Ukrainian / Pysanky Egg Dyeing

Ukrainian - Pysanky Eggs

It's that time of year again. Time to order dyes or kits, though I still have last year's dyes jarred in a box in the garage. When more people are going to be coming to our home to do eggs, I get some fresh dye, otherwise just use the stored dye. 

I saw an article in a 1973 National Geographic Magazine on Ukrainian eggs, and wanted to do them. Since I knew how to do Batik textile art, I understood the process, but didn't know special tools existed. As is typical of me, I just jump in and do things. I got beeswax and melted it in a metal measuring cup and stood over the stove painting the wax on eggs. And the only dyes I new of were the typical grocery store Paas (?- I think that's what it is) dyes. Monte joined in the process when we were dating.

Monte almost 40 years ago waxing an egg for resisting the dye - batik style egg designing

Years ago, group of young couples Travis brought to dye eggs

Soon after we were married I found the traditional kistka tools and special dyes. For years now we've been ordering supplies from the same store, and have bought kits for wedding presents. We've also bought a lot of extra tools and leave the dyes out for about a month and have had many people around our dining table decorating eggs. One couple, years ago so looked forward to it they started designing eggs months beforehand. When they moved away they bought their own kit and have done it every year.

Though electric kistkas exist, it's traditionally done by heating the metal funnel of the kistka over a candle till the beeswax is melted. It does not run out until it touches the egg. It's a wax-resist process, starting from lightest and getting progressively darker. You initially wax over everything you want white and put egg in yellow, once dry, you wax over what you want to stay yellow, and so on. When done you hold the egg to the side of the candle and wipe the melting wax off with a paper towel. The eggs are raw and they dry out over time.

Egg carton of our Ukrainian dyed eggs

This picture is just one of the three cartons that got done several years ago. That was a very productive and artistic weekend of eggs - Travis had several couples come and stay several days to dye eggs (and enjoy just hanging out, of coarse). Dawson has friends come too. Everyone loves it!

I cap the canning jars of dye and repack the box. I store them along with the old silver spoons, candles and candle-holders, box of tools, instructions and pictures, and then the vinyl tablecloth. It can be pulled out anytime. Every year I say I'm going to do it for Christmas ornaments - but I haven't yet.

Several years ago Monte made a shelf for the eggs to better display than the hanging wire baskets I've always kept them in. The company I order the dyes and tools from, the Ukrainian Gift Shop, has a variety of stands for the eggs. So I got a bunch of the cheap clear plastic stands. Monte is going to make a shelf unit for each of the kids too.

 



Having done these for years, I never varnished them and finally did a few years ago. It's a final step I've always skipped. So some of the varnished ones are older and already faded. These dyes are toxic, so no eating of the eggs, but are not run-proof, so make sure the varnish is not water-base. We nailed three nails every so often in boards to support the eggs and I use my gloved hands to rub the oil-base varnish on the eggs. (The stands could be used in the oven on low temp for helping melt the beeswax off. I've not tried this - but a book I have shows it.)

3-legged nail 'stands' for holding varnished dyed eggs

More people around our dining table Ukrainian egg dying

Dawson waxing his egg for dye resist

More people enjoying creativity and our home's hospitality

Shared with: The Homestead Barn Hop, The Chicken Chick

Textile Christmas

Luminous Wool Felted Ornaments

This year I'm decorating with a nature and textile theme. I've left most of my decor in the box. I have lots of felted ornaments I meant to sell and decided to keep them for my tree. I have way more than the three shown. I'll post my textile tree later.

Felted Ornaments

Textile Ornaments and Knitted "light" garland

I also have made felt wreaths for years and am finishing up one for ME this year.

Wool Felt Wreath in the works

Wet felting over styrofoam first

In the process of making all these I've learned some things. When using styrofoam for needlefelting over you do not want the smooth styrofoam. It's got to be the rough kind. And rather than needling it all on, I start with wet felt process first, then needle on the details. I have posts on this.

My last post had other textile giftings I make - preferring Handmade!

On the subject of felting and gifting, I also periodically knit booties to felt. The pattern did not come with a ribbed cuff. I had to knit this on after the booties were felted. Without this cuff the booties fall off!!! I've been a MOPS Mentor going on thirteen years now, so new babies are in my world.

"Soap in a Sweater", Felted Booties, Needle-felted wool face needing a body!

I teach felting classes. I love to teach and like using this blog for tutorials.

