Deltacad print layers4/18/2024 ![]() I think that their bead burning pen is even better than the old DetailMaster pen. Fortunately, after several of us who did basket illusion pieces discussed this online, Harvey Meyer contacted PJL Enterprises, the company that makes the Optima 1 burner and pens and they created a special pen that precisely matches the ⅛" D-Way beading tool profile. When DetailMaster went out of business, there weren't any good options. They were a special order item and hard to get, but they were the best by a long shot. Originally, I used DetailMaster beading pens. Sanity isn't a requirement, but perseverance is. Despite all the tedious work, I've found that the end result is highly rewarding. Actually, even the less than perfect pieces will look good. Don't plan on instantly becoming an expert and you won't be disappointed. The first few pieces may not look great, but each one is a necessary part of the learning process.Īs far as lessons learned, I could probably write a book, but don't plan on it. I'm sure that there's a zillion other things that I forgot to mention. That actually might be a good thing because that means you will be good to go for producing more basket illusion pieces. The pyrography work is the slowest and most mind-numbing tedious part and by the end of the first piece you feel like you have gone half crazy. Trying to do it by eyeball just won't hack it. That is a very tedious process, but the results are worth it. I then print it out full size on large format paper and transfer marks to the wood. ![]() To lay out the pattern, I first draw it in a CAD program that I use, DeltaCad. I pattern my work after the style of Jim Adkins which emphasizes realistic reproductions of Native American basket designs. If you search for Harvey Meyer, his work is an excellent example of that style. One is a design made popular by the late David Nittmann where the beads are divided into even rows and columns of tiles and colored with India ink or paints. There are basically two schools of thought on creating the beading design. For turning large thin piece like this, you also will need a thick leather glove to steady the wood while beading it. The thickness also needs to be realistic. The beading and patterns on the front and back need to match closely for realism. The piece below is 14½" diameter, about 3" deep, and about ¼" thick at the top of the beads and scary thin between the beads. It seems to be hard to find in large sizes so you're on your own on that. The wood that I use is maple, preferably hard maple. You will also need ink refills, nibs, and possibly other supplies like toners and fine line pens for detail work. There are many sources, but has the best selection and prices by far. For example, on the Navajo Wedding Basket design shown below I used Burnt Sienna for the red and Dark Bark for the black. I use Copic Original (Classic) markers with super fine nibs for coloring the patterns and select colors that closely emulate original Native American materials used in weaving. Plan on also investing a lot of time refining your skills in this area. ![]() Years ago, I took a woodburning class from Andi Wolfe and more recently I took a class from Janice Levi. If you haven't done any pyrography before, you really ought to take at least one class to learn the skills that separate scorching wood from drawing on wood. For the herringbone rim I use a medium size DetailMaster skew pen, but Optima has similar skew pens. You will also need an assortment of other pens. Since then they have also created additional bead burning pens to match other sizes of D-Way beading tools. ![]() Originally, I used DetailMaster bead burning pens. There are two sizes that I use, ⅛" and ³⁄ 16" My first couple pieces were done with Sorby beading tools, but they really aren't well adapted to this purpose. For beading, the tools from D-Way are by far the the best. ![]()
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