Anyone else making Psyanky (decorated Eggs) for Easter?

[fairgambit]

Psyanky are decorated ethnic (Ukrainians, Czechs, Poles, Hungarians, Carpatho-Rusyns, etc) Easter Eggs made using the wax-resist method. Wax-resist means the wax resists dyes. You start with a white egg and apply a wax design using a stylus (kistka). You then dip the egg in a special dye using light colors first. If you put it in yellow dye, any design you covered with wax on the white egg will stay white. You then do your yellow designs applying wax. Dip it in a darker color, say green, and anything you covered with wax on yellow will stay yellow. You keep applying designs, and dipping in darker dyes, until you reach your ultimate dark color, black or dark blue/purple. After the egg dries, you carefully remove all the wax by putting the egg near an open candle flame and wiping off the melted wax. The results can be spectacular. If you are skilled (I am not) and do it right, your finished eggs may look like those below. My wife and I carry on this tradition which I first learned from my grandparents.

 

[bbrown]

Psyanky are decorated ethnic (Ukrainians, Czechs, Poles, Hungarians, Carpatho-Rusyns, etc) Easter Eggs made using the wax-resist method. Wax-resist means the wax resists dyes. You start with a white egg and apply a wax design using a stylus (kistka). You then dip the egg in a special dye using light colors first. If you put it in yellow dye, any design you covered with wax on the white egg will stay white. You then do your yellow designs applying wax. Dip it in a darker color, say green, and anything you covered with wax on yellow will stay yellow. You keep applying designs, and dipping in darker dyes, until you reach your ultimate dark color, black or dark blue/purple. After the egg dries, you carefully remove all the wax by putting the egg near an open candle flame and wiping off the melted wax. The results can be spectacular. If you are skilled (I am not) and do it right, your finished eggs may look like those below. My wife and I carry on this tradition which I first learned from my grandparents.View attachment 190065

Very cool.

 

[Tom McAndrew]

Psyanky are decorated ethnic (Ukrainians, Czechs, Poles, Hungarians, Carpatho-Rusyns, etc) Easter Eggs made using the wax-resist method. Wax-resist means the wax resists dyes. You start with a white egg and apply a wax design using a stylus (kistka). You then dip the egg in a special dye using light colors first. If you put it in yellow dye, any design you covered with wax on the white egg will stay white. You then do your yellow designs applying wax. Dip it in a darker color, say green, and anything you covered with wax on yellow will stay yellow. You keep applying designs, and dipping in darker dyes, until you reach your ultimate dark color, black or dark blue/purple. After the egg dries, you carefully remove all the wax by putting the egg near an open candle flame and wiping off the melted wax. The results can be spectacular. If you are skilled (I am not) and do it right, your finished eggs may look like those below. My wife and I carry on this tradition which I first learned from my grandparents.View attachment 190065

impressive, @fairgambit

so you're implying that Mrs. Fair is more skilled at making creative Psyanky?

 

[91Joe95]

Psyanky are decorated ethnic (Ukrainians, Czechs, Poles, Hungarians, Carpatho-Rusyns, etc) Easter Eggs made using the wax-resist method. Wax-resist means the wax resists dyes. You start with a white egg and apply a wax design using a stylus (kistka). You then dip the egg in a special dye using light colors first. If you put it in yellow dye, any design you covered with wax on the white egg will stay white. You then do your yellow designs applying wax. Dip it in a darker color, say green, and anything you covered with wax on yellow will stay yellow. You keep applying designs, and dipping in darker dyes, until you reach your ultimate dark color, black or dark blue/purple. After the egg dries, you carefully remove all the wax by putting the egg near an open candle flame and wiping off the melted wax. The results can be spectacular. If you are skilled (I am not) and do it right, your finished eggs may look like those below. My wife and I carry on this tradition which I first learned from my grandparents.View attachment 190065

I only use fairgambit premium crayons when I do mine.

 

[fairgambit]

impressive, @fairgambit

so you're implying that Mrs. Fair is more skilled at making creative Psyanky?

