Sadie Plate in progress

[Jeff Myroup]

Spent the last 3 days working on a new plate. This is my first Chocolate lab. Total burning time so far is about 12 hours. I have about 4 hours more to go. The rim is silver leaf and chemical patina. I used my oneway drill wizard to inlay the letters. The rim is airbrushed under the leaf.

[Scott Hackler]

Jeff, your talent is very obvious. Exceptional work.

[Donny Lawson]

I'm really liking the plates. I would love to learn this. Do you turn alot of plates?

[Bernie Weishapl]

Jeff that is another beautiful piece.

[Jeff Myroup]

Thanks Bernie and Scott


I'm really liking the plates. I would love to learn this. Do you turn alot of plates?

Thanks Donny, it is really not that hard to learn, just a lot of practice. I have turned about a dozen plates over the past 3 years or so. Over the past 6 months my orders have picked up. The hardest part of the whole process is getting the client to get me good photos to work from. I never realized how many bad photographers are out there :eek:

The best thing I like about the plates is the fact the customers give me free reign on the rim design and I get to experiment. :cool:

[Roger Chandler]

Extraordinary! Being a dog lover myself, I think this concept is such a great way to memorialize for generations a special pet. Your artistic work is just superb! If I only had half that artistic talent then what I could accomplish!

Thanks for showing us this series, Jeff...........they are all gorgeous!

[Mark Hubl]

Coming along nicely Jeff. I like the rim on this one.

[Bob Bergstrom]

I really like the variety of colors in the rim. We might have to make a road trip to South Bend to see what they have for maple. Great job.

[Thom Sturgill]

Your pyrography is exceptional. I love this rim but have one question - how did you protect the wood from the chemicals? or did you have to re-turn the area next to the silver to remove staining?

[Jeff Myroup]

Thanks Bob and Mark,


Extraordinary! Being a dog lover myself, I think this concept is such a great way to memorialize for generations a special pet. Your artistic work is just superb! If I only had half that artistic talent then what I could accomplish!

Thanks for showing us this series, Jeff...........they are all gorgeous!

Thank you Roger. I think it is more perseverance than talent, my first couple were nothing to brag about.

[Ron Stadler]

My first dog's name was Sadie, but she was a basset hound. Haven't heard that name for a long time, good to see its still being used. Your plate looks really good, wish I had your talent.

[Jeff Myroup]

Your pyrography is exceptional. I love this rim but have one question - how did you protect the wood from the chemicals? or did you have to re-turn the area next to the silver to remove staining?

Thank you Thom. Prior to gilding the area needs to be finished. I cut a circle out of cardboard to protect the area to be burned, and spray the rest. I normally mask the area not being gilded. I find that doing that helps me get a crisp line around the rim. The rim is proud of the surface about a 1/16". I also use 3/4" vinyl dots over the letters. Once the process is complete, I pull the tape and remove the dots. At this point I can still put it back on the lathe if needed. I leave the tenon on until I done with the burning. All that being said, the chemicals don't really stain the wood to much. Any little staining is removed by hand sanding.

[Jeff Myroup]

My first dog's name was Sadie, but she was a basset hound. Haven't heard that name for a long time, good to see its still being used. Your plate looks really good, wish I had your talent.

Thanks Ron, I have met quite a few dogs named Sadie. This Sadie, belongs to Victoria Stillwell from the TV show "It's Me or The Dog" on Animal Planet. It will be presented to her at the end of the month. I hope to get some pictures of her with Sadie and the Plate.

[Chris Colman]

Hello Jeff,

I am just getting started in pyro work and I am in awe of your work.

How do you do the outline for your works? Do you freehand from a picture, or do you make a stencil somehow?

My neighbors want something like this done for their beloved canine babies, and I would like to try my hand at it, but I am a lousy sketch artist. Any pointers?

[Jeff Myroup]

Hello Jeff,

I am just getting started in pyro work and I am in awe of your work.

How do you do the outline for your works? Do you freehand from a picture, or do you make a stencil somehow?

My neighbors want something like this done for their beloved canine babies, and I would like to try my hand at it, but I am a lousy sketch artist. Any pointers?

Hi Chris,
Thank you. I start with a HIGH quality head shot. If you can take them yourself, do it. No shadows, good lighting, no red eye, outside are best. I resize the photo to the size I need for the burn. I normally use 7"-8" images. I then print them out. I use that picture as a template to trace onto the plate. It is important that you use graphite copy paper that you can ERASE. Some types will not erase, so you have to sand after the burn and re-burn. It is a hugh waste of time. Some people will tell you that you can transfer the image using xylene, or another type solvent. Do not do it. You will have to sand it off.

Now the tricky part. I used to copy everything from the picture to the plate, and then just burn that. But, if you have ever printed a picture on paper, you know that it does not look great. You can get away with it, but as you advance you want the image to look even more realistic. So now I just trace the bare minimum I need for the image to look right. I look for certain things that make the dog unique, like wrinkles, spots, and the like. I normally study the picture for about a week or so, before I burn. When burning I have my laptop sitting next to me so I can zoom into the spot I am working on. I also keep a pencil next to me to make corrections to the image as I go.

Some tricks to help you:
1) Convert the picture to Sepia. It will give you an idea of what the burn will look like. It will also give you a guide to the tonal values to use
2) Sand the wood to a minimum of 400 prior to burning, even higher if doing skin tones
3) Learn how to use a shader pen, and polish it. I use a ceramic stone to polish mine. DO NOT use sand paper or a course stone it will ruin the pen
4) Start to layer your burn from the bottom - up. Do the underneath layers first. Just like getting dressed.
5) If you screw up or over burn, you can use a razor blade and lightly scrap away the burned area. This is also good for creating highlights.
6) Take your time, if you start to rush, stop and take a break.
7) Take pictures of your work during the process. And study them. The camera will pick up things your eyes won't. I don't know why it works, but it does.
8) Do not outline your burn, there are no lines in nature.
9) Remember for every lowlight (shadow) there is a highlight some where. Those can be the hardest to spot.
10) There are setting on the burner other than high! You can always darken an area by going back over it. It is very hard to lighten an area. I normally do not go over 4 on my burnmaster. Normal range is 2-3
11) Keep a piece of scrap wood next to you to practice and adjust the temp to the tonal value you need.
12) Practice on a piece of similar wood prior to working on the project. Bass wood burns a lot different than maple.
If you have any questions, please ask.

[Ron Stadler]

Thanks Ron, I have met quite a few dogs named Sadie. This Sadie, belongs to Victoria Stillwell from the TV show "It's Me or The Dog" on Animal Planet. It will be presented to her at the end of the month. I hope to get some pictures of her with Sadie and the Plate.

That's way cool, good luck with the pics.

[Jeff Myroup]

That's way cool, good luck with the pics.

Thanks, I will definitely post them when I get them