Thursday 15 March 2012

Hot Off The Press

I enjoyed meeting journalist Michelle Hopkins when she visited my pysanka studio and gallery to do a newspaper article on egging. With both our busy schedules (hers: performing at a local charity event Dancing With The Stars; and mine: spring workshop mania) we agreed to a visit on the weekend.  We had a lovely chat—and there was soooooooo much to talk about.  Here is a link to her story on Page A17 of the March 14, 2012 edition of The Richmond News.
With the sureness that "you can't believe everything you read", I can point out only a couple of mis-quotes. The statement that I use a "hollow, cooked egg" conjures up a comical image!  But I was relieved that the distinction between pysanky and batik-style eggs was clearly made, as pysanky are so often misrepresented in the media and online, and it's so embarrassing and uncomfortable when that happens.  And despite a 9-digit phone number instead of a 10-digit one I'm still getting a ton of phone calls and comments.  Ditto for the website name which has a typo in it.  All in all I'm quite pleased with her story and am as busy as ever.  Have you read it? 
More later on the resulting workshops.



Distinction between pysanky eggs and batik-style eggs

Photo by Michelle Hopkins



Monday 12 March 2012

The Biggest Pysanka Birthday Party Ever


Passersby with birthday wishes
One busy spring, just when Jacob was turning 12 years old, our family business was offering yet another hands-on pysanky workshop at a local shopping centre.  Jacob’s annual woeful lament about spring workshops interfering with and/or superseding every birthday party he ever had his whole life did not fall on deaf ears.  Tom and I planned a BIG birthday surprise.  At 12:00 noon we halted the workshop, announced the BIG 12th birthday, had a BIG birthday cake with 12 BIG candles (the size used for pysanky) and had a BIG birthday party in the mall.  Hundreds of shoppers and passersby joined in singing “Happy Birthday” and offered kind words and greetings in a BIG birthday card.  Jacob passed around birthday cake.  Strangers even bought presents!  One elderly gentleman was also having a birthday that day and appreciated the public display of affection.  That was the biggest birthday pysanka party ever!  

2 birthday boys

Kids of all ages celebrate birthdays with pysanky and I want to share my party secrets  That's why I just published Pysanka Power! Birthday Party Ideas & Planner [ISBN 1-897253-24-9].  Check it out here.

Your birthday is coming up again, Jacob, as are more workshops and parties.  Our birthday wish to you is that you have a happy one and celebrate it your way!