Transfer a pattern for wood burning with AR
A 2-session unit for high school or a maker elective. Students prep a wood blank, transfer a simple line pattern onto it, then burn the pattern with a pyrography pen. Along the way they compare the traditional graphite-paper method with tracing the design under an augmented-reality overlay — the same design held over the wood through a phone camera, so nothing has to be redrawn or smudged onto the surface. The free web tool supplies 82 grids in the browser; the separate AR app is what lets the pattern sit on the real wood.
Learning objectives
By the end of the unit, students will:
- Prepare a wood blank correctly — sanding with the grain and cleaning the surface so a transferred line reads cleanly
- Transfer a line pattern onto wood two ways — with graphite paper and with an AR overlay — and explain the trade-offs of each
- Follow a transferred pattern with a pyrography pen, controlling line weight from light to dark
- Apply pyrography tool-safety and ventilation rules consistently throughout the burn
- Evaluate where the transfer or burn drifted and trace the cause back to prep, positioning, or heat control
Standards alignment
- VA:Cr1.2.HSIShape an artistic investigation of an aspect of present-day life using a contemporary practice of art or design.
- VA:Cr2.1.HSIEngage in making a work of art or design without having a preconceived plan; experiment and develop skills in multiple art-making techniques through practice.
- VA:Cr2.2.HSIExplain how traditional and non-traditional materials may impact human health and the environment, and demonstrate safe handling of materials, tools, and equipment.
Materials
- One basswood or poplar blank per student (soft, even-grained woods burn most predictably); sandpaper in medium and fine grits
- A phone or tablet with a camera running the AR tracing app, plus an internet-connected device to reach the free web tool
- Graphite transfer paper and a hard pencil or stylus for the comparison method; a simple printed line pattern per student
- Pyrography pen per station with a fine writing tip, plus a heat-safe rest and a ceramic tile or metal tray to work on
- A phone stand or clamp to hold the overlay steady, painter's tape, and a soft brush to clear dust between passes
Safety first. Pyrography pens reach several hundred degrees. Use only in a ventilated room or with a small fan drawing smoke away; never breathe the smoke directly. Rest the hot pen on its stand every time it leaves the wood, tie back hair and loose sleeves, and keep water nearby. An adult must supervise the whole burning session; students who are not actively burning stay clear of hot tips. Do not burn treated, painted, plywood, or MDF stock — only clean, untreated solid wood, because manufactured boards can release harmful fumes.
The web tool with all 82 grids is free forever in any browser. AR tracing onto real wood is the one thing a browser can't do, so it lives in the separate app — its free tier includes 3 AR traces of your own photo each month, with $29.99/yr, $6.99/mo, or a $79 one-time option for unlimited traces. Android-first (com.gridmakerpro.app); iOS is planned. Built by working artist Sujith Puthran.
Lesson sequence
Prepping the wood and transferring the line pattern
45 minutesPass around a rough board and a sanded one and ask "Which of these would you rather draw a clean line on?" Students feel the difference. Explain that pyrography is drawing with heat, so the surface has to be smooth and clean or the line skips and blotches. Then pose the day's real question: how do you get a design onto wood accurately — graphite paper that can smudge, or a design held over the wood through a camera?
- (8 min) Students sand the blank with the grain, medium grit then fine, then wipe the dust off. Sanding across the grain leaves scratches that catch the pen, so the direction matters.
- (7 min) Method A, graphite paper: students slip transfer paper graphite-side down, tape the printed pattern on top, and trace the lines with a stylus. They note the drawbacks in real time — the paper can shift, the graphite smudges, and heavy pressure dents soft wood.
- (10 min) Method B, AR overlay: students load the same pattern into the tool, prop the phone on a stand over the blank, and bring up the AR overlay so the lines float on the wood. They lightly pencil only the main lines they see through the camera — no graphite to smudge, and the design can be nudged into place before a mark is made.
- (5 min) Compare the two blanks side by side. Which transfer is cleaner? Which was faster? Which would survive being erased and redrawn? Record answers for the reflection.
- Why does sanding with the grain matter more than how long you sand?
- What did graphite paper do well, and where did it let you down compared with the overlay?
- The overlay leaves no marks until you draw. How does that change the way you can plan the composition on the blank?
Burning the pattern safely
45 minutesRun the full safety brief before any pen is switched on: ventilation and a fan, the pen returns to its stand every single time, hair and sleeves tied back, adult supervision throughout, water nearby, and only clean untreated wood on the tray. Demonstrate a slow test burn on scrap so students see how speed and pressure change the darkness of the line. No student touches a hot pen until the brief is done.
- (6 min) Students practise on a scrap of the same wood — straight lines, curves, and dots — learning that moving slowly burns darker and moving quickly burns lighter, all at one temperature.
- (18 min) The core move: students follow their transferred pattern with the pen, working light first and building up darker lines in a second pass. They keep the hand moving so the tip never dwells and scorches, and rest the pen on its stand whenever they pause to look.
- (6 min) Mid-point check: pens down and resting, tips off the wood. Look at the burn — are the lines even, or blotchy where the pen stopped? Discuss fixes before the second pass, and confirm the room still has good airflow.
- Where did your burn stay even, and where did it blotch? Can you trace a blotch to the moment the pen paused?
- Did the cleaner transfer from the AR overlay make the burning easier to follow than the graphite lines would have?
- Which safety rule felt easiest to forget in the moment, and how would you remind a partner next time?
Point students to how to trace onto wood for more surface-prep detail, the pyrography artists hub for project ideas, and the AR tracing app for how the overlay sits on real wood.
Assessment rubric
4-point scale per criterion:
| Criterion | 4 — Mastery | 3 — Proficient | 2 — Developing | 1 — Beginning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Surface prep & transfer | Blank sanded with the grain; pattern transferred cleanly and squarely | Well prepped with minor transfer drift | Rough prep or a smudged, shifted transfer | Surface or transfer unusable |
| Method comparison | Explains graphite vs AR trade-offs with evidence from both blanks | Names most trade-offs correctly | Vague or one-sided comparison | Cannot compare the methods |
| Line control in the burn | Even lines with deliberate light-to-dark variation | Mostly even lines | Noticeable blotching or uneven weight | Lines scorched or broken throughout |
| Safety practice | Follows every safety and ventilation rule unprompted | Follows the rules with occasional reminders | Needs frequent reminders | Unsafe practice requiring intervention |
Extensions
- Cross-disciplinary (science): Connect the burn to combustion and material safety. Discuss why treated, painted, and manufactured boards are off-limits and what ventilation actually does for the maker.
- Value study: Add shading to the pattern by varying pen speed, turning a flat line drawing into a tonal image without changing the tip.
- Differentiation: Students who need more support burn a bold three-line motif; advanced students transfer a detailed pattern and build value across it.
- Method debate: Have students argue graphite paper vs AR overlay vs freehand for a real commission, weighing accuracy, mess, cost, and skill-building. Tie it to is tracing cheating.
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