Is Driftwood Pyrography Safe? – 6 Ideas For Driftwood Projects
Why bother with all those sanding and polishing of wood for pyrography when you can get something unique and more aesthetic from nature? Driftwood pyrography is not something you commonly see, and that is for many reasons. So in today’s article, you will learn all about using driftwood for pyrography and whether you should use such wood at all or not.
Is Driftwood Safe for Pyrography?
Before you get all set for this genre of pyrography, you should know whether it is safe and the reason why we don’t see much driftwood burning work.
Toxic Fume
Driftwood contains salt. And when you burn it, the salt-saturated wood begins to release a toxic chemical known as dioxin. So burning driftwood is as bad as, in fact, it is worse than burning chemically treated wood.
Bad For Asthma Patients
Inhaling the fumes from driftwood burning is harmful to health, causing mild to severe health issues. If you inhale the smoke or the dioxin that driftwood releases, it can lead to various problems, especially for people with asthma or bronchitis.
Life-Threatening
Health experts warn against burning driftwood frequently or for long periods because some people are more vulnerable to it than others. It is highly dangerous for children, pregnant women, elderly people, etc. Moreover, inhaling fumes of highly toxic driftwood can even cause cancer.
Can You Do Driftwood Pyrography?
Yes, despite all the scary things you have read above, you can still do pyrography artwork on driftwood. But it is best if you stick to the following 2 rules. But make sure to burn such wood wearing safety glasses and masks.
- Burn On Small Pieces
Don’t pick larger driftwood pieces for pyrography. They have more areas to cover with design. So when you do it on small pieces, you can stick to nice and quick artwork.
- Choose Light Pyrography Design
One of the best ways to burn driftwood without causing any harm is to make sure the designs are not too deep, thick, or have more texture. Keeping the design light will allow you to do it quickly.
Driftwood Pyrography Ideas
Signs
- Difficulty Level: Beginner-friendly
- Can be done with stencils or freehand
- Suitable as door signs, greetings, and directions.
- The project can contain one driftwood piece or multiple pieces put together.
Tribal Art
- Difficulty Level: Medium and professional
- Can take longer to complete
- Suitable for decorative items
Jewelry
- Difficulty Level: Beginner-friendly
- Can contain simple to complex artwork
- May have personalized name
- Suitable for personal use or gift
Keyring
- Difficulty Level: Beginner-friendly
- Suitable as gift
- Can be personalized
This video of making a woodburnt keychain from driftwood is for you.
Lichtenberg Burn Vase from Driftwood
- Difficulty Level: Professional
- Risky thing as it involves handling high voltage electricity
- Requires skillset for wood turning
- Expensive set up
Favorite Quotes
- Difficulty Level: Beginner-friendly
- Quotes can be burned through freehand or stencils
- One can add other designs to it
- Can be time-consuming depending on the style
Fusion of Burning and Carving on Driftwood
- This requires professionalism and experience to work in two media
- Keeping it natural finally is the goal, but you will see a master piece once finished
Here’s a video on this
You can find a lot of free printable patterns to burn on driftwood here.
Final Words
Despite all the issues involved, some people do burn driftwood for pyrography because they create aesthetic art pieces. So if you want to create some driftwood pyrography pieces, make sure to use safety equipment, such as safety glasses and respiratory masks. However, if you have the health issues mentioned above, it is best to avoid any type of pyrography altogether.
