Ooops, a drip! It is a challenge to remove all traces of wax from an egg, but you can try to remove some of the wax. Once wax has attached itself to the surface of a pysanka, it has penetrated the pores of the shell and is hard to remove. Scraping it off will make the visible wax disappear, but bits will remain and may leave unsightly marks. However, if you use a solvent, you might be able to get off most of the wax.
Start with a sharp tool. I like the Fiskar Fingertip Blade, to scrape off excess wax. Be careful not to scratch the shell. Next, use a small micro-brush applicator (or a pointy Q-tips) to apply a solvent to the spot where you want to remove the residue that you scratched off. Be careful the solvent does not drip onto areas where you want wax to remain!
Sold in the Cosmetic section at Walmart By using a Micro-Brush Applicator and a very tiny amount of solvent, you can sometimes dab it only onto the "mistake" to dissolve unwanted wax.
This can be difficult to do well, and often no matter how careful or thorough you are, the shell will not accept the dye as readily under areas where wax was removed. Thanks to Karen H. for this tip and pic!
This can be difficult to do well, and often no matter how careful or thorough you are, the shell will not accept the dye as readily under areas where wax was removed. Thanks to Karen H. for this tip and pic!
Sold in paint section at Lowes Solvent
After scraping off the wax, use a solvent like Ronsonol to remove the residue that is left on the shell.
Apply a drop of lighter fluid onto a Q-tip and touch up the spot. Next wash the egg in a drop of Ivory or Dawn liquid, rinse and finally dip the egg in a wash of vinegar and water(1cup water to 1 Tbsp vinegar).
After scraping off the wax, use a solvent like Ronsonol to remove the residue that is left on the shell.
Apply a drop of lighter fluid onto a Q-tip and touch up the spot. Next wash the egg in a drop of Ivory or Dawn liquid, rinse and finally dip the egg in a wash of vinegar and water(1cup water to 1 Tbsp vinegar).
- Ronsonol (lighter fluid) is completely intolerable to some people, who can't be in same room with it; GooGone, WD40, mineral spirits, etc., can all be almost as bad.
- However, Goof Off Wipes are a great option. Cut the wipes into squares, keep them in a small jar and wrap a square around a cuticle/orange stick to rub on the wax residue spot.
Work Around a Mistake Successfully removing wax takes a lot of patience and experience, and doesn't always work. You may want to work around a mistake, improvising the pattern, incorporate the blotch into the design -- only you will know it’s a "mistake".
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