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For Lynnwood artist Darla Aiken, the Easter season starts long before bunny-shaped candy hits the shelves. Aiken, known as the Egg Lady, creates and sells thousands of sugar-based panoramic Easter eggs every year.
As a self-described “one man band,” all of Aiken’s eggs are made by hand in her own kitchen. Around Thanksgiving, Aiken’s kitchen is transformed into her personal egg-making studio. She uses a homemade sugar press to create the egg shape, decorates the outside with frosting and other edible pieces, and places a miniature chick or bunny inside the egg. Any pieces of hardened sugar that are left out of the mold are reused in later batches, allowing Aiken to run a zero-waste operation. Aiken has sold her Easter creations across the United States and as far away as the United Kingdom.
When Darla was 8 years old, she discovered panoramic Easter eggs at a flea market in Portland. Aiken said she had always been “crafty,” participating in Girl Scouts, 4-H and other organizations as a kid, but something about this delicate panoramic egg mesmerized her. Using her artistic and cake-decorating skills, Aiken made her first panoramic egg at age 22. Though decades have passed since she first discovered her passion for these fragile eggs, Aiken hopes that her customers are filled with the same joy she felt as a child.
“Id like to see younger folks take on this craft and continue it.” she said. “There’s only a few of us in the world that do this.”
Having a variety of professional experiences, from politics to bartending, Aiken said the one thing that has stayed constant in her life is the passion for creating and sharing panoramic eggs with others. Though she sells the majority of the eggs she creates, Aiken has donated a number of eggs to local charities and organizations, including Seattle Children’s Hospital, Sno-King Chorale, the Lynnwood Elks Lodge and Gateway Centre Church.
Aiken said she fully committed to the creation of panoramic eggs following a number of traumatic surgeries in recent years. She described continuing to create the eggs as “therapeutic” to her recovery.
The creation of panoramic eggs is a rare and traditional craft, and AIken said she wants the community to know that it is alive and well in Lynnwood.
“If I get enough folks interested, I’d love to teach a class,” Aiken said.
Aiken’s panoramic Easter eggs are available for purchase on Etsy and Amazon.
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