How We Got Started-Ukrainian Eggs
HOW WE GOT STARTED MAKING UKRAINIAN EGGS!
We started thinking about making Ukrainian eggs in May of 2005. I had always been curious about Pysanky eggs. Our neighbor was an old Ukrainian gentleman named Harry Kitt. He would make Ukrainian eggs and give them away as gifts.
I would stare at the Pysanky eggs in my mom's china cabinet and think about making some for myself. I had been painting small figures since I was a kid, and didn't think that making Ukrainian eggs would be that different.
Well, this past spring I was looking over my model paints and watching my dog play with a ping-pong ball. It was pretty much at that moment that Mill-Lake-Creations was born. So I took the ball away from my dog and started "painting" my first Ukrainian egg. After realizing that my Ping-Pong ball Pysanky looked nothing like old Harry's Ukrainian eggs, I figured I should find out what kind of "paints" were used.
So I looked up Ukrainian Easter eggs on the internet and found out how Pysanky eggs were really made. Instead of being turned off by the idea that Ukrainian eggs were dyed instead of painted-I was even more interested.
I explained the process to Heather and she was very excited about the idea of making Ukrainian eggs. So we ordered a starter kit from the Ukrainian Gift Shop and got started. Our first Pysnky eggs were very crude and ugly. It took us about two weeks but we finally started producing Ukrainian eggs that we didn't have to hide.
It was at this point that we started coming up with little tricks that greatly improved the way we made Ukrainian eggs. We also made a ton of mistakes and had quite a few Pysanky disasters. Everyone who makes Ukrainian eggs will have their own style and do things their own way, but maybe what we have learned will be of help.
HINTS AND TRICKS
1-Your finished Ukrainian egg will only be as good as the egg that you start out with.We have found that store bought eggs that come in styrofoam containers can have funny effects on the way your finished Pysanky. If you do use store bought eggs for your Pysanky, we recommend eggs that come in cardboard containers. The first time we bought eggs for our Pysanky we bought three dozen eggs in a cardboard container. But the cardboard container was wrapped in shrink-wrap, and this did have an effect on our finished Ukrainian eggs.
2-Make sure you check your eggs before you start your Pysanky. We have lost several Ukrainian eggs becaus we were not diligent enough in looking for cracks and weak spots.
3- Store your Ukrainian egg dye in wide mouth containers. When we first made our dyes we put them in regular mason jars. But when we tried to do a Pysanka goose egg it wouldn't fit in the jar. Oh, by the way. If you get goose eggs from a farmer, make sure that they are fresh eggs. Our first attempt at a Ukrainnian goose egg was horrible. When I went to drill the hole so I could drain it I ended up producing a shooting stream of rotten goose goo that shot six feet. Covering me, my drill, and the deck of my house in a horrible smelling liquid.
4-We use an electric Dremmel hand tool to drill our drain holes in our Pysanky. You can buy then=m for about thirty-five dollars. The shape and weight of the Dremmel makes it much easier to use on Ukrainian eggs.
5-I use a sewing measuring tape to mark my lines when I am starting a new Ukrainian egg.That way I am sure of even starting lines. People with artistic ability probably will not need to do this, but I do not have an artistic bone in my body so every little bit helps to create a beautiful Pysanky.
6-My neighbors gave me an egg lathe. Not one of the expensive Ukrainian egg lathes but a cheap ninety-nine cent lathe. It has become invaluable to me. It has a holder for the pencil built right in. It makes getting your first dividing lines on the Pysanky almost foolproof.
7-One of the best things that we have found for making Ukrainian eggs has been Bees-wax pellets. They work great and you do not have as much blobbing as you do when you dip your Pysanky into the wax. The pellets are a little bit bigger thatn the holder on the kistka. But all you have to do is pinch them in half with your fingers.
8-Make sure you have a safe place to store your Ukrainian eggs that you are working on. And also a safe way to move them. We do the majority of our work on the Ukrainian eggs in the house. But we use a spray on varnish and we apply that in the garage. Twice I have destroyed a whole weeks worth of Pysanky taking them between work stations. We use a spry on varnish because it is quicker and covers the Ukrainian egg more evenly.
THE UKRAINIAN GIFT SHOP
I think that anyone who wroks on Ukrainian eggs has one way or another come across the Ukrainian Gift Shop. Whether it is their design books or their delrin Kistkas or their dye packets. When we first started making Ukrainian eggs this is where we went online to purchase the starter kit.
We are fortunate in that we live in Minnesota and are able to visit their store in person. And that is just what we did in early September when we needed some dye and some blown goose eggs. In a lot of ways it felt like we were making a pilgrimage.
It was pretty cool walking in the door and seeing Luba working on a Pysanky egg. She was gracious enough to come out and talk with us as we shopped. If you are ever in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area we urge you to stop in at their store. It is well worth the trip.