Sock Earrings and other Giftings

My hand-knit sock earrings

We like most of our giftings to be handmade. Most of my friends have my sock earrings. I've posted about them before. I started knitting these years ago and every year pull out the pattern, needles and yarns and make more. I am now deplete of my stock and need to make more. Monte just gave my last ones to friends of his. Needles? They are like toothpicks, probably actually thinner! I guess I should offer to make these for anyone wanting to buy some.

Varieties I've tried knitting over the years - sticking moreso with those on the right.

Handwoven dishtowels and Handknit dishcloth.

One of my weaving looms is set up with the same colorings in this picture for dishtowels that match the dishcloths I knit (how-to here). The weave structure is set up for the very absorbant towel on the right. I'll often give a set along with my homemade soap.

This year I've made so much Healthy Cold Cereal via Sarah, The Healthy Home Economist, I'm making up a bunch to jar up with pretty cloth tops and include the recipe.

Monte's made the Grandkids homemade blocks, varying the sizes, including some tree branch pieces. These sets are quite expensive if you were to buy them. They are asking for more, and have specified the sizes they want more of. Our kids often built structures to the ceiling over and over and the grandkids are carrying on the tradition. I've added wooden train tracks and trains to my Grandmother "wood" toy bin. I like building upon quality sets, including Lego, rather than a wide variety of toys. Now that there's girls, I'll be adding some wood furniture and people and animals to this bin. Can't wait to make "handmades" with them too!

Handwoven hot pads

My kids always wove my potholders, but now I have to make my own. They have always been my favorite, preferring their size. Dawson wove so many once that he stitched together for a rug.

Every Fall I used to take the kids to a large craft store and look around for ideas they could work on for giftings. I used to read aloud to them a lot and I always liked them to be busy handcrafting or drawing. I even let them carve in the house!

One of my journals with a felted decor

We also made handmade books for giftings. I'll still occasionally do that for journaling. I used to have the kids tell me their dreams  and write them out myself when they were little. Eventually they wrote their own stories and we'd make books. I used to make my brother and sister handmade books all the time when they were little. Illustrating them too. The Grandparents still have the books they gave them.

Knitted toy for the Grandkids

I like knitting them hats and toys. I have a monkey pattern, boy and girl, along with clothes that I periodically keep adding to. Both the older grandboys have a monkey with pajamas and robe. I need to now make girl monkeys (next year) and more clothes.

Hand-dyed hat, socks, and t-shirt for kids

Men's dyed T-sh

I'm also very set up to dye stuff easily. When my kids were born I often dyed second-hand clothes in darker, brighter colors - all pastel back then, which I hated. Whenever I'm tired of something I'll redye it - like one of my bathrobes has been dyed three times. I'm always now dyeing T-shirts with matching bamboo socks for everyone. One Christmas everyone got dyed canvas aprons. Now my kids have taken off with a technique I taught them - painting or spraying over a stencil dark T-shirts with bleach (outside of coarse - and wash right away so doesn't eat the fiber). In fact, Dawson gets cheap shirts and bleaches a design and a resale shop buys them or gives him store credit. I order my dyes and dyeables from Dharma Trading Company. They have GREAT tutorials and lots of gifting ideas!

My boys with their wives showing us their bleach-dyed t-shirts

Best of all . . . A lot of these doings, meaning "think handmade" is caught moreso than taught! Dawson and Splarah kinda copied (I'll post another post with the picture of mine - it's probably back in the Dec Archives) my 'bean-bag" creche - wanting to make one for her Mom. I LOVE it!!!!!!

Nativity Scene made by my Dawson and Splarah for her mom

My next post will have some felt stuff.


Shared with: Spain In Iowa, Sustainable Eats, My Cultured Palate, Real Food Wednesday, Fat Tuesday, Slightly Indulgent Tuesday, Traditional Tuesday, Farm Girl Blog Fest, Monday Mania, Homestead Barn Hop, Pin Meme, Or So She Says, Six Sister's Stuff

Ukrainian Eggs

Ukrainian dyed eggs - a wax resist process

It's that time of year again. I'm just home from being gone several weeks with a new grand-daughter born. When at the little grocer I frequent the checkout gal says the fresh hams for Easter have just come in. EASTER! I've not even thought of it, let alone a meal, and who's coming our way. BUT, I also just got an email from my youngest son saying he wants to bring several groups of friends to do eggs this year. I still have the dye in canning jars from last year ... I wasn't going to buy new dye, since they can be reused. But then my other son said the same, "We want to bring some couples to dye eggs". So I'm going to order new dyes to have on hand ... just in case. Like did someone compromise the yellow last year? ...

For years I've ordered my kits/dyes from the Ukranian Gift Shop. And click here to see last years "how-to" post with lots of pics.

