Review of Eggstravagant Easter Eggs
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[Following is a volunteer review of "Eggstravagant Easter Eggs" by Maya Elston.]
It was so fun to go through this book! Eggstravagant Easter Eggs by Maya Elston is a collection of more than 200 ideas for decorating eggs. The book is divided into 17 chapters, beginning with an introduction that gives a brief account of the historical and cultural significance of Easter eggs and traditional ways to paint them, along with explaining the structure of the book. The first two chapters are about choosing eggs for the project and about materials and tools needed to decorate eggs, respectively. I liked that the author covered these basic and necessary topics in the beginning, as that could be confusing for beginners. Afterward, each chapter deals with a specific theme of decorating eggs. The order of chapters roughly corresponds with the difficulty level of decorating—initial ones being easy; then time-consuming ones that require patience; later on, those requiring accuracy and measurement of the surface, such as geometric designs; and at the end, those requiring artistic skills.
Maya Elston's brilliant artistic talent is evident throughout the book. The author is gentle, encouraging, and thorough in giving instructions, guiding us on many small things that we might not even consider, but which prove to be very helpful and necessary while working on the decoration of eggs. There are a lot of good suggestions and necessary precautions as well. I'll definitely make use of the author's tip of storing small amounts of leftover paints in caps inside a moist paper towel-lined plastic container to prevent them from drying. Having compared many different kinds of decorating materials over the years, the author provides many useful options, including inexpensive ones, and further suggests which could be used for what purpose so that readers can make the right choice accordingly. Mistakes made by the author are also mentioned so that readers can avoid them. Photographs in the book of eggs at different stages of preparation, as well as of the final product, are clear and beautiful, depicting the tilt and view from different angles.
I was always curious about colorful Easter eggs, wondering about their significance. Drawn by the allure of colorful and crafty things and the chance to learn a new art, I couldn't resist reading this book. And what a fun and artistic experience it was! I never would have imagined there could be so many ways of decorating eggs. I was awestruck by the patience, skills, and love that go into decorating fragile eggs. I also got answers to many questions I had before beginning the book, for instance: Is there any way of preserving this precious creation of art for a long period of time? The author also shows how a painted egg can be reused for making a new design and, if mistakes occur while painting or decorating, how they could be corrected. It would be a challenge to select a single egg as the most beautiful among all the eggs decorated by the author. Some of my favorites are eggs in the style of ethnic embroidery, ancient rug-styled eggs, lace-decorated eggs, and eggs with decoupage.
Eggstravagant Easter Eggs is the must-read for those looking for Easter egg decorating ideas that cater to all skill levels. Instructions are not complicated and are easy to understand. So, kids and adults alike can make use of this book. Even if someone is not looking to decorate eggs but just wants to browse creative ideas and get a visual artistic experience, this book is a good option. The only factor that prevented me from giving a full rating was the presence of many grammatical and typographical errors. Other than that, there was nothing that I disliked in this book. Hence, getting 4 out of 5 stars from me. Lastly, I want to thank the author for sharing this precious and beautiful collection with all the readers. It made me want to grab my art supplies I hadn't touched in months!
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Eggstravagant Easter Eggs
View: on Bookshelves |
It was so fun to go through this book! Eggstravagant Easter Eggs by Maya Elston is a collection of more than 200 ideas for decorating eggs. The book is divided into 17 chapters, beginning with an introduction that gives a brief account of the historical and cultural significance of Easter eggs and traditional ways to paint them, along with explaining the structure of the book. The first two chapters are about choosing eggs for the project and about materials and tools needed to decorate eggs, respectively. I liked that the author covered these basic and necessary topics in the beginning, as that could be confusing for beginners. Afterward, each chapter deals with a specific theme of decorating eggs. The order of chapters roughly corresponds with the difficulty level of decorating—initial ones being easy; then time-consuming ones that require patience; later on, those requiring accuracy and measurement of the surface, such as geometric designs; and at the end, those requiring artistic skills.
Maya Elston's brilliant artistic talent is evident throughout the book. The author is gentle, encouraging, and thorough in giving instructions, guiding us on many small things that we might not even consider, but which prove to be very helpful and necessary while working on the decoration of eggs. There are a lot of good suggestions and necessary precautions as well. I'll definitely make use of the author's tip of storing small amounts of leftover paints in caps inside a moist paper towel-lined plastic container to prevent them from drying. Having compared many different kinds of decorating materials over the years, the author provides many useful options, including inexpensive ones, and further suggests which could be used for what purpose so that readers can make the right choice accordingly. Mistakes made by the author are also mentioned so that readers can avoid them. Photographs in the book of eggs at different stages of preparation, as well as of the final product, are clear and beautiful, depicting the tilt and view from different angles.
I was always curious about colorful Easter eggs, wondering about their significance. Drawn by the allure of colorful and crafty things and the chance to learn a new art, I couldn't resist reading this book. And what a fun and artistic experience it was! I never would have imagined there could be so many ways of decorating eggs. I was awestruck by the patience, skills, and love that go into decorating fragile eggs. I also got answers to many questions I had before beginning the book, for instance: Is there any way of preserving this precious creation of art for a long period of time? The author also shows how a painted egg can be reused for making a new design and, if mistakes occur while painting or decorating, how they could be corrected. It would be a challenge to select a single egg as the most beautiful among all the eggs decorated by the author. Some of my favorites are eggs in the style of ethnic embroidery, ancient rug-styled eggs, lace-decorated eggs, and eggs with decoupage.
Eggstravagant Easter Eggs is the must-read for those looking for Easter egg decorating ideas that cater to all skill levels. Instructions are not complicated and are easy to understand. So, kids and adults alike can make use of this book. Even if someone is not looking to decorate eggs but just wants to browse creative ideas and get a visual artistic experience, this book is a good option. The only factor that prevented me from giving a full rating was the presence of many grammatical and typographical errors. Other than that, there was nothing that I disliked in this book. Hence, getting 4 out of 5 stars from me. Lastly, I want to thank the author for sharing this precious and beautiful collection with all the readers. It made me want to grab my art supplies I hadn't touched in months!
******
Eggstravagant Easter Eggs
View: on Bookshelves |
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