Pysanka Power Podcast - Episode 3

The Pysanka Power Podcast is doing fantastic—and helping a lot of people discover and re-discover the magic of Ukrainian Easter eggs. We think Episode 3 will fare the same as you start (or continue) making pysanky before Easter! Practical advice is a common request, especially at this time of year.

Are you "dyeing" to learn about pysanky dyes and the colours they produce? If so, then this Episode is for you. It gives an overview of one of the essential tools for writing pysanky. It covers which colours to choose, how to prepare your dyes, how to store them, how long they'll last, tips for using colour in your designs, troubleshooting problems and solutions, and more . . . . And in between there's tips and money-saving hints!

As mentioned in an earlier blog, the Pysanka Power Podcast was launched in collaboration with Nash Holos Ukrainian Roots Radio three weeks ago!

Now you can listen to all Episodes on your favourite platform. Here's a few of them, with more to be added, and of course on our website and on Nash Holos! 

We're eggs-cited to launch this new initiative for 2019! Pysanka Power Podcast airs weekly on the Vancouver edition of Nash Holos Saturdays at 6 pm on AM1320 CHMB or streamed online at www.am1320.com, and Wednesdays at 11 am on CHLY 101.7FM in Nanaimo or online at www.chly.ca. It also airs on the internationally syndicated edition which broadcasts to 20 countries around the world on AM, FM, shortwave and satellite radio.

If you miss the broadcast, you can catch the show at the Nash Holos website www.nashholos.com. You can also get the audio archives and transcripts of the Pysanka Power Podcast at our website BabasBeeswax.com.

Saving the world one pysanka at a time . . . . ™

Select this link to go to our website to access all Episodes of the Pysanka Power Podcast. 

We'd love to get your feedback. Please comment below with your impressions, questions, and suggestions for future episodes.

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Happy St. Paddy's Day

Just having some fun making these batik-style eggs for St. Patrick's Day. This adorable ovoid was decorated in a workshop I was hosting.

Pysanka Power Podcast - Episode 2

Last week we announced the debut of my Pysanka Power Podcast, launched in collaboration with Nash Holos Ukrainian Roots Radio! It caused a lot of buzzzzz  . . .

Listen to Episode 2 on Nash Holos Ukrainian Roots Radio tomorrow, March 16 (Vancouver), and on Wednesday, March 13 (Nanaimo). It will also air on the internationally syndicated edition which broadcasts to 20 countries around the world on AM, FM, shortwave and satellite radio.

Soon you’ll be able to listen to all the Episodes of my Pysanka Power Podcast on your favourite platform.

If you miss the broadcast, you can catch the podcast of the show at the Nash Holos website www.nashholos.com. As well you can get the audio archives and Transcript of the Pysanka Power Podcast at my website www.BabasBeeswax.com.

The first six episodes will cover the history, legends, and symbols of these precious artifacts. On the practical side, with teaching experience and conducting workshops since 1991, I’ve got more than enough information on tools and techniques, hints, tips and do it yourself projects to tell you about.

Last week, in Episode 1, we told you about the origins of this podcast. Tomorrow, in Episode 2, we’ll tell you about the origins of pysanky and stories told about them. You may want to curl up on your couch and listen to them.

In future episodes I’ll tell you about everything from technique to history and symbolism, share more stories, legends and fun activities, and provide you with resources to help you explore on your own.

Select this link to go to our website to access the Pysanka Power Podcast. I’ll also post the transcripts there for those who would like to follow along.

And don’t forget, the first six episodes of the Pysanka Power Podcast will be broadcast on Nash Holos Ukrainian Roots Radio, from its debut on March 9 until Easter. Tune in Saturdays at 6pm on AM1320 CHMB or stream online at www.am1320.com, and Wednesdays at 11am on CHLY 101.7FM in Nanaimo or online at www.chly.ca.    

I hope you’ll check out my Pysanka Power Podcast either on Nash Holos or via my website. If you do, I’d love to get your feedback. Please comment below with your impressions, questions, and suggestions for future episodes.

Follow us:

https://www.facebook.com/BabasBeeswax/

https:/www.flickr.com/photos/iluvpysanky/albums

https://www.linkedin.com/company/baba-s-beeswax/

Debut of first ever Podcast about Pysanky

We're thrilled to announce the debut of Joan Brander's Pysanka Power Podcast, launching in collaboration with Nash Holos Ukrainian Roots Radio!

Soon you’ll be able to listen to all the Episodes of our Pysanka Power Podcast on your favourite platform. You’ll also be able to hear it on Nash Holos! 