I am not implying. I am stating beyond all doubt that my wife is the creative one in this marriage.
Besides pysanky, she is also creative, and gifted, at painting on canvas, which we do together. Her paintings look like Monet's. Mine look like they were done by a 3rd grader.

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[EddyS]

My wife made about two dozen. They are gorgeous.

 

[step.eng69]

Psyanky are decorated ethnic (Ukrainians, Czechs, Poles, Hungarians, Carpatho-Rusyns, etc) Easter Eggs made using the wax-resist method. Wax-resist means the wax resists dyes. You start with a white egg and apply a wax design using a stylus (kistka). You then dip the egg in a special dye using light colors first. If you put it in yellow dye, any design you covered with wax on the white egg will stay white. You then do your yellow designs applying wax. Dip it in a darker color, say green, and anything you covered with wax on yellow will stay yellow. You keep applying designs, and dipping in darker dyes, until you reach your ultimate dark color, black or dark blue/purple. After the egg dries, you carefully remove all the wax by putting the egg near an open candle flame and wiping off the melted wax. The results can be spectacular. If you are skilled (I am not) and do it right, your finished eggs may look like those below. My wife and I carry on this tradition which I first learned from my grandparents.View attachment 190065

There is one tradition that I associate with Easter more than anything else: grandmother colouring Easter eggs with onion skins. Then off to the church basement or hall have the food blessed.

 

[fairgambit]

There is one tradition that I associate with Easter more than anything else: grandmother colouring Easter eggs with onion skins. Then off to the church basement or hall have the food blessed.

The blessing of Easter Baskets has been part of my Byzantine Catholic tradition for over 70 years. My wife and I still decorate the eggs and they go in the basket with a ham, kielbasa, paska (Easter bread), unsalted butter, hrudka (egg cheese), beets & horseradish, and a few other odds and ends. We attend Resurrection Matins, followed by the Divine Liturgy (mass) on Easter Saturday evening. Then the baskets are blessed and we head home to feast on our Easter foods.

 

[TheGlovStillRules]

Psyanky are decorated ethnic (Ukrainians, Czechs, Poles, Hungarians, Carpatho-Rusyns, etc) Easter Eggs made using the wax-resist method. Wax-resist means the wax resists dyes. You start with a white egg and apply a wax design using a stylus (kistka). You then dip the egg in a special dye using light colors first. If you put it in yellow dye, any design you covered with wax on the white egg will stay white. You then do your yellow designs applying wax. Dip it in a darker color, say green, and anything you covered with wax on yellow will stay yellow. You keep applying designs, and dipping in darker dyes, until you reach your ultimate dark color, black or dark blue/purple. After the egg dries, you carefully remove all the wax by putting the egg near an open candle flame and wiping off the melted wax. The results can be spectacular. If you are skilled (I am not) and do it right, your finished eggs may look like those below. My wife and I carry on this tradition which I first learned from my grandparents.View attachment 190065

How in the heck can you leave out the TRUE egg-suckers fair?

The Lithuanians are never going to for give you!

 

[TheGlovStillRules]

I only use fairgambit premium crayons when I do mine.

I only use fairgambit premium crayons when I do mine.

Yea, made in Mexico by Hondurans!!!

 

[TheGlovStillRules]

impressive, @fairgambit

so you're implying that Mrs. Fair is more skilled at making creative Psyanky?

For a minute there Tom, i thought you said: hanky-panky!

And that's a private issue between fair and the Mrs.

 

[91Joe95]

I've been making hard boiled eggs wrong all these years. I tried steaming the Easter eggs for 15 minutes instead of boiling them this year, and I don't think I'll ever go back. Out of the 60 eggs, only one cracked. That's it. I suspect that egg was defective before it even got its steam bath. I like a good soft boiled egg, I'm going to try it this way, but for only 6 or 7 minutes.

 

[91Joe95]

I just made a couple of soft boiled eggs by steaming them for 7 minutes. They came just like my grandmother used to make. She used to boil them, and I've never been able to duplicate the exacting texture she always seemed to obtain. She would use shot glasses to hold them, because even though I never saw her take a drink, she had quite the collection and that's what she used to hold the eggs perfectly. The eggs came perfect, I will never boil another one again.