Pysanky Egg Art

There are any number of ways to make a small hole in an egg.

Push Pin/Thumb Tack: The simplest way to make a hole in an egg is to use a push-pin (thumb tack). I use the sort with a long, colored plastic head as it provides a bitter grip. Push the sharpened tip slowly but firmly into the egg, and it will go right in.

The hole created in such a manner is fairly small. If you wish to enlarge it, you can use the tips of a small Phillip's head screwdriver. Simply insert the tip into the hole, and then twirl/rotate it. This will act like a drill/grinder and make the hole larger.

Blas-Fix: A second way is using one of the small hand drills included with each Blas-Fix blower. Hold the egg firmly in one hand, and press the tip of the drill firmly against the egg with the other. Once it has "seated" itself into the shell (you'll feel a slight pop), twirl the drill until it goes all the way through. The hole produced with one of these is a bit bigger, and the perfect size for using a Blas-Fix.

Reamer: A third option is to purchase a high-quality hand-held reamer, which is sort of like a fine drill with a handle similar to a screwdriver handle. The tip is very sharp, and you make the hole in the same way as with a push pin. Make sure to hold the egg firmly! Once the hole is started, you rotate the reamer back and forth to enlarge the hole. This works on small, fragile eggs on up to ostrich eggs. A reamer tool can be found at well-stocked hobby shops such as Dan's Crafts and Things in Rochester, New York.

X-acto Knife: Another inexpensive option is to use an X-acto knife, or just the #11 blade that comes to a fine point. Poke a hole in the center of the larger end of the egg with the sharp point of the blade. Then with a gentle twisting motion "drill" the hole to the desired size.

Dremel Tool: The high-tech way of making a hole is to use a Dremel (high speed rotary) tool. A Dremel is fairly expensive--it's not really worth buying just for this, but, if you have one around the house already, you can use it for this purpose. Use the cone shaped grinding attachment.

Hold the egg very firmly in one hand, and the Dremel tool in the other. The Dremel should be set at a medium to high speed, and turned on. Touch the tip to the spot you wish to make the hole, and apply very firmly. It will grind right through . If you do not hold it firmly enough, it will skitter across the shell of the egg and cause scratches/damage.

The answer is, of course, "It depends." No single book is the best book; all have their strengths and weaknesses. Choosing a book means taking into account what you wish to use it for.

If you wish to learn all about pysanky--their history, symbolism, folkways--then the book of choice is Vira Manko's "Ukrainian Folk Pysanka." No other book in publication (or out of publication) rivals hers for the depth and breadth of her scholarship, readability, and the gorgeous plates of traditional pysanky (1464 altogether).

If you wish to have a beginner's guide to making pysanky, then one of the Ukrainian Gift Shop publications would be your book of choice.

It you're looking for a very basic guide to making pysanky (without any other bells and whistles) you might consider the UGS "Kid's Guide." It's a great resource for kids as well as adults.

A partial listing of books useful for those making pysanky follows. More extensive lists can be found at the links below.

Traditional Pysanky

All of these books discuss traditional pysanky, and the latter two contain much material about pysanka history and traditions.

ELYJIW, ZENON. Sixty Score of Easter Eggs: A Comprehensible Album of Ukrainian Easter Eggs. Rochester, NY, Private Printing, 1994. This album contains photographs of the author's own collection of traditional (and some diasporan) pysanky, organized by region, division and theme. The book provides a priceless record of historical pysanky designs. Unfortunately, it is out of print, although copies can still be found on line.

MANKO VIRA. The Ukrainian Folk Pysanka. Lviv, Ukraine: Svichado Press, 2005. This book is the best written on the subject of the traditional folk pysanka, and includes plates with photos of 1460 different eggs.

TKACHUK, MARY AND MARIE KISHCHUK, ALICE NICHOLAICHUK. Pysanka: Icon of the Universe. Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada: Ukrainian Museum, 1977. This little booklet may be small, but it is full of treasures about pysanka history, folklore, and symbolism.

Diasporan Pysanky: Ukrainian Gift Shop (UGS) Publications

All of the books below were published in Minneapolis by the Perchyshyn family, and are technical guides to creating Ukrainian-style decorated eggs. Several also contain a bit of history, symbolism and traditions. All include step-by-step instructions for creating lovely eggs.

KMIT, ANNE AND , LORETTA LUCIOW, JANET LUCIOW, AND LUBA PERCHYSHYN. Ukrainian Easter Eggs And How We Make Them. Minneapolis, MN: Ukrainian Gift Shop, 1979. Currently out of print. The book covers traditions, symbolism and technique, before presenting twenty-seven eggs in simple, clear, black and white illustrations.

LUCIOW, JOHANNA AND ANNE KMIT AND LORETTA LUCIOW. Eggs Beautiful: How to Make Ukrainian Easter Eggs. Minneapolis, MN: Gopher State Litho, 1975. This early UGS book presents a good explaination of the culture, history, and technique of pysanky along with eighteen designs in black and white.

PERCHYSHYN, LUBA AND JOHANNA LUCIOW AND NATALIE PERCHYSHYN. Ukrainian Easter Egg: Design Book 2. Minneapolis, MN: Ukrainian Gift Shop, 1986. Twenty-four new patterns are presented here along with the same information about culture and technique from the previous books.

PERCHYSHYN, NATALIE. A Kid's Guide to Decorating Ukrainian Easter Eggs. Minneapolis, MN: Gopher State Litho, 2000. With bold colors and a spiral binding (making it easier to lie flat), this book seems simple, but nonetheless presents the entire pysanky process along with many tips and tricks.

