Friday Egg: Happy Owl

A completely contemporary egg this week!  I am jumping on the owl bandwagon with this owl on a leafy branch.  He was a lot of fun to make, just stripes and dots, nets and bars in bright and happy colors.  I am working with the gilding, so added some golden dots to the owl body as well as the dots in the background.

Hope you like him!  Happy Friday

Friday Egg: Purple and Orange Traditional Rose

Purple, orange, yellow and green on a black background. This traditional Pysanka is one of my favorite designs to create.  There's something quite satisfying about the balance of a central medallion on each side encircled with an eternity band.  Just feels right.  And no matter what color combination I choose, it always comes out lovely and exactly right.  I started with a white egg, as is traditional, then went through yellow, green, orange, and purple then dyed it black for the final color.

Because it is a traditional egg, there are many meaningful symbols including:

- Nets = Protection
- Crosses = Christianity or the four corners of the earth
- Spirals/Curls = Protection from evil
- Dots = Stars or Spring (they represent eggs!) or Mary's tears
- Rose = Love and caring
- Diamonds = Knowledge

The eternity band is also a protection from evil.  Because it has no beginning or end, an evil spirit will become trapped in the egg.

It's on Etsy if you are interested:  http://www.etsy.com/listing/76200914/traditional-ukrainian-egg-stylized-rose

I hope you enjoy it!

Friday Egg: Fiesta!

I love this little egg!  I rarely start with a white egg and end with a white background as I fear that the white outlines will not stand out against the background, but I took a chance here and I am so glad I did.  The colors are bright, vibrant and playful: just about perfect for the Fiesta celebrations going on in San Antonio this week!  And a nice segue into Easter week as well.  I hope you like it as much as I do.

If you are interested in purchasing this egg, please visit my Etsy shop!

Happy Friday!

Friday Egg: Nice Skeleton! and April Events

It's that time of year again! Lots of events and a workshop on offer. I think it is easiest just to list them:

• First of all, I have a demonstration and sale at Sweet Charity Gift Shop at 1206 West 38th Street in the 26 Doors Shopping Center (512) 324-3399. The sale is on Thursday, April 7th from 11:00 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• Next, I am offering my spring workshop on April 16th from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at my studio. Contact me by email if you are interested!
• Finally, Saturday, April 23rd, the day before Easter, I am doing another demo and sale at Artworks Gallery at 1214 W. 6th Street, Austin, TX (512) 472-1550. This demo will go from 12:00 Noon to 4 p.m.

I hope that you can come to any or all of these events. They are going to be fun!

I have decided that this pattern is one of my all time favorites. I think of the basic pattern like a framework or skeleton that underlies the colors and patterns I choose that make each egg unique. This skeleton always works. I cannot remember a time when I finished an egg with this design and didn't think it was a success.

Today's egg is a chicken egg in a crisply defined pattern of turquoise, orange and olive green. This reminds me of a starched and ironed shirt, straight from the cleaners!  I think it is the dark outlines that make it look so regimented.  I am a fan of orange and turquoise together, and they are playing well with others here!

Happy Friday!

Friday Egg: Giant Graphic Flower Attack!

Today's egg is based on the idea of a spirograph. Do you remember those from childhood?  I really loved making designs with my spirograph.  I would love to play with one right now, as a matter of fact.  It might help me come up with some cool designs.  But I managed to come up with this design on my own. It is a very bright, very graphic flower on all four sides, top and bottom of the egg.

I love the orange in this flower!  Orange is the most difficult color because for some reason the dyes are very short-lived.  If I mix up a batch of Orange, Carrot or Pumpkin it will be bright and vibrant for maybe two weeks, but will sadly lose its potency.  I mixed up some new dyes and have been using all my oranges while I can take advantage of them!

The color combination of pink and orange is a favorite of mine.  It seems to evoke a feeling of fun, youth, joy and optimism.

I hope you enjoy your fun, youthful, joyous and optimistic Friday Egg!

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!