Nalaieth and Jekzith's Clutch, July 2007

The theme for this clutch was "Things that are White." The clutching log can be found here.

The Friendliest Flower Egg

How bright and friendly! There sits out on the dark sands an egg that simply screams affableness: a pretty little, you guessed it, white one. It's not completely white, of course. There are spots of goldenrod brushed on it in a random pattern, and each one is surrounded with the shadow of a pleasant little flower. Occasionally, there will be a break in the thick blooms, but they yield to a bright yellow-green that begs the eye not to notice it in favor of the far more welcoming blossoms.

Inspiration: Daisies are white, aren't they? Actually, they're not /always/ white, but when someone mentions daisies you automatically think 'white flower'. And, for those who don't know my whole 'friendly' reference, I suggest you watch _You've Got Mail_.

Amira

Endless Love Egg

This oddly-shaped egg would be a normal oval if not for the iridescent bumps that spread out over its surface like a delicate beadwork. From some angles, they appear to be droplets of rain, clinging to the egg in an endless embrace. They shimmer and shine in the light of the cave, circling the egg with an elegant grace.

Inspiration: A woman's wedding dress, with its pearl beading.

Kamia

Scribe's Assistant Egg

This egg is a marvel of perfect proportions -- a smooth, gleaming ellipsoid of shimmering hardness. But closer inspection reveals subtle variations -- here and there are smudges of dirt, dark stains on the smooth perfection. At the bottom of the egg is a strange semi-circle of pale grey, and on top a spot of the same color. Another look reveals another marking on the upper surface -- one that looks strangely like a stylized late-summer Nabolese fruit.

Inspiration: Something I see all the time -- the smooth ellipse of my iMac's mouse -- the scroll ball on the top, buttons on the side, the odd smudge and the infamous Apple logo on top.

Tegara

Brilliant Jewel Egg

Though the size of this egg is modest, it stands out from its brethren in a most impressive way. Appearing almost faceted, the curves of the shell scintillate brightly, reflecting back any light in tiny, scattered rainbows with its adamantine brilliance. Flawless and lovely in its crystalline white clarity, one cannot look at this chubby, pear-shaped egg for too long without flinching away, near blinded by its glory.

Inspiration: White diamonds are composed of pure carbon, and are the hardest natural substance on Earth, as well as being one of the most sought-after gemstones. image

Caitlyn

Dandelion Clocks Egg

Catch sight of this egg out of the corner of your eye and you might think it was moving-- blowing in the wind, maybe. Look at it directly, and you'll see a finely speckled egg of whites, greys, and tans, a pattern that manages to look downy and soft. Along the lower edge, where the egg meets the sand, the coloring turns a deep green.

Inspiration: Dandelion Clocks, the tufts that dandelions turn into when they turn to seed. Folklore says that the number of blows it takes to blow away all the seeds is the current hour.

Noemie

Big Ole Comfy Shirt Egg

The surface of this large egg is lightly speckled with the imperfections of loosely woven muslin. For all its roundness, the shell gives the impression of being made of soft, well-worn fabric. A closer inspection reveals a texture of crinkles and folds between smoother stretches, like the creamy cloth of a favorite, much-loved shirt.

Inspiration: A comfortable, much-loved shirt is the inspiration for this egg.

P'draig

Layered Softness Egg

The first sense this small egg gives is one of many layers, each paper-thin bit of whiteness crumpled and smashed up against the other until the final product resembles nothing more than a disheveled lump. It reflects no color, save for what looks like a suspicious off-white smudge buried deep under the topmost layers. Despite these unattractive features, the small egg looks soft and slightly puffed.

Inspiration: I never fail to stuff a handful of tissues in my pocket before I leave the house. Not the most romantic thing in the world, but for me tissues have always come in handy.

Lujayn

Dimples Egg

This small, glossy egg is bright white, a striking contrast to the sand in which it's landed, easy to pick out even among all of its like-colored kin. Most interesting about the egg is its uniformly dimpled surface; all over it's pitted with shallow dents, perfectly round and just the size to place a small hand inside. Because of its dimples and high gloss, the egg catches the light and nearly sparkles.

Inspiration: A golf ball. Somewhere, someone's very unhappy about it having come to rest in such a large, cavern-enclosed sand trap.

V'lano

A Sprinkle of Seasoning Egg

Departing from a traditional oval shape, this egg is rather lumpen in appearance, almost seeming to have 'sides.' From afar, the shell has an unrelieved, even look, its color a flat shade of bright white. But when one moves near, the smooth image transitions into something akin to a rough granularity -- multitudes of tiny, clearish-white cubic bits liberally peppering the egg's surface. A stray, dull glint or two can be observed to twinkle here and there when the light is just right.

