When I was little, we owned a Decor-Egger.  It was a cheap plastic device that let you draw circumferential designs on eggs with a marker. I thought it was the coolest thing; when I got a bit older, and was writing pysanky, I began using it to draw pencil lines.

It’s not horribly sturdy, and was a bit wobbly, but it did its job well enough. I was careful with it, because they were no longer sold.

A few years later I discovered, to my joy, the craft lathe.  It was a Decor-Egger on steroids: big, heavy duty, and adjustable. At first I used it just like I had the Decor-Egger–I put eggs in it and drew lines around the middle (in pencil). 

I developed a steady hand, holding the pencil with one hand while I spun the egg with the other.  I soon figured out, too, that you could put the eggs in in an up and down orientation, and draw longitudinal lines.  You had to let your hand move with the egg, but it worked!

One thing I have done is to customize my lathe–I’ve drawn marks to show how to adjust the lathe depending on which way I will put in the eggs.

The craft lathe is an incredibly useful piece of equipment.  I’d be lost without mine.  There are much fancier and more expensive egg lathes out there, but this one is all I really need.  One important tip: never leave your lathe near your space heater.  Trust me on this!

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