Friday Egg: Etched Turtle Pair

Today's Friday Egg is a design you have seen before, but this time I started with a brown chicken egg. There are two turtles, one on each side, playfully chasing each other around the egg. I like the soothing greens and blues paired with the natural brown of the chicken egg.

First I applied wax to cover the brown of the eggshell, Then I etched the eggshell in a vinegar bath to reveal the white eggshell just underneath the brown layer and added wax to those areas where I wanted it to stay white. Then I did the same process through Key Lime and Turquoise and finally dyed the egg Black.

Friday Egg: Cosmos on Blue

Today's egg is a lovely blueish-purple color with my variation of the traditional sakvy design.  Scarves of traditional diamonds are encircled by white and yellow cosmos.

Happy Friday!

Friday Egg: Ring Around the Rosie

A new design today for Friday Egg. I came up with this when I was penciling in a traditional Sakvy (saddlebags) design.  Instead of dividing the sections I just decided to let one flower bouquet lead into the next.  A touch of gilding at the centers of the pink and white flowers adds a perky accent, especially against the black background.

Happy Friday!

Friday Egg: California Poppy

I love California poppies.  My mom has them in her spring garden and they are such an eye-catching neon orange that they are impossible to resist.  The Friday Egg this week is a goose egg sized tribute.  I did a little bit with gilding which I don't think adds too much to the egg, but you can tell me what you think.

Friday Egg: Flower and Fern

It's Friday!  I'm working hard getting ready for my big April events.  Just a reminder that I have my Sweet Charity show coming up next Thursday, April 7th (click on the link to the right for more information) and my only spring workshop on Saturday, April 16th from 10:00 a.m. to 1 p.m.  If you want to learn how to make these wonderful eggs and create your own Easter tradition, please email to reserve your spot!

Friday Egg today is a sweet floral using that same skeleton that I am seemingly obsessed with! I always like the effect of the "fern" leaves. Graphic and organic at the same time!  And they add so much movement to the design and your eye slides down them to the next design element.  I hope you enjoy it.

Happy Friday!

Friday Egg: Lavender Iris

Friday Egg this week is a restrained little and shy little thing that reveals its infinite charms only upon close examination.  

I started with a brown chicken egg for my outlines.  Once all the guidelines were drawn, I etched the egg in regular white vinegar until the eggshell was white.  I dipped the egg in bright yellow for the polka dots surrounding the flowers and the yellow centers of the flowers.  I did the nets and some tiny triangles in the eternity band in bright green as well as the leaves of the flowers.  Next was orange for the band and then violet for the flowers and details in the band.  For the final background color, I washed the purple dye down with just plain water until it achieved the pretty lavender color.  One side shows two iris and the other side is a bloomed iris and a bud, each surrounded by spiky shoots.

Unusual color combination of purple and orange on this egg!  I wonder how different this egg would have looked with a white egg instead of a brown egg.  Probably a lot more showy and bright.  I really like this sweet little guy, hiding his lights under a bushel.

If you are interested in purchasing this sweetheart, click here!

Hope you like it too.  Happy Friday!

Friday Egg: Traditional Scarlet Poppy

I'm busily getting ready for the Armadillo Christmas Bazaar, which starts next Wednesday.  I have to be ready to load in by Monday, so I have only three days left to get everything sorted both for the booth.

So the Friday Egg today is short on words and long on pictures, but I think that's what you like anyway, right?

This poppy egg was started on a white goose egg and went through the traditional steps of light to dark.  I really like the orange tips on the petals and scarlet inner petals.  One mistake that turned out interesting was the black spots on the petals - that was me being in a hurry and not covering all the areas with wax so that the final dye bath of black got on those parts of the flower. I think it adds some interest and texture, so will have to figure out a way to incorporate that idea in future eggs.

The poppy is a popular motif in traditional pysanky.  It is the national flower of the Ukraine. I personally enjoy it because it is fun to draw.  The flowers has a definite structure, but within that structure I can make a lot of different choices.  The petals can be ruffled or straight-edged.  I can do one solid color or choose different colors like in this egg.  I can do a straight-on view of a flat poppy or a side view. I also like playing with buds and seed pods.

Hope you enjoy it!

I will be taking the rest of the year off unless I get a wild hair and post another egg.  Most likely I will be too busy with the Armadillo to get back to this until the new year