We started thinking about making Ukrainian eggs in May of 2005. I had always been curious about Pysanky eggs. Our neighbor was an old Ukrainian gentleman named Harry Kitt. He would make Ukrainian eggs and give them away as gifts.
I would stare at the Pysanky eggs in my mom's china cabinet and think about making some for myself. I had been painting small figures since I was a kid, and didn't think that making Ukrainian eggs would be that different.
Well, this past spring I was looking over my model paints and watching my dog play with a ping-pong ball. It was pretty much at that moment that Mill-Lake-Creations was born. So I took the ball away from my dog and started "painting" my first Ukrainian egg. After realizing that my Ping-Pong ball Pysanky looked nothing like old Harry's Ukrainian eggs, I figured I should find out what kind of "paints" were used.
So I looked up Ukrainian Easter eggs on the internet and found out how Pysanky eggs were really made. Instead of being turned off by the idea that Ukrainian eggs were dyed instead of painted-I was even more interested.
I explained the process to Heather and she was very excited about the idea of making Ukrainian eggs. So we ordered a starter kit from the Ukrainian Gift Shop and got started. Our first Pysnky eggs were very crude and ugly. It took us about two weeks but we finally started producing Ukrainian eggs that we didn't have to hide.
It was at this point that we started coming up with little tricks that greatly improved the way we made Ukrainian eggs. We also made a ton of mistakes and had quite a few Pysanky disasters. Everyone who makes Ukrainian eggs will have their own style and do things their own way, but maybe what we have learned will be of help.
HINTS AND TRICKS
1-Your finished Ukrainian egg will only be as good as the egg that you start out with.We have found that store bought eggs that come in styrofoam containers can have funny effects on the way your finished Pysanky. If you do use store bought eggs for your Pysanky, we recommend eggs that come in cardboard containers. The first time we bought eggs for our Pysanky we bought three dozen eggs in a cardboard container. But the cardboard container was wrapped in shrink-wrap, and this did have an effect on our finished Ukrainian eggs.
2-Make sure you check your eggs before you start your Pysanky. We have lost several Ukrainian eggs becaus we were not diligent enough in looking for cracks and weak spots.
3- Store your Ukrainian egg dye in wide mouth containers. When we first made our dyes we put them in regular mason jars. But when we tried to do a Pysanka goose egg it wouldn't fit in the jar. Oh, by the way. If you get goose eggs from a farmer, make sure that they are fresh eggs. Our first attempt at a Ukrainnian goose egg was horrible. When I went to drill the hole so I could drain it I ended up producing a shooting stream of rotten goose goo that shot six feet. Covering me, my drill, and the deck of my house in a horrible smelling liquid.
4-We use an electric Dremmel hand tool to drill our drain holes in our Pysanky. You can buy then=m for about thirty-five dollars. The shape and weight of the Dremmel makes it much easier to use on Ukrainian eggs.
5-I use a sewing measuring tape to mark my lines when I am starting a new Ukrainian egg.That way I am sure of even starting lines. People with artistic ability probably will not need to do this, but I do not have an artistic bone in my body so every little bit helps to create a beautiful Pysanky.
6-My neighbors gave me an egg lathe. Not one of the expensive Ukrainian egg lathes but a cheap ninety-nine cent lathe. It has become invaluable to me. It has a holder for the pencil built right in. It makes getting your first dividing lines on the Pysanky almost foolproof.
7-One of the best things that we have found for making Ukrainian eggs has been Bees-wax pellets. They work great and you do not have as much blobbing as you do when you dip your Pysanky into the wax. The pellets are a little bit bigger thatn the holder on the kistka. But all you have to do is pinch them in half with your fingers.
8-Make sure you have a safe place to store your Ukrainian eggs that you are working on. And also a safe way to move them. We do the majority of our work on the Ukrainian eggs in the house. But we use a spray on varnish and we apply that in the garage. Twice I have destroyed a whole weeks worth of Pysanky taking them between work stations. We use a spry on varnish because it is quicker and covers the Ukrainian egg more evenly.
THE UKRAINIAN GIFT SHOP
I think that anyone who wroks on Ukrainian eggs has one way or another come across the Ukrainian Gift Shop. Whether it is their design books or their delrin Kistkas or their dye packets. When we first started making Ukrainian eggs this is where we went online to purchase the starter kit.
We are fortunate in that we live in Minnesota and are able to visit their store in person. And that is just what we did in early September when we needed some dye and some blown goose eggs. In a lot of ways it felt like we were making a pilgrimage.
It was pretty cool walking in the door and seeing Luba working on a Pysanky egg. She was gracious enough to come out and talk with us as we shopped. If you are ever in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area we urge you to stop in at their store. It is well worth the trip.