PERCHYSHYN, NATALIE. Ostrich Pysanky: Decorating Ostrich Eggs the Ukrainian Way. Minneapolis, MN: Gopher State Litho, 1996. Step-by-step instructions guide the artist through the arduous and daunting task of decorating an ostrich egg for the first time.

PERCHYSHYN, NATALIE. Ukrainian Easter Egg: Design Book 3.Minneapolis, MN: Ukrainian Gift Shop, 1995. Twenty-four eggs are presented here in step-by-step fashion, along with some explanation of symbols and colors.

PERCHYSHYN, NATALIE. Ukrainian Easter Egg Design Book 4.Minneapolis, MN: Gopher State Litho, 2002. Twenty-four step-by-step egg designs by Luba Perchyshyn, in color.

PERCHYSHYN, NATALIE AND DEANNA PERCHYSHYN. Ukrainian Easter Egg Design Book 5. Minneapolis, MN: Gopher State Litho, 2006. The fifth design book in the series contains 26 patterns, including one ostrich egg and one goose egg. The patterns are in color. There is extensive discussion of technique, and it is probably the best book of this series.

PERCHYSHYN, NATALIE AND LUBA PERCHYSHYN, JOHANNA LUCIOW, AND ANNE KMIT. Ukrainian Design Book: Book 1. Minneapolis, MN: Gopher State Litho, 1984. Twenty-four egg patterns presented in clear, easy-to-follow black and white.

Advanced Pysanka Techniques

Not for the beginner, but these books do contain some good tips and tricks for more advanced artists.

BADULAK, HELEN. Pysanky in the 21stCentury. Kutztown, PA: The Kutztown Publishing Company, Inc., 2004. This book is filled with photos of hundreds of Badulak's eggs, but her step-by-step photos are a bit hard to follow, especially the more complex designs. This is not a book for the beginner, but for someone who wants to learn more advanced pysanka techniques.

POLLAK, JANE. Decorating Eggs: Exquisite Designs with Wax and Dye. New York, NY: Sterling Publishing Company, Inc., 1998. Jane Pollak became famous for her magnificent quilt-pattern eggs, which sold for a fortune at exclusive Manhattan area galleries before she turned her attention to inspirational speaking. The book is worth obtaining just for the photographs of modern pysanka-style eggs from artists all around the world, but includes wonderful text and instructions also.

Children's Picture-Books

POLACCO, PATRICIA. Chicken Sunday. New York, NY: Philomel Books, 1992. Well-known author and artist Patricia Polacco drew on her own personal experiences to write this lovely story about a young girl who taught her two friends to make pysanky. Wonderful lesson plans based on the book can be found on line.

Design Books

Not pysanka books, but contain motifs and designs of interest to those wishing to create original batik eggs as opposed to traditional Ukrianian pysanky.

APPLETON, LE ROY H. American Indian Design and Decoration. New York, NY: Dover Publications, Inc., 1971. This book balances text and illustrations, explaining the history and meaning behind all the patterns. It was first published in 1950 by Scribner's Sons, NY, NY as Indian Art of the Americas.

BENTLEY, W.A. AND W.J. HUMPHREYS. Snow Crystals. New York, NY: Dover Publications, Inc., 1962. An amazing collection of photos of actual snowflakes, this book, first published in 1931 by McGraw-Hill Book Company, is a treasure trove of snowflake design ideas.

BERLO, JANET AND PATRICIA CREWS. Wild By Design: Two Hundred Years of Innovation and Artistry in American Quilts. Seattle, Washington: University of Washington Press, 2003. Filled with fantastic and colorful quilt designs, this fine art book provides a wealth of inspiration from modern quilt artists.

DUKE, DENNIS AND DEBORAH HARDING. America's Glorious Quilts. China: Hugh Lauter Levin Associates, Inc., 1987. An oversized coffee-table book, this publication is chock full of quilt patterns that lend themselves quite nicely to pysanky designs. I include it here not as the "best" book of quilt patterns but as an example of the kind of book of photos that inspire endless geometric designs.

GILLON, EDMUND. Geometric Design and Ornament. New York, NY: Dover Publications, 1969.

HESSEMER, F.M. Historic Designs and Patterns in Color From Arabic and Italian Sources. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, Inc., 1990. Presented in full color are fabulous mosaics and tiled patterns from Italy and Northern Africa.

JONES, OWEN. The Grammar of Ornament: All 100 Color Plates From the Folio Edition of the Great Victorian Sourcebook of Historic Designs. New York, NY: Dover Publications, Inc., 1987. Classic collection of patterns from nearly every culture and period in history; an endless source of inspiration for pysanky designs.

MACCARTHY, MARY. The Crafter's Pattern Sourcebook. North Pomfret, Vermont: Trafalgar Square Publishing, 1999. I just LOVE this book! It contains a little bit of everything, with simplified patterns from almost every culture and historical epoch that are easy to copy.

MEEHAN, AIDAN. Celtic Design: Knotwork: The Secret Methods of the Scribes. New York, NY: Thames and Hudson, Inc., 1991. Detailed illustrations and step-by-step instructions unravel the mysterious Celtic knot. The best book on drawing knots I have ever found.

SPERO, JAMES, Editor. Decorative Patterns From Historic Sources. New York, NY: Dover Publications, 1986.

VAN ROOJEN, PEPIN. Batik Patterns. Amsterdam, The Netherlands: The Pepin Press, 2002. Batik lends itself to pysanky particularly well, although the color range is limited. The book includes a CD that provides all the designs, which makes copying and adapting them much easier.

WILSON, EVA. Islamic Designs for Artists and Craftspeople. New York, NY: Dover Publications, Inc., 1988.