This lovely emu egg has been etched and only etched. The process is the same as Pysanky, but the colors come from the natural colors of the eggshell. I start with the dark green (and sometimes gray) egg and wax my outlines. They show up as the darkest color on this egg. Then I give the egg an acid bath (Acid Magic is a good one) and give it a gentle scrub with a soft toothbrush until I judge that the color has changed. I rinse off the acid, dip in a baking soda solution to stop the acid from working and wax in the slightly lighter areas. I repeat this process for as many times as I want layers, ending with the white innermost layer of the eggshell. This can be pretty scary because if I go too far, I etch a hole right through the eggshell.
The design itself is one I revisit because I find it interesting. I hope you do too!
Happy Friday!
I love this egg thanks for posting them I look forward to seeing all of your other eggs. How long does it take you to do one?
ReplyDeleteThanks, Julie! I'm sorry I am just figuring out about comments. I feel so dumb that I have missed seeing all these comments before now! It really depends on so many factors - anywhere from a few hours to a few weeks. It depends on how big the egg is, if I am etching or dyeing, how many layers of dyeing, the level of detail, etc. So many factors.
ReplyDelete