Pysanka Power will debut on the Vancouver edition of Nash Holos today and on the Nanaimo edition on Wednesday, March 13. It will also air on the internationally syndicated edition which broadcasts to 20 countries around the world on AM, FM, shortwave and satellite radio.

If you miss the broadcast, you can catch the podcast of the show at the Nash Holos website www.nashholos.com. As well you can get the audio archives of the Pysanka Power Podcast at our website BabasBeeswax.com.

Saving the world one pysanka at a time . . . . ™

Wondering about the origins of this podcast? For several years, we’ve collaborated on many projects with our talented friend, Paulette MacQuarrie, who just happens to be the host of Nash Holos Ukrainian Roots Radio. We’ve been friends for decades!

She’s been podcasting her show Nash Holos since 2001, and for a long time now has been encouraging us to get going on a podcast of our own on the topic of pysanky.

Two other things got us motivated as well:

1. We want to keep current with popular social media trends such as podcasting; and

2. There are no existing podcasts about pysanky!

After several brainstorming sessions, the Pysanka Power Podcast was born! The first six episodes will cover the history, legends, and symbols of these precious artifacts. On the practical side, with teaching experience and conducting workshops since 1991, we’ve got more than enough information on tools and techniques, hints, tips and do it yourself projects to tell you about.

The inaugural episode goes through the essentials—what supplies are needed to get started and why they’re needed. In future episodes we’ll tell you about everything from technique to history and symbolism, share stories, legends and fun activities, and provide you with resources to help you explore on your own.

Select this link to go to our website to access the Pysanka Power Podcast. We'll soon have links to download or stream podcast episodes. As well, there will be a link to subscribe to the podcast with your favourite podcatcher app. We’ll also post the transcripts there for those who would like to follow along.

And don’t forget, the first six episodes of the Pysanka Power Podcast will be broadcast on Nash Holos Ukrainian Roots Radio, from its debut this Saturday until Easter. Tune in Saturdays at 6pm on AM1320 CHMB or stream online at www.am1320.com, and Wednesdays at 11am on CHLY 101.7FM in Nanaimo or online at www.chly.ca.    

I hope you’ll check out our Pysanka Power Podcast either on Nash Holos or via our website. If you do, we’d love to get your feedback. Please comment below with your impressions, questions, and suggestions for future episodes.

Follow us:

https://www.facebook.com/BabasBeeswax/

https:/www.flickr.com/photos/iluvpysanky/albums

https://www.linkedin.com/company/baba-s-beeswax/

Seasonal Greetings from Guy Kistka - February 14 Valentine's Day

Our whimsical mascot Guy Kistka is celebrating the Feast of Saint Valentine and spreading the love of pysanky.

See his greeting here.

Every February 14 candy, flowers and gifts are exchanged between loved ones, all in the name of St. Valentine. But who is this mysterious saint, and where did these traditions come from?

According to history dot com the story of this saint is shrouded in mystery. We do know that February has long been celebrated as a month of romance, and that St. Valentine’s Day, as we know it today, contains vestiges of both Christian and ancient pagan tradition. Does this sound familiar? Sounds like valentines and pysanky have something in common.

At least three different saints named Valentine or Valentinus, all of whom were martyred, have been recognized. Like pysanky legends, there are legends surrounding Valentine.

One legend contends that Valentine was a priest who served during the third century in Rome. When Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made better soldiers than those with wives and families, he outlawed marriage for young men. Valentine, realizing the injustice of the decree, defied Claudius and continued to perform marriages for young lovers in secret. When Valentine’s actions were discovered, Claudius ordered that he be put to death.

Other stories suggest that Valentine may have been killed for attempting to help Christians escape harsh Roman prisons. According to one legend, an imprisoned Valentine actually sent the first “valentine” greeting himself after he fell in love with a young girl–possibly his jailor’s daughter–who visited him during his confinement. Before his death, it is alleged that he wrote her a letter signed “From your Valentine,” an expression that is still in use today. Although the truth behind the Valentine legends is murky, the stories all emphasize his appeal as a sympathetic, heroic and–most importantly–romantic figure. By the Middle Ages, perhaps thanks to this reputation, Valentine would become one of the most popular saints in England and France.

Visit our website to discover the magic of pysanky kits, supplies and books published by Baba’s Beeswax:

http://www.babasbeeswax.com

If you like what you see, comment below. If you don't please let us know how we can make improvements. We value all feedback.

