This week on Pyro Toasty Talks, Brian turns the mic on Zona for a conversation about one of the most important—and sometimes overlooked—parts of pyrography: the design process.
For Zona, a piece usually begins long before the burner ever touches the wood. We talk about how she uses Procreate to take an idea from its earliest concept through composition, references, layers, experimentation, and eventually a design that’s ready to become pyrography.
Zona walks through how Procreate fits into her workflow, how she works with reference images while developing an original composition, and why designing specifically for pyrography requires thinking differently than creating a purely digital illustration.
We also get into knowing when it’s time to stop tweaking a design, moving the finished pattern from the iPad to the wood, and how much a piece can continue to evolve once the burning actually begins.
Whether you’re already designing digitally or you’ve been wondering how an iPad might fit into your pyrography workflow, this episode is a look behind the scenes at how Zona turns an idea into something ready for the flame.
In this episode:
- Where Zona’s ideas and compositions begin
- Why Procreate became part of her workflow
- Using references to build original artwork
- Layers, composition, and experimentation
- Designing specifically for pyrography
- Knowing when a digital design is finished
- Moving a design from Procreate to wood
- How digital tools have changed what Zona is willing to attempt
Resources mentioned:
Freya’s Courses
https://freya.courses/
Procreate Folio
https://folio.procreate.com