Reflection on Maya Elston’s Book Eggstravagant Easter Eggs

In Maya Elston’s book, Eggstravagant Easter Eggs, Maya explores the many creative ways we as adults can decorate eggs. While for many people Easter eggs mean Easter egg hunts and dyeing eggs with mom in the kitchen, Maya Elston takes it a step further; turning these eggs into decorative art that you will want to show off to your friends. Maya is trained as an art conservator and has lectured in many different countries. This to me has shown that she has vast knowledge and expertise in the mediums and designs used in her book. This is especially shown near the end where she gives many examples of designs she has done that you can replicate on your own.

If you find yourself like me and are artistically challenged, don’t worry! Maya Elston is a master of breaking down the steps into bite-sized pieces. She clearly lays out the materials required, and you can follow along with her clear instructions along with step-by-step photos that show you exactly how to master the designs she is instructing.

One thing I especially enjoyed about this book was Maya’s designs and the variety of styles and mediums she uses. Maya really takes her time in explaining the different types of eggs you can use, and how to prepare them for decoration. She then describes the different ways you can color your eggs; from markers, to paint, to store-bought dye. Her designs go seamlessly with the medium she chooses. Maya goes into many different styles of art you can use to inspire your egg decorating skills. These include but are not limited to: Lace-Decorated, Black and White, Ancient Greek Vases, Italian and Spanish Style Tiles, and my personal favorite, Figurines which include making your eggs look like fish, chickens, and other birds.

Maya Elston really outdoes herself in terms of creativity and using easy to repeat steps so anyone can create their own unique eggs to decorate their home. I also think that while these designs are more for adults to create, you could easily make this a project to do with friends or your kids at home. One thing that could be improved upon is using numbers while breaking down the steps for each design. Maya Elston does a great job of explaining how to do each step, but it is in paragraph format. It is easier, in my opinion, to follow along with step by step numbered instructions. It may make following along more clear to some readers if this change was made. Even with this though, it has very well thought out and easy to follow instructions for each design.

The editing in this book was outstanding. I did not notice any errors in grammar while reading, and the pictures were engaging and informative. I give this book four out of four stars as it is an excellent book to have if crafting and decorating eggs is something you enjoy. Maya Elston’s words were engaging and easy to understand. I recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a new hobby and wants a book that is detailed with plenty of examples and how-to’s to keep them busy.