, I figured I would go all out and purchase new pens and cords.  What I didn’t’ mention in the video is that the new cords are especially attractive to one of my cats!  I mean, the smell drives him wild like he can’t think of anything but having a good nosh on them.  This wasn’t the case with the previous cords, so I am not sure what is different about these.  Any road, that means I have to make sure we get packed up when I am not in the studio.   

If you are interested in getting a new burner, an upgrade or just curious about this particular unit, have a watch and happy gourding!  And happy burning!  Happy gourd burning 😄

The three day PA Gourd Fest was such a nice time and I am sad it is over.  I have reserved sharing photos of a couple of gourds I intended on entering into the competition.  Now that it is past I can show them to you now and tell you a little more about them.

In keeping with the PA Fest theme of "mystical"; I decided to make a fantasy forest scene.  This one I titled "Fangorn Forest" inspired by J.R.R. Tolkein's Lord of the Rings.  I took a little artistic liberty, I know there are no dragons and unicorns in Fangorn forest in the books.  But they could right?   I wanted the forest also interspersed with "real" animals I like to draw.  A little humor, the one Ent is shocked the flying squirrel just might land on his face!  

​This gourd is 100% pyrography with only a couple touches of white pencil to bring out the stag and the unicorns.  It was loads of fun to do!

I also made up a short video of the process of making this gourd, you can see it on YouTube here:​

This next gourd is more realistic but I titled it "The Dragons of Dúlamán".  The meaning behind it is the seahorses are called leafy sea-dragons, and weedy sea-dragons, and dúlamán means seaweed in Gaelic.  I had been sketching these by memory into a sketchbook, then worked a watercolor of them.  At some point I decided on expanding the design to work on a gourd.  I used pyrography, colored pencil, acrylic, and metallic pigment powder.  I also carved the bubbles and water foam accents.