Felted Wreaths

This is my second Christmas of making these wreaths. This year I wet felted the wool to the styrofoam wreath, then needle felted on the details. Some are wrapped with a coordinating wool yarn. I'll make the leaves and some other details separate, needling on a foam pad, then adding them to the wreath.

Felted styrofoam wreaths

Felted styrofoam wreaths - 2 stacked

I've mentioned before, probably in the felted egg post, that the styrofoam needs to be the rough, not the smooth kind for needlefelting.

More Ukrainian Egg Dying Info

I'm cleaning up the dining room table of all the Ukrainian Egg dyeing tools. I have a box the jarred dyes return to along with all the kistka tools, candle holders, beeswax, how-to instruction sheets and then the vinyl tablecloth. This year there's cartons of undone raw eggs to put by the box in the garage too. Will I pull it all out to make Christmas tree ornaments next fall? Every year I say I will ... We'll see. Varnished, blown out, and hung with silk cord and tassel would be beautiful!

I took some pictures of eggs that got left. Gary made the egg faces. Most people took home their eggs. I save cartons prior to Easter so they can be cut up for protecting a few eggs. Like most of the gals who came to my Spring Tea did two eggs. Friends stayed on into the evening dyeing more. Then, as I was starting to put everything away the Easter weekend Dawson texted me saying he was "bringing lots of friends to dye eggs ... and by the way, we're staying for supper". I had no plans. We had homemade pizzas for supper - a dessert one with brie, chocolate chips, and sliced cranberry sauce was delicious. I want to make it again for improving the recipe.

Something I thought I should mention, to add to the dyeing instructions I've posted about, is the use of bleach. My boys are big-time into the use of bleaching their eggs. You can see in the above picture the back eggs that are quite white. Most of these started out as black eggs, waxed, and then bleached. Travis's egg with the birds and the sunset below, started out black too. He probably bleached it several times, but beware ... excessive bleaching can weaken the egg shell. I bleached one of mine, wanting a truer green after the scarlet, but I didn't wash the egg after bleaching - with soap and water! Bleach will affect the dyes. My egg didn't take the green dye evenly. I hope I didn't wreak the dark green dye. Monte's still got his serpentenite egg in there ... waiting ...

Ukrainian - Pysanky - Egg Dyeing

Ukrainian - Pysanky Eggs

It's that time of year again. I've ordered more dyes, though I still have last year's dyes jarred in a box in the garage. Since more people are going to be coming to our home to do eggs this year, I thought I'd get some fresh dye. We'll use both.

I saw an article in a 1973 National Geographic Magazine on Ukrainian eggs, and wanted to do them. Since I knew how to do Batik textile art, I understood the process, but didn't know special tools existed. As is typical of me, I just jump in and do things. I got beeswax and melted it in a metal measuring cup and stood over the stove painting the wax on eggs. And the only dyes I new of were the typical grocery store Paas (?- I think that's what it is) dyes. Monte joined in the process when we were dating.

Soon after we were married I found the traditional kistka tools and special dyes. For years now we've been ordering supplies from the same store, and have bought kits for wedding presents. We've also bought a lot of extra tools and leave the dyes out for about a month and have had many people around our dining table decorating eggs. One couple, years ago so looked forward to it they started designing eggs months beforehand. When they moved away they bought their own kit and have done it every year.

Though electric kistkas exist, it's traditionally done by heating the metal funnel of the kistka over a candle till the beeswax is melted. It does not run out until it touches the egg. It's a wax-resist process, starting from lightest and getting progressively darker. You initially wax over everything you want white and put egg in yellow, once dry, you wax over what you want to stay yellow, and so on. When done you hold the egg to the side of the candle and wipe the melting wax off with a paper towel. The eggs are raw and they dry out over time.

This picture is just one of the three cartons that got done several years ago. That was a very productive and artistic weekend of eggs - Travis had several couples come and stay several days to dye eggs (and enjoy just hanging out, of coarse). Dawson has friends come too. Everyone loves it! I've gotten emails from both boys this year - going to be bringing friends again!

I cap the canning jars of dye and repack the box. I store them along with the old silver spoons, candles and candle-holders, box of tools and instructions and pictures, and then the vinyl tablecloth. It can be pulled out anytime. Every year I say I'm going to do it for Christmas ornaments - but I haven't yet.

Several years ago Monte made a shelf for the eggs to better display than the hanging wire baskets I've always kept them in. The company I order the dyes and tools from, the Ukrainian Gift Shop, has a variety of stands for the eggs. So I got a bunch of the cheap clear plastic stands. Monte is going to make a shelf unit for each of the kids too.