Inspiration: Salt (also known as halite or sodium chloride) is mined in many places, and is a staple seasoning condiment and addition to many recipies. image

V'ryce

Surprise Inside Egg

Even as this smooth-looking egg rests on the sands, there's a sense of softness and comfort surrounding it. The gentle flows of white, ivory, and cream coloration seem more to wrap themselves around it than to be part of this egg, as if presenting the egg as a gift. Imperfections that almost look like the color has folded on itself appear here and there with several clustering at the top and bottom of the oblong shape. In places it looks as if the shell is thinner than in others, as if you could see through it if you held up a glow basket close enough. The longer one looks at this simple yet stunning egg, the more anticipation begins to set in, like a child on the morning of their turnday.

Inspiration: One of the simplest and most fun things I've had the pleasure to work with is simple tissue paper. Every box you open and find tissue paper within, doesn't it just raise the level of anticipation?

C'nroy

Opal Shimmer Egg

Lightness shivers across a porcelain background, the colors so faint and pale the quick observer might name the egg merely ivory. But muted, ashen hues glimmer within the depths: just-dawn lavender, bleached sunshine, spring green rewarding the observant. The mid-sized egg is almost perfectly round, though hints of shadow and subtle pockmarks suggest an extreme age and patience as though it already knows all the secrets of creation and is waiting to share them.

Inspiration: 97% of the world's opal comes from Australia. The majority of it is of the white or 'milk' variety. The internal colors come from the interference and diffraction of light passing through the microstructure of the rock.

T'mic

Bivalve Abode Egg

White but not starkly so, this egg is the dull, unremarkable shade of bone, mottled and dotted with sandy brown, pastel pink, and pale lavender. Yet the pattern of faint gray lines and shallow impressions make this small orb anything but dull. It seems as if it has been plastered with an endless number of seashells in varying sizes and shapes, scalloping in curving arches across the smooth surface. The soft ridge-like shadows gather together in a million little fans with rippling, ruffled edges forming an intricate mosaic of creamy shades.

Inspiration: Seashells!

Griere

Unfurling Blossom Egg

One of the smallest of the clutch, the shell of this egg seems to have folds and creases in it, drawn by the silvery wisps curling along the egg's surface and hinting at the delicate blossom of a white rose unfurling in the gentle presence of the sun. Light rays play across the oval egg's apex - off white, pale yellow egg white, bleached white and bright white - highlighting soft dewdrops clinging to texture of petals.

Inspiration: A white rose in bloom.

Derik

Squishy Puffed Sweets Egg

Large, lumpen, and vaguely menacing, this white ovoid's apex and base are difficult to tell apart. From a distance, the egg appears almost sticky, almost squishy, like it would have a spongy sort of give, and yet cling to one's fingers if one dared to caress the shell. Up close, it's clear that it's just an egg, though those two odd dots of bluish-black along one side seem to be watching, following, and waiting for an opportune moment to unleash the beast within.

Inspiration: The Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man from _Ghostbusters_. So delicious, yet so deceptively evil in so many ways.

Nolee

Seemingly Sunken Egg

If ever an egg was bony, this one's it. Whether by some unfortunate squishing in its expulsion or just the way its raggedly white surface is shaded, it manages to look more oblong than round, with shadows along its sunken-seeming sides, and yellowing atop its ridge. It seems almost furred, fluffed in downy white hairs, but that's surely a trick of the light. If it were fuller-shaped, it might look like a rather large egg, but the oddities of its design contrive to shrink it within itself, in appearance if not actuality. As it is, this egg seems almost like it must hug the form of the growing occupant within: a skin, and not a shell.

Inspiration: Based on my roommate's old and skinny white cat, who has apparently decided not only that she adores me but also that I am the most comfortablest seat in the world. Every. Single. Time I sit down.

Izarit

Vanishing Ice Egg

t's white, this egg, around the thicker middle then thinning to where it seems to come to a point at the top. The tip is crowned with a swirl of darker shades like a puddle after the Istan rains, but the bottom is much flatter, allowing it to sit easily in the sands. The egg appears to almost float there, light playing across the upper shell off sparks of brighter white here and there. The ends taper to rounded edges that shade into pale blue, the color of the mountainous Ice Lake in the deepest of winter: refreshing and welcoming, yet deceptive in its biting cold.

Inspiration: Icebergs. Brr!

C'len

Tattered Cloth Egg

Ripples of tatty-looking, tired-white cloth seem to shroud the surface of this ovoid, enfolding it in layers of quiet despair. A few cursory little spatters of bloody carmine mar it further, the egg appearing dull and listless against its background of bright ebony sand.

