You Have To Look At This! It's Amazing!

Decorating By heavensgaits Updated 13 May 2013 , 10:26pm by JWinslow

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heavensgaits Posted 8 Apr 2007 , 5:16am
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Hi everybody,

I was just watching "Easter Unwrapped" on Food Network and they showcased a Ukrainian egg artist. She's absolutely incredible! I saw the designs on the eggs and wanted to share. The designs are intricate, but pieces and parts of them would be amazing if piped, embossed, or brush embroidered on a cake. Great ideas for brain storming! Check out the 3D artist link; there are some professional pictures of her eggs, and there is an artists bio on Patty, the artist. Hope you all enjoy the link!

http://www.pysankyshowcase.com/

32 replies
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tyty Posted 8 Apr 2007 , 5:30am
post #2 of 33

Those are just awsome! Thanks for sharing.

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jamhays Posted 8 Apr 2007 , 5:46am
post #3 of 33

I saw those on TV too. Those ARE amazing.

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cambo Posted 8 Apr 2007 , 5:52am
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I also saw the show tonight....amazing work!

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nsouza Posted 8 Apr 2007 , 6:00am
post #5 of 33

way cool!

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LaSombra Posted 8 Apr 2007 , 7:07am
post #6 of 33

wow! icon_eek.gif Those are beautiful! Thanks so much for sharing.

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Joshsmom Posted 8 Apr 2007 , 10:30am
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I saw the show too ~ they are beautiful! Did you catch that 1 egg can take up to 40 hours to make?, and I thought making my cakes and cookies were time consuming

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kbochick Posted 8 Apr 2007 , 11:35am
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My husband actually works with a guy who does that. He used to compete with them, but I guess he won everything, so was asked not to particiapte any more. We bought some absolutely gorgeous ones for only $40 each from him last year. They're so intricate, I love them.

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hnogden Posted 8 Apr 2007 , 3:38pm
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My DH who knows I'm addicted to CC took one look at those and asked "how did they make cake look like that?" icon_eek.gif Gotta love him. Had to take a few min to tell him that they were real eggs. He has seen some amazing things on this site, now he doesnt know whats real and whats cake. icon_biggrin.gif

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cakeatopia Posted 8 Apr 2007 , 3:44pm
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I need to get cable! Lol. Then my kiddos would never see me, so I guess I will wait! Thanks for sharing!

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ShirleyW Posted 8 Apr 2007 , 4:24pm
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I have a cake friend in Pittsburgh Pa. who makes these and she surprised me with two of them for Easter about 5 years ago, beautiful black, red and white.

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cakes21 Posted 8 Apr 2007 , 4:47pm
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Wow that is amazing.

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playingwithsugar Posted 8 Apr 2007 , 5:11pm
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I am Ukrainian by birth, and of course, it is almost a requirement of our nationality that we learn to make these.

I also teach this technique. It is time consuming, but the final product is well worth the investment in time.

Theresa icon_smile.gif

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Kitagrl Posted 8 Apr 2007 , 5:24pm
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What I didn't understand is that they said she sold chicken eggs for $50...but didn't she say those same eggs take 40 hours? How can she sell them that cheap?

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playingwithsugar Posted 8 Apr 2007 , 5:29pm
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Because that is the price that the market will bear. Pysanky are sold internationally, but normally only to those who do not know how to make them. I charge a dollar an hour for my pysanky work, and I have often been told that I charge too much. When you look at the intricacy involved, and how fine some of those lines are, you begin to appreciate your #1 tip work. The largest stylus I have for pysanky is larger than a #1 tip.

Theresa icon_smile.gif

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Kitagrl Posted 8 Apr 2007 , 5:32pm
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Quote:
Originally Posted by playingwithsugar

Because that is the price that the market will bear. Pysanky are sold internationally, but normally only to those who do not know how to make them. I charge a dollar an hour for my pysanky work, and I have often been told that I charge too much. When you look at the intricacy involved, and how fine some of those lines are, you begin to appreciate your #1 tip work. The largest stylus I have for pysanky is larger than a #1 tip.

Theresa icon_smile.gif




If I only got $1/hour for my work I would keep it and not sell it! haha. I was crocheting thread doilies for awhile to sell on Ebay but I was making, yeah, about that much per hour for my work...it was SOOO not worth it. Made me wish I had just decided to keep all my doilies and decorate my own house with them.

I guess you have to love it to do it huh!

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playingwithsugar Posted 8 Apr 2007 , 5:40pm
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That is why most of my work is done for my family. It has only been rarely over the past 40 years (I learned when I was 10) that I have sold any work; most of it has been as gifts for family and friends.

Theresa icon_smile.gif

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ShirleyW Posted 8 Apr 2007 , 5:52pm
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Quote:
Originally Posted by playingwithsugar

Because that is the price that the market will bear. Pysanky are sold internationally, but normally only to those who do not know how to make them. I charge a dollar an hour for my pysanky work, and I have often been told that I charge too much. When you look at the intricacy involved, and how fine some of those lines are, you begin to appreciate your #1 tip work. The largest stylus I have for pysanky is larger than a #1 tip.

Theresa icon_smile.gif




Theresa will you pm me a photo of your work? I would love to see them.

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playingwithsugar Posted 8 Apr 2007 , 5:57pm
post #19 of 33

Sorry, Shirley, but I never photographed any of it, as I never sought to do it on large-scale commercially.

I have a class coming up in a couple of months, which I will have to make samples for (sold the last batch of samples). It has only ever been a "little bit of extra money" thing for me.

