How to make Ukrainian pysanka

Pysanka is one of the mainest symbols of Ukrainian tradition of Easter holiday's celebration. Ukrainian Christians paint pysanky and present them for their relatives, friends, fellows on the day of Resurrection of Jesus Christ, wishing all the best to those whom they love. And I want to tell and to show You, using my photos of self-made pysanky, how it's necessary to paint Ukrainian Easter egg - pysanka. 

It's time for master-class of pysanka's painting! :)

At first You must take white egg with smooth surface and without any cracks and to wash that egg in the room-temperature water. Then You do two parallel holes in the egg with an awl.

After that You blow an eggwhite and yolk in some plate, but be careful to avoid creating of any pysanka's cracks, so don't blow very strongly.

When You've already blown all possible from egg, You must wash egg inside several times. I wash egg 9-10 times, using medical syringe with room-temperature water, which I blow from egg every time to make my pysanka perfectly clean. After washing Your egg must be dry outside and inside, so I leave egg for a nice drying for a day.

A day before pysanka's painting it would be prepared all necessary stains. I use the aniline stains for wool textile because of their stable colours. I pour a package of such aniline stain of 5 g into half-liter glass can and pour half can with almost boiling water. Then I mix that stain till it finally dissolves and then cool a can with pysanka's colour in some cold place (but not in the refrigerator!), because stains must also have room temperature. And, of course, one can must be for one stain, don't mix all stains in the unique can. )))

When You've already prepared eggs and stains You can begin to paint pysanka! You must to have a wax, a candle and pysachok and to be in the fine spirits!!!!!! :)

I must say that pysachok is a special tool for pysanka, made with wood cane and metal triangle, attached to this wood cane. You can do pysachok by yourself, it's easy to do - try it!

It's necessary to warm pysachok above the candle light and to put pysachok in the wax and to warm pysanka's tool above the candle light again for having the melted wax.

On the beginning of the painting You have to cover two egg's holes with a wax.

Only then You start to create different beautiful lines and figures on the egg. Remember, if You paint something with wax on the white surface of egg, this line or symbol will be white on the pysanka.

When You painted all what You want to see white-coloured on Your pysanka, You may put down the egg in the first colour. The process of the colouring must be from lighter till darker colour, for example: yellow-orange-red-cherry-blue-violet-black, or yellow-orange-light green-dark green-brown or black. It may be various mixes of colours on the pysanka, excluding only mix of red and green. When You want to have these both colours on Your pysanka, You should colour Easter egg in such way. The first You put down pysanka in the can with yellow or orange colour (or after yellow and orange) and then You colour in green with a brush or "kvachyk" (Ukrainian denomination). Don't put down whole egg in the can with green colour! Oh, and You can also do kvachyk by yourself - it's just small cane with medical bandage. When You've painted some pattern in green with kvachyk, You cover that green pattern with wax and only then You can put down pysanka in the can with red or cherry colour.

On the photo below I put down my pysanka in the first orange colour.

Pysanka must be in every stain until You'll get necessary colour (during 15-25 minutes). Remember that blown egg has light weight, so You should hold pysanka a little bit in the can. I use the medical gloves for this deal :)

When You put out pysanka from the stain, You wipe it slightly with a soft rag.

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And then You continue to paint Ukrainian Easter egg. In my case I put out my pysanka from orange stain and paint some pattern on the orange egg's surface with a wax, so this pattern will be orange! 

When You painted Your pysanka in all prefered colours, You can remove wax from the egg.

For that deal You should hold pysanka very close to candle light, but it can't be any direct touch with candle, because pysanka may crack.

So You should hold pysanka near the candle for 4-5 seconds and then You wipe the melted wax from pysanka with another soft rag, and do it in turn many times - hold pysanka near the candle and wipe a melted wax from it. :)

And then, oh yes, finally You'll get Your pysanka, painted by yourself! Now You can give it some dear person for You on Easter, saying the best wishes.

Hope You'll enjoy the process of the creating Ukrainian pysanka. In the end of this photo-story here are my several pysanky with Ukrainian paska - traditional Easter baking in Ukraine. Bye!