Follow us:

https://www.facebook.com/BabasBeeswax/

http://iluvpysanky.blogspot.com/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/iluvpysanky/albums

https://www.linkedin.com/company/baba-s-beeswax/

Turning Back the Pages to the 2008 Pysanka Symposium in Washington, DC

The dawn of a new year is a good time to reflect on the past and make dreams for the future. Tomorrow is New Years Eve according to the Julian calendar, and for the team of pysanky experts at Baba's Beeswax it brings back memories of the First Pysanka Symposium in Washington, DC eleven years ago. It was an engaging immersive retreat for pysanka enthusiasts from all over North America. Pysanky specialists, lobbyists and collectors gathered for the opportunity to meet other pysanka artists, experience presentations from guest speakers and celebrate the art of pysankarstvo. Perhaps it was the catalyst for other cities like Vancouver and Toronto who are now following suit with their own events.

Did you attend the symposium? What memories of it do you have? 

Here are several places to check out videos, photos, and links. Do you recognize any people in these images?

1. this link for the newpaper article with photos from The Ukrainian Weekly (No. 17 April 27, 2008) by Olenka and Jurij Dobczansky

2. a photo montage on our YouTube Channel. Check it out here in the Events Playlist and remember to share it

3. if you're a fan of photo albums, we have two on our flickr platform here:

• book launch
• symposium

The symposium included the following topics:

Creation, Tradition, Dissemination

• Jurij Dobczansky – welcoming remarks
• Dr. Andrew Sorokowski – introduction of speakers
• Helen Badulak – the life of a pysanka artist
• Joan Brander – author’s presentation About the Pysanka : It Is Written!
• the late Orysia Paszczak Tracz – the new and old in a new land, the pysanka in North America: from the sublime to the ridiculous

Creation, Collection, Preservation, Exhibition

• Dr. Anrij Hornjatkevyc – Damian Hornjatkevyc’s pysanka collection
• Lubow Wolynetz – pysanky: collecting and exhibiting

Book Launch – author Joan Brander

Paths to the Pysanka Exhibit

• Luba Chornodolsky, Baltimore, MD
• Jurij Dobczansky, Silver Spring, MD
• Olha Kurylas, Wheaton, MD
• Lesia Mandzia, Arlington, VA
• Ihor Masnyk, Potomac, MD
• Nadia O’Shea, Chester, MD
• Ihor Slabicky, Portsmouth, RI
• Sofika Zielyk, New York, NY

Tools for the Pysanka Exhibit

• Ulana Kushnir and her father the late Wasyl Ohar, developer of the electric kistka

 25^th Annual Pysanka Workshop, Easter Bazaar and Luncheon

• Ukrainian Catholic National Shrine of the Holy Family
• Divine Liturgy
• Easter Bazaar and Luncheon
• Workshop

We wish you a prosperous and joyful year in 2019! 

If you like what you see, comment below. If you don't please let us know how we can make improvements. We value all feedback.

Follow us:

https://www.facebook.com/BabasBeeswax/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/iluvpysanky/albums

https://www.linkedin.com/company/baba-s-beeswax/

Our YouTube Channel

Visit our website for pysanky kits, supplies and books published by Baba’s Beeswax:

http://www.babasbeeswax.com

Seasonal Greetings from Guy Kistka – January 6 Ukrainian Christmas Eve

Tonight we will honour and remember the rich traditions celebrated by our ancestors.

Guy Kistka will join other children for Christmas carols (koliadky) in the likes of an ancient folk opera: one carrying a lighted six-pointed star; another dressed as a goat; while others prepared to collect gifts that people will give them.

Later today children will look for the first star in the sky, another ancient ritual, to indicate that it’s time for the Holy Supper (Svyata Vechera) of 12 lenten dishes.

See his greeting here:  https://youtu.be/PAJJlvP2Im0

Guy and the team of pysanky experts at Baba’s Beeswax wish that the magic of Christmas Eve leave its richest blessing in the hearts of you and yours.

Visit our website to discover the magic of pysanky kits, supplies and books published by Baba’s Beeswax:

http://www.babasbeeswax.com

If you like what you see, comment below. If you don't please let us know how we can make improvements. We value all feedback.

Follow us:

https://www.facebook.com/BabasBeeswax/

http://iluvpysanky.blogspot.com/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/iluvpysanky/albums

https://www.linkedin.com/company/baba-s-beeswax/

Seasonal Greetings from Guy Kistka – December 25 Merry Christmas

This is the favourite season of our playful mascot, Guy Kistka, as he can really show his true character. After all he’s a personal friend of Santa! He’s a kid at heart and loves kids, and this is a winning combination. But he also takes time to celebrate the true meaning of Christmas.

Guy and the team of pysanky experts at Baba’s Beeswax wish everyone an enjoyable and safe holiday season.

