Sharpies and Eggs

UPDATE: Here's a tutorial and more examples!

I've always loved Urkrainian eggs. A few weeks ago, Suzy'sSitcom blog featured some Ukrainian eggs and got my wheels turning...

Traditional eggs are made with a pysanky set, using beeswax, toxic dyes, and several hours per egg. I didn't have any of those.

So I improvised.

(I like improvising, don't I?)

And I found the easiest way ever to decorate Easter eggs with intricate designs.

Behold, the supplies I found! Acrylic paints, small brushes, and.... Sharpies. I saw a big box of multi-colored sharpies sitting on the school table (my mom has a thing with pens), and grabbed them.

I didn't use the acrylic paints at all. Sharpies are the ultimate egg-decorating-tool-cheats.

Addie blowing an egg-- actually, attempting to, because she couldn't do it.

The first step is blowing the egg. This is the grossest and possibly most confounding part of my "Ukrainian" eggs.

You use a thick needle to gently poke a hole in the top and bottom of the egg. Wiggle it around so that the bottom hole is thicker, about the width of a #2 pencil lead. Use the needle to stir up the yolk.

Then blow through the smaller, top hole. Blow until you are red in the face. Roll your eyes when your brothers gleefully exclaim how disgusting it is.

You can use the egg insides to make scrambled eggs, or just toss it.

When the egg is empty, fill it up with water and vinegar. You can use the needle to hold the "film" away from the large bottom hole and use a faucet to fill the egg. We discovered that the best way to get a vinegar/water mixture into the egg is to use a medicine squinter (the kind you get for baby medicine). My friend said that a medical syringe would be even better.

Blow the water/vinegar out of the egg and get started decorating!

Draw the design in pencil (lightly).

Then, go CRAZY with the SHARPIES!

I spent almost an hour per egg, because I'm crazy like that. I get all caught up in art and get more and more and more and more detailed.

I didn't use any dye on my eggs before decorating them, but I did discover that Sharpies can make a very beautiful dye/marbled effect.

Scribble on a small portion of an egg with a Sharpie, then use the tip of a paper towel or a Q-tip to rub the ink around on the egg. Do it in sections so the ink can't dry until it has been marbled.

This egg was made by my friend. Didn't she do a beautiful job? She loves Asian culture, and the writing on the edges of her egg is copied from a Miraculous Medal my grandma gave me. I really want to learn the story behind the medal. It's really old and the writing is some kind of Asian language.

While I went crazy with Sharpies, my siblings dyed their hard-boiled eggs the "normal" way.

My brother saw that the Sharpies said "Non-Toxic," so he decided to draw on hard-boiled eggs with Sharpies. He made a Harry and a Voldemort. They had an epic battle at our breakfast table, and William had a wee bit too much fun squishing the yolk from Voldemort's egg to a pulp.

Next year, I'll try:

Dyeing the egg beforhand

Stringing string through the egg to make an ornament (I don't have a big enough needle now)

Painting eggs with acrylics

Or maybe I'll even be able to try real pysanky.

photo from Suzys Artsy Craftsy Sitcom

You know what? I only made four eggs. And the Easter seasons lasts a whole lot longer than just Easter Sunday. I might go and make some more... there's a whole world waiting inside of those eggs and Sharpies... So many new designs to discover...

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