I will photograph them for you and send them your way when they are done.

Theresa icon_smile.gif

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shanter Posted 12 May 2013 , 9:38pm
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These are some I made. The pictures are not great. They're on a drying rack after being varnished.

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Annabakescakes Posted 13 May 2013 , 12:30am
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A

Original message sent by shanter

These are some I made. The pictures are not great. They're on a drying rack after being varnished. [URL=http://cakecentral.com/content/type/61/id/3005645/] [/URL] [URL=http://cakecentral.com/content/type/61/id/3005646/] [/URL]

Are you serious??? I don't have the skill or patience! (Mostly not the skill, since if i could do it, i would find the patience, lol) Those are completely amazing! How long did they take? Are you selling them?

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shanter Posted 13 May 2013 , 3:54am
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Annabakescakes 

Are you serious??? I don't have the skill or patience! (Mostly not the skill, since if i could do it, i would find the patience, lol) Those are completely amazing! How long did they take? Are you selling them?

 

1. They are not as difficult as they look, although no one ever believes me when I say that. Like decorating a cake, you get better with practice. There are some that are very complicated, but there are a  lot that are just geometry. A straight line on a curved surface is pretty easy. A curved line (such as a spiral) on a curved surface it more difficult.

 

2. I don't now how long one takes to make one, as I've never done one by itself, beginning to end. Neither has my sister (she taught me after she took a class). After you clean off the kitchen table, cover it with newspaper and paper towels, get the candles and matches (to melt the wax), boil the water and prepare the different colors of dye, making only one hardly seems worth all that preparation! We always make several in a day: you work on the second one while the first one is in the yellow dye; then the third one while the first one is in orange and second one is yellow. The designs are drawn with a tool called a kistka and are done in molten beeswax. It is a batik process; you put the wax where you want to protect the color from the next darker color of dye.

 

3. I have sold a couple of fairly ordinary ones for about $20 each to co-workers, but I usually give them as gifts or just keep them to decorate with at Easter.

 

We're not Ukrainian (rather, Irish and Norwegian), but just thought they were beautiful and we're kind of crafty in general.

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Annabakescakes Posted 13 May 2013 , 5:37am
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I did a batik in high school Art III, and it was tedious! It was amazing when done, though. I would love to see some "before, during and after" shots, the next time you drag out the eggs and cover the kitchen table, lol.

 

BTW, I am in love with your new signature, hahaha! I seriously laughed out loud. You're funny ;-)

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unicorn5 Posted 13 May 2013 , 6:04am
post #24 of 33

What a great thread, I love traditional ways of egg dyeing.

 

In Slovenija, a tiny country bordering on Austria, Italy, Hungary and Croatia, where I come from, there are several of traditional ways to make an easter egg. The one I prefer is called "drsanka" - the eggs are dyed in onion pillings and than the design is scratched into the shell.

 

 

 

But the most beautiful eggs, in my opinion, are made by drilling into the egg shell - don't they look like intricate pieces of art?

 

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Apti Posted 13 May 2013 , 6:24am
post #25 of 33

Beautiful, Shantar!!!!!!   You are definitely multi-talented.

 

Welcome to the forum, unicorn5, gorgeous eggs!

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shanter Posted 13 May 2013 , 4:29pm
post #26 of 33

I'm not sure if I have pictures of the steps of the process, but on this page:

http://greatlakesgazette.wordpress.com/2011/04/22/pysanky-eggstreme-decorating/

Scroll down to the third picture and click on it, which enlarges it. On the tray in front, it shows eggs in various stages of being done. At the end, you melt the wax off and it reveals the bright colors of these traditional colors. You can use other colors for different effects.

 

unicorn5:  I love your eggs, especially the ones where the egg shell is ground away and pierced. Fabulous!

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Annabakescakes Posted 13 May 2013 , 4:47pm
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AEggs and people are amazing! I am thoroughly impressed!

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JWinslow Posted 13 May 2013 , 4:54pm
post #28 of 33
Quote:
Originally Posted by shanter 

These are some I made. The pictures are not great. They're on a drying rack after being varnished.


Wow!  These are amazing!  Where did you learn how to do these?

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Norasmom Posted 13 May 2013 , 5:10pm
post #29 of 33

My grandmother was 100% Ukranian and she gave some of these eggs to my mother when she was a little girl...my mother still has them.  They are beautiful!  I broke one once and it was awful...I got into just a little bit of trouble...

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shanter Posted 13 May 2013 , 6:33pm
post #30 of 33
Quote:
Originally Posted by JWinslow 

Quote:
Originally Posted by shanter 

These are some I made. The pictures are not great. They're on a drying rack after being varnished.

 


Wow!  These are amazing!  Where did you learn how to do these?

 

My sister saw them in a National Geographic magazine years ago and admired them. Then she found a class where a Ukrainian woman was teaching how to make pysanky. Then she found a cookbook (Time-Life International series, Russia) with pysanky on the cover:

http://thepinpals.typepad.com/pin_pals/2009/03/   scroll down to March 05, 2009.

My sister taught me and I bought the cookbook also. Over the years, we have bought several books with instructions and patterns, and we've make up some of our own patterns.

http://www.balkanbazaar.com/pysanki_easter_eggs.html

On that page some books are at the top. If you scroll clear to the bottom, you will see the National Geographic magazine that got my sister started.

We also taught my sister's daughter, and sometimes all three of us decorate eggs at the same time.

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