Susan's Christmas Shop Newsletter
Easter Eggs
March, 2026
Dear Customers and Friends of Susan's Christmas Shop,
Winter in Santa Fe this year has been so mild that some trees have already blossomed. One tree in my neighborhood has dozens of bees visiting the tree, attracted to the lovely white flowers. My vinca is blooming. Winter has also been very dry, with almost no rain or snow, so those of us who love our gardens are worried, and it may freeze tonight. But The Shed's gardener is lifting our spirits with bulbs blooming in pots in Prince Patio as I walk to the front door of The Shed for my half-a-number-4-red.
Spring and Easter will both be early this year, which makes me think of decorated eggs. The Pysanka, the famous Ukrainian Easter eggs have been made for two thousand years. This pre-dates Christianity there by a thousand years. Centuries ago, the time-consuming task of creating pysanky was more than a hobby; it had an important purpose. It was done by unsophisticated, illiterate, thick fingered peasant women as a lengthy ritual prayer for the return of the sun in the Spring. The sun was worshiped in Ukraine at that time. Once Christianity arrived, the Ukrainian people did not stop making the beautiful eggs; they applied Christian meanings to the colors and designs on the eggs, and they are now associated with Easter, and the women who make them are much more sophisticated.
We have many lovely pysanky that were made in Ukraine and shipped to us in Santa Fe. I imagine they were also made as a prayer, now for their country and an end to the unprovoked war that has lasted for four years. We have pysanka chicken eggs for $25, pysanka goose eggs for $45, white lace goose eggs for $60, and a pysanka ostrich egg for $200. We buy all the pysanky a Ukrainian family sends us, which helps them in these troubled times. Please call me if you want a genuine Ukrainian pysanka. 505-983-2127
Susan Summers is a former employee who learned to make pysanky at demonstrations I sponsored years ago. She is not Ukrainian herself, but she became quite good at making pysanky. Her level of skill is rarely seen. She now lives in Austin, Texas. I have invited her to Santa Fe for another pysanky demonstration in 2027. Here is a peacock egg by Susan with a different season on four sides. It is $80. She also made banty eggs for $45 and chicken eggs for $65.
If you would like to make pysanky yourself, we have the tools to do this. The basic tools are a kistka, a cake of pure beeswax., and jars of strong, colorful dyes. You can purchase these tools individually or buy a kit. Please call my shop if you are interested. But know that pysanky are difficult to make. It's not easy to draw a straight line on an egg. It's much easier to buy them.
If you want to blow your eggs, we have two different egg blowers, a two-hole blower, and a one-hole blower. Electric kistky are also available. An electric kistka with one medium tip is $55. An electric kistka with three interchangeable tips is $120.
There are kits to help you get started. There are drying racks for your finished eggs, which are often covered with a glossy finish. There is a useful tool called "Wire on a Stick" to unclog a kistka.
There are many other decorated eggs in my shop. Many come from Eastern Europe. Our eggs come from Slovakia, Austria and Poland. Here are a few of them.
Real eggs can break. It's a fact of life, and I still grieve the loss of my favorite egg last year. If you are worried about eggs breaking, we have unbreakable papier mache eggs from Kashmir, India for $15.00.
A local Santa Fe artist, Helen Sevilla Pacheco, made these intricate egg ornaments of felt and beads. They are $20 each. Please call if you want one. 505-982-2127
Decorated eggs are fun to collect, and they always bring hope of the end of winter and the arrival of Spring. I like to add a new egg each year to my personal collection.
If you are in Santa Fe this month, enjoy the signs of an early Spring, and please stop by my shop to see all the decorated eggs we show before Easter. We display them until Orthodox Easter, which is April 12th this year. If you live too far away to do this, I send my fond greetings, no matter where you are in this wide world.
Your friend in Santa Fe,
Susan Topp Weber
505-983-2127 shop
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