Happy Easter!

Day 200: I can safely date the Ukrainian-style pysanky (Easter eggs) shown in this photo as at least 25 years old based on where I was living at the time I created them. It was a craft phase I passed through, the focus of my attention for a year or so and then laid aside for other pursuits: been there, done that. It was a time-consuming passion, the dyeing process often taking as much as eight hours for a single chicken egg.

Work is done on whole eggs. Hot wax is first applied to any portion of the pattern which the artist wants to remain white, using a tool called a kistka. The egg is then submerged in the next lightest dye (let's use yellow as an example). When the desired shade has been reached, the egg is removed from the dye and dried before the next coat of wax is applied to the parts of the pattern which are to remain yellow. Dyeing proceeds in this manner until the egg is entirely coated with wax but for the portions of the pattern which are to be the darkest color.

Once the final dye bath is complete, the egg (still whole) is heated gently in a candle flame and wiped clean of wax. This can be a tricky step! Too much heat may cause the egg to explode. After the wax is removed, a light coat of varnish is applied to protect the dyes.

Some artists leave their pysanky forever whole. Even varnished, the "insides" dry out with time. I preferred to blow out the yolk and white after several coats of varnish had been applied (a period of two or three days). The egg would be pierced at each end, the yolk broken and stirred with a long wire, and then using a bulb designed specifically for pysanky-making, I would expel the "insides" into a bowl to be discarded. Again, this was a very tricky operation. The slightest unseen crack in the egg would burst under pressure and hours of work would be lost.

Many of the designs seen on pysanky have special meanings, and legend tells us that love is spread throughout the world whenever a pysanky is given. That's something you won't find in a chocolate creme egg. Happy Easter!