Having done these for years, I never varnished them and finally did a few years ago. It's a final step I've always skipped. So some of the varnished ones are older and already faded. These dyes are toxic, so no eating of the eggs, but are not run-proof, so make sure the varnish is not water-base. We nailed three nails every so often in boards to support the eggs and I use my gloved hands to rub the oil-base varnish on the eggs. (The stands could be used in the oven on low temp for helping melt the beeswax off. I've not tried this - but a book I have shows it.)

St Patrick Quilt

I almost forgot ... it's St Patrick's Day! I made a quilted piece years ago for adorning the dining table at this time. I had some gals over for a tea lunch and felting last Saturday and pulled out this quilt for the table and it's been out since.

When I was looking for patterns, all clover leaf patterns were with four leaves. Since Patrick used a three-leaf clover to talk about the Trinitarian God, I wanted three leaves as well, so had to create my own quilt pattern.

One-Use-Soap? or Homemade "Wet Ones"

One-use-soap - craft felt dipped in melted glycerin

One of the craft stations at the Valentine Tea, was a supposed one-use-soap. I say supposed because I've been using them, and the glycerin soap is lasting longer than a one-use. I started out with larger craft felt shapes, but someone at the party decided smaller would be better and I totally agree. After the party, I cut out lots of smaller hearts, dipping in the melted glycerin, set to cool on a sheet of foil, and then put them in a tea cup in our guest bathroom.

You don't need to cut out hearts (a tutorial I found did snowflakes for a Christmas party). In the future, I'm just going to use a rotary cutter, cutting small rectangles from craft felt. I want to put some in small zip-lock bags for keeping in my purse. The one-time use? Could just put them back in the bag and use till no more soap, but throwing them away after one use wouldn't be such a bad thing.

One-use-soap process

My other question still to explore is the melting temp and quick dipping. If hotter, would less glycerin adhere to the felt? Or would just very quickly dipping be the answer. Do they need to be a one-use thing? Any way, they are a very cool idea!

Materials?
Glycerin chunks - I found them at Hobby Lobby - don't get the opaque kind, if you want to see thru to felt glitter or words you write.
Something to melt the glycerin in - Dawson had gotten me a small crock pot from a second-hand store that is now designated for this function.
Tongs for dipping in the hot glycerin
Foil to lay the hot dipped pieces on to cool and harden
Craft felt - cut in small pieces

As I wrote the above word "pieces" ... I got to thinking ... There's other things that could be dipped in the glycerin for this purpose too. Has anyone explored the options? I don't use dryer sheets anymore, but they could be cut smaller and "re-purposed"! What else? ...

Valentine Crafting Tea Party

I had a Tea Party open house. I set up craft stations all over my house. I'd sent out an Evite to a variety of people: some of them very old friends and some new. I think everyone attending knew someone, but people were conversing with lots of new people. I knew everyone! (Oh wait, no, someone brought a friend whom I did not know.)

Me in the tie-dye apron and friends

Valentine paper crafting station

The dining table was set up with the Valentine making paper station. Near it was a small table brought in from the guest room and set up with acrylic paints, glue, glitter, and sequins. Wool and homemade soap were in the greenhouse, off the dining room, for making felt covered soap. The guest room was set up as the needle felting station. The laundry room had a crayon melting craft possibility and a little crock of melted glycerin soap for a One-use-soap craft.

Felting over homemade soap station

Needlefelting craft station

Erika at the One-Use-Soap craft station

Sarah cut out the hearts and squares from my pullman loaves

I'd made the pullman loaf pan bread and all the tea sandwich makings, veggies and dips, the day before, but the morning of the tea I was making scones ... so they'd be fresh. So I didn't have my sandwiches assembled before the guests arrived. As a result, the kitchen and it's table became another craft station with my guests making the various tea sandwiches. I think they enjoyed this!

I had an electric pot with hot water and tea bag varieties, and then of course a wide variety of tea cups Monte and me got at second-hand stores. I just couldn't see people using disposable cups for a tea party! I posted a lot of the food recipes at my karey's kitchen blog (see sidebar).

Second-hand store tea cup finds

I didn't make desserts. Some people brought them. Dawson's girlfriend Splarah made beautiful cupcakes that were almost too pretty to eat!

Splarah's homemade cupcakes!

I'm going to post individual tutorials about some of the craft stations.

On the window sill by the front door I had Valentine gift bags for people to take their goodies home in. People are still telling me "thank you", and how good a time they had. I've decided this valentine crafting tea party will be a tradition.

Gift bags for taking home craft goodies