Lock & Key

Pysanka is the Ukrainian art of writing on raw eggs with hot wax using a stylus, or something similar, and then dipping them in a series of dyes. The symbols and colors used convey different meanings, such as joy and beauty for poppies, and fertility and health for the color green.

Last week I filled up my new Target-bought advent calendar with small ornaments so that each day I can hang a new one on my tree. I didn’t have a nice one for the large 25th day slot, so my mom gave me a pysanka ornament we had given my great-grandmother several years ago. It’s quite lovely, and now I am glad to have a special ornament that is representative of my heritage. (Coincidently, both my great-grandmother’s parents and my great-grandfather’s family left Ukraine at about the same time before the turn of the 20th century, and settled in North Dakota.)

Below are a few pysanky ornaments I found on Etsy:

By DandylionEggs, $30

By CarltonARTfactory, $15

By CarltonARTfactory, $35

By DragonflyTrail, $10 each

Update: Below is my fantastic little egg, by Char Thomas.