THE PATTERN IS REPEATED IN EACH QUADRANT.
Using a large demonstration egg is most helpful for the visual learner.
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I EXPLAIN TO THE CLASS THAT ADDING THE PATTERN ONTO THE EGG SHELL IS NOT "ROCKET SCIENCE"! THE PATTERN IS REPEATED IN EACH QUADRANT. Using a large demonstration egg is most helpful for the visual learner.
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My advice is to Photograph Each Class That You Teach. I like to start with a photo of the room set up and individual set up. It is a visual reminder for the next time that you teach, and makes sure that you have all the supplies for that class. For example, shoot a picture of the dye table, and the individual student place setting Create a Collage of the Class PhotosAlways ask your audience if anyone would mind you taking photos during the class.
I advertise early in the spring, on craigslist or free-cycle and have been lucky to buy fresh goose eggs and turkey eggs(as you see here). You can negotiate with the seller what price you will pay for a dozen eggs. Once you have established the contact, it is easy to make arrangements year after year, for purchasing their eggs. IMPORTANT: I ask the sellers to simply rinse and store the eggs in the fridge until I arrive. One time a seller scrubbed the eggs clean with a Brillo pad! This could damage the cuticle of the egg and scratch the surface, spoiling it. So a gentle note to the seller is all that is needed. DISCLAIMER: AS ALWAYS BE CAREFUL/CAUTIOUS WHEN BUYING OR TRADING ITEMS FROM CRAIGSLIST! ![]() When I teach classes I place a microbead pillow at each station. The pillow supports the wrists and keeps the egg secure in the nest created by the microbeads. It prevents the egg from rolling. I find microbead pillows at yard sales and second-hand shops. Wash them in a cold water cycle and let them air-dry. I clean them this way after each class use. Students love the support that the pillow gives when writing on the egg with the kistka. “ I do think this idea of micro-bead pad is the greatest and I am going to try to find some and start hoarding them, so I can use them if and when I am able to teach this beautiful art.” Sheila the Egg Lady I found a penciling tip on www.learnpysanky.com: Recommedations
I started with using #3 the Staedtler Non-Photo Blue pencil and recommend having a good pencil sharpener on hand. It does not smudge and is erasable with a white eraser. However I prefer, The Pentel Blue 0.5 is the better lead, longer lasting, harder (rarely breaks) and best of all it's 0.5 my preferred size. The shade of blue is darker than the standard non-repro blue so it requires a lighter touch. The Pilot Color ENO Soft Blue 0.7 is the perfect shade of blue, but it is much softer (it easily and often breaks) and only comes in a 0.7 size. So the choice is yours - 0.7 / softer but great colour, or 0.5 / harder and a little dark. Traditionally Pysanky eggs were undrained, the yolks and whites not blown out. When pysanky are made with raw eggs, use care so they will eventually dry up inside, allowing them to last a long time. But be sure to: 1. Always start with fresh eggs that have no thin spots, hairline cracks or flaws, which might later crack. An egg is sterile inside when the shell is intact. Only when bacteria enters through a crack, will the egg start to rot and smell. The moisture from the inside of the egg however, can escape through the porous shell as long as it is treated properly. 2. The gases that build up inside pass naturally through the permeable egg shell. 3. When eggs are still liquid inside after decorating, store and display them properly and carefully to avoid accidentally cracking or “explosions” of the inside contents. Eggs should not be allowed to hit each other if displayed in a container, as this might cause tiny cracks which may allow spoilage. 4. Undrained pysanky should never be placed or stored where they may get too hot, as in sunlight or too cold where they might freeze, both of which can cause expansion and cracking or exploding. 5. Un-drained Pysanky should always be stored where there is adequate air circulation. Air is needed for the insides to dry out. DO NOT store eggs in styrofoam egg cartons (cardboard ones breathe), or in closed places such as decorative glass jars or containers, which are sealed, covered or in a tightly closed china cabinet. These places can store up heat and cause your eggs to expand, crack or explode. ![]() FREQUENTLY ROTATE THE UN-DRAINED EGGS 6. Undrained eggs should be rotated to allow for more even drying out. This picture shows Lemko style pysanky I wrote almost a year ago...all undrained eggs. The metal stand, reminds me to rotate the eggs once a month (or whenever I think about it). You can see they are all presently standing on their ‘heads” (except for the bird motif egg). 7. IMPORTANT: I only apply one coat of varnish to undrained eggs! allowing the permeable shell to breathe through the thin coat. Some Ukrainian pysankars rub a coat of vasaline instead of applying varnish! 8. Even when the eggs appear to have dried out completely, continue to store pysanky in a well ventilated, cool (not cold), dry space. Moisture may seep back through the pores of the eggs and sunlight could fade colors-both which can ruin your pysanky. |
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