The American Gourd Society's Website.

Washington State Gourd Society (An OZ website)

http://www.gourd-designs.com/ (An OZ website)

The Amish sell Gourds and some tools.

The World of Gourds (Everything about Gourds)

The Caning Shop a good source for supplies and tools

Bonnie Gibson's Gourd Art Enthusiasts Page

 Pyrography is the art of decorating a material with burn marks resulting from the application of a heated object such as a wood burner. It is also known as wood burning. Pyrography is also popular among gourd crafters and artists, where designs are burned onto the exterior of a dried hard-shell gourd, usually with dramatic results.

Pyrography means "writing with fire" and is the traditional art of using a heated tip or wire to burn or scorch designs onto natural materials. This allows a great range of natural tones and shades to be achieved. This work is time-consuming, done entirely by hand, with each line of a complex design drawn individually.

The process has been practiced by a number of cultures including the Egyptians and some African tribes since the dawn of recorded time. Pyrography is also a traditional folk art in many European countries, including Romania, Hungary, as well as countries such as Argentina in South America.

When I first started this hobby I was using a Digital Kodak DX3215 (1.3 Megapixels). It was a Ok for a first time digital camera owner, but I soon realized it took crappy pictures. I apologize now because some of the first gourds were captured with this crappy camera.

I use a Canon Power Shot A620 (7.1 Megapixels). This camera takes some pretty awesome pictures, highly recommended camera. You can see it here - Canon Power Shot A620

My only woodburning Joke -

"When it came to spankings, my dad never used a belt. One time he grabbed a piece of my Hot Wheels race car track. In my mind I'm thinking, 'Great, now I'm being beaten with my own toys...' Thank God I didn't get that wood burning set I wanted." --Scott Wood