Click here to see his animated greeting onYouTube: 

Seasonal Greetings from Guy Kistka - December 25 Merry Christmas

Visit our website to discover the magic of pysanky kits, supplies and books published by Baba’s Beeswax:

http://www.babasbeeswax.com

Santa If you like what you see, comment below. If you don't please let us know how we can make improvements. We value all feedback.

Follow us:

https://www.facebook.com/BabasBeeswax/

http://iluvpysanky.blogspot.com/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/iluvpysanky/albums

https://www.linkedin.com/company/baba-s-beeswax/

Santa Loves Christmas

Seasonal Greetings from Guy Kistka – December 24 Christmas Eve

The biblical Magi, also referred to as the Three Wise Men or Three Kings, were distinguished foreigners who travelled to Bethlehem to visit Jesus after his birth, bearing gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. They are regular figures in accounts of the nativity celebrations of Christmas and are an important part of Christian traditions.

Our whimsical mascot Guy Kistka and the team of pysanky experts at Baba’s Beeswax wish that the magic of Christmas Eve brings its richest blessing in the hearts of friends, fans and followers.

See his greeting here:  https://youtu.be/odgqBNo1Oxk

 

Visit our website to discover the magic of pysanky kits, supplies and books published by Baba’s Beeswax:

http://www.babasbeeswax.com

If you like what you see, comment below. If you don't please let us know how we can make improvements. We value all feedback.

Follow us:

https://www.facebook.com/BabasBeeswax/

http://iluvpysanky.blogspot.com/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/iluvpysanky/albums

https://www.linkedin.com/company/baba-s-beeswax/

Seasonal Greetings from Guy Kistka – December Winter Solstice

It’s the longest day of the year and our playful mascot, Guy Kistka, is having as much fun as he can—with the time honoured sport of gliding down the slopes on a toboggan. Later, if he has enough energy he’ll put on his skates or snow shoes, skis or mukluks! He’s enjoying the snow because it won’t last long.

Guy and the team of pysanky experts at Baba’s Beeswax wish everyone an enjoyable and safe holiday season.

Click here to see his animated greeting onYouTube: 

If you like what you see, comment below. If you don't please let us know how we can make improvements. We value all feedback.

Follow us:

https://www.facebook.com/BabasBeeswax/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/iluvpysanky/albums

https://www.linkedin.com/company/baba-s-beeswax/

Our YouTube Channel

Visit our website for pysanky kits, supplies and books published by Baba’s Beeswax:

http://www.babasbeeswax.com

Seasonal Greetings from Guy Kistka – Happy Hanukkah

Our whimsical mascot Guy Kistka joins friends as they bring light, joy, and warmth to homes and communities as Hanukkah is celebrated with lighting of the menorah, singing songs, and playing dreidel. Like the team of pysanky experts at Baba’s Beeswax, he enjoys seconds (maybe thirds, too) of those delicious potato latkes!

We wish you a festival of lights . . . . sparkling with fun and lit up with smiles.

Share this video:

https://youtu.be/-d4pqH5iimM

If you like what you see, comment below. If you don't please let us know how we can make improvements. We value all feedback.

Follow us:

https://www.facebook.com/BabasBeeswax/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/iluvpysanky/albums

https://www.linkedin.com/company/baba-s-beeswax/

Our YouTube Channel

Visit our website to discover the magic of pysanky kits, supplies and books published by Baba’s Beeswax:

http://www.babasbeeswax.com

Ostrich Pysanky - Decorating Ostrich Eggs the Ukrainian Way

This is a book that addresses some of the unique challenges of working with ostrich eggs. They’re SO BIG! Have you tried one?

Check out this link to our Pysanka Power Video Clip published on our Baba's Beeswax YouTube Channel for a book preview that flips through the pages:

[ click here to go to our Pysanka Power Video Clip on YouTube ]

Especially useful are the chapters dedicated to suitable containers, amount of dye to use, submerging the ostrich egg, sealing the hole and holding the ostrich egg while decorating.

We think it is an eggs-cellent source of information to buy on its own or to add to your collection. If you have any questions about it, please ask us.

Design Pamphlet previewed on Pysanka Power Video Clips

We were proud and honoured to feature this book in About the Pysanka : It Is Written! A Bibliography by Joan Brander (Joan Brander. Richmond, BC: Baba's Beeswax, 2007. ISBN 9781897253144).

http://www.babasbeeswax.com/AboutTheBook.htm

Visit our website to discover the magic  of pysanky kits, supplies, this book, eBooks, and other books published by Baba’s Beeswax: http://www.babasbeeswax.com 

If you like what you see, comment below. If you don't please let us know how we can make improvements. We value all feedback.

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