These are the final steps that you need to follow in order to complete beautiful Eastern European style pysanky Easter eggs. These are the steps that you will need to follow after you have finished with all of the steps of the dyeing process and you have applied all of the different dye colors.
Final steps for finishing pysanky Easter eggs
1. When you are on your final color stage, finish applying the wax for that stage. Dip the egg in the final dye color. Leave the egg in the dye for fifteen to twenty minutes. Then remove the egg from the dye, dab the egg dry with the tissue, and let the egg sit on your drying rack for a few minutes.
2. The following steps are for those who are doing a design that requires bleaching as the final step. If you are making a bleached egg, then your next step will be to create a bleach solution of 1 cup of water to 2 tablespoons of bleach. Put the egg in the bleach solution. When the eggshell has turned competely white, then you need to remove the egg from the solution. Rinse the egg under cool tap water until the egg does not feel slippery any longer. Next, dab the egg dry. Let the egg sit for at least half an hour on your drying rack.
3. Now you are going to melt off all of the wax off of the pysanky Easter egg. Light the candle. Hold the egg near the side of the candle flame (not over the candle flame). If you hold the egg over the candle flame, then the design will become darker due to the carbon buildup. Hold the egg to the side of the flame for a few seconds until the wax looks wet; when the wax is wet, simply wipe it off with a clean tissue paper. Use a new sheet of tissue paper for each time that you wipe the egg so that you’re not just smearing melted wax back onto the egg.
4. Wax does not come off of bleached eggs quite as easily as it comes off of unbleached eggs. If you did create a bleached egg and you are finding that the wax is not coming off easily, then you can use a very small amount of lighter fluid. Pour this lighter fluid onto a tissue paper and very, very gently rub the egg shell with the tissue paper. Of course, you do need to ensure that you keep the tissue far away from the candle flame.
5. If you want to apply a varnish to the egg once you have removed all of the wax, you can use either clear gloss varnish, shellac, or varathane. If you use one of these varnishes, you will get a very glossy finish to your egg. First, use your fingers to apply a tiny amount of varnish to a small area of the egg. You need to ensure that the varnish does not make the colors run. Use your fingers to apply a very, very thin layer of varnish onto the egg. Next, place the egg on the drying rack to let it dry.
6. Finally, drain the insides of the egg. If you are using an egg-blowing device, follow the instructions that come with the device. Otherwise, you can use a very thin syringe or you can use a needle. After you empty the egg, place it on the drying rack so that it can fully drain. Then wash it out. Afterwards, put a tiny amount of white glue in the holes of the egg (using a pin).
