Friday Egg: Etched Brown Egg

This is such an intricate little egg:  I'm secretly tickled to make such an intricate and delicate design with a brown egg because they are so rustic and utilitarian that the rose design is doubly stunning.

I started my first layer on the brown egg, then etched the shell down to white using regular white vinegar full strength. It usually takes about 20 minutes for the shell to etch down to cream.  After the etching bath I scrub it in running water with a baby toothbrush to clean it up and make sure all the dissolved shell is washed away.  I dipped it in Avocado dye and drew in some details with wax, then dipped in Peacock Blue for the next layer of detail.  Finally, I washed off as much of the blue dye as I could and then etched again to a creamy white.  I listed it on Etsy today, so go visit if you are interested:  http://www.etsy.com/listing/75338890/etched-and-dyed-brown-chicken-egg

Happy Friday!

Friday Egg: Cherry Blossoms with Red Outlines

A simple little egg today for Friday, but making it wasn't as simple as it looks.  I started with a locally farmed chicken egg with a blueish shell.  It was a lovely color that I wanted to accent, so I decided to do an etched cherry blossom design.  Because the colors between the etched and non-etched areas were so similar, I accented the edges of the etching by dipping the etched egg in red and then washing the dye off as completely as I could.  Especially with red and pink colors, the edges of the etched areas soak up the dye and it is difficult to wash it off completely.  On this egg, it becomes a very delicate red outline that makes the design stand out.

Happy Friday!