Inspiration: Even the best situations can turn bad in a heartbeat, and often a makeshift white flag of surrender was made out of whatever was at hand.

Caitlyn

Little White Lie Egg

From far away, this egg appears to be a perfectly smooth, perfectly shaped egg in a swirling purple hue. It is on the smaller side, though still of an ample size to house a growing dragon. As the egg is approached, the size and shape remain the same, but the /color/... it isn't a purple egg after all, but a carefully mottled egg of red and blue that blend together upon the egg's surface, deceptively appearing to be a different color altogether. The speckles on the egg seem to tell their own stories, as if whispering the secrets of the dragon growing inside.

Inspiration: That tiny little untruth that can start innocently yet spawn so many consequences, this egg's inspiration is a little white lie.

Noemie

Snowveil Egg

In climates other than Ista, this thing called 'snow' falls from the sky and sticks to the ground. Snow has arrived, blizzarding wild across the shell of this egg. Lines of brilliant white score the surface of the shell, drawing diagonal lines through which hints of lavender-grey serve to suggest a landscape drowning in snowfall. More white surrounds the base of the egg, rising in irregular heaps to meet the falling cascades. The white is sparser near the top, diminishing to a few soft and scattered spots of feather-edged lightness against deepening shadow. Overall, the impression is of cold, and cautious hands touching the shell might expect the fierce-falling white to slide into their hands.

Inspiration: The view out my window when the snow's coming down.

St'vren

Honorable Mentions

There were an amazing 46 eggs submitting for this clutch. Unfortunately, we weren't able to use every egg we were given, but they're so awesome we want to share 'em all anyway! Here are those that didn't make it to the hatching sands:

Preparation Counts Egg

Well, it's white. Flat white, matte white... there are only so many adjectives that can describe this egg's color. In shape, it's unusual enough - the apex more pointed than usual, the bottom almost flat enough to let the egg rest securely upright without the aid of the supporting sand. The size of the thing nearly rivals a gold egg. In some light, however, as Nalaieth turns the egg, there is almost, possibly, a swash of... a deeper, more layered white. At least the egg looks prepared for whatever happens next.

Inspiration: The secret of a good paint job is, of course, all the prepwork that goes on before the color. Part of good preparation is choosing the right primer.

T'mic

Stickball Egg

Round, almost pure white and leathery-smooth, this egg is very nearly as normal as they come. It does have some texture, soft large nubbles stretching in a curving line that double-wraps the shell without ever touching itself. The gentle bumps are each longer than wide and are arranged in something of a herringbone pattern or a braid, like stitches in a garment made of leather and thong, and invite the curve of one's fingers. On one side, the shell is marred by a circular stain, gray-brown like some sort of bruise, a point of impact.

Inspiration: Inspired by a once-struck summer softball. Was it fair or foul?

V'lano

No Use Crying Over Spilt Milk Egg

White splotches and splashes almost cover the surface of this egg, spreading in inexorable blobs across a surface that was once (perhaps) creamy yellow. But the white has overtaken it, drowning any other pattern with monochromatic milkiness. The faintest edge of pale-blue, perhaps the source of the white encroachment, curves in a C-shape near the top of the egg. But the overwhelming impression is ballooning swells and ever-expanding puddles of pale, soft white, attractive in an abstract way, yet not quite what was intended.

Inspiration: Yep, that mug of milk I spilled the other day. ;)

St'vren

Daunting Mountain Climb Egg

White frosted peaks swirl on this egg, pinnacling at a crest ringed by a soft sky blue at an apex that seems insurmountable. A tiny crooked path seems to wend its way upward, indents and raised faint brown nubbles along the blindingly white shell creating the illusion of tiny climbers following its bends and turns upward, scaling the circumference of the egg, moving ever skyward. Small orange flecks coincide with the winding brown-dotted path, presenting the impression of check-points or resting places for weary climbers to replenish their supply of air and to prepare for the next arduous, breathtaking leg of the journey ahead.

Inspiration: Mt. Everest, one of the most dangerous siren songs to climbers, and a breathtaking beauty to behold.

Nolee

Crumpled Tissue Egg

This egg seems to be somewhat out of round somehow, subtle shadings of grey adding a strange dimension to it. A not quite completely white forms the base color, giving the shell the illusion of softness and is crisscrossed with grey, shading from the faintest whispering to darker yet still soft shadows which give it a strangely three dimensional look, as if someone had taken a tissue and crumpled it after use. Ewww -- is that a greenish-yellow speck on the side?

Inspiration: All those tissues I go through because of my allergies. And of course there's the gross factor in the snot speck.....

Tegara

Black and White Spotted Egg

All over this egg are splatches of black and white. Irregular shapes cover the entire egg to make one wonder if it's a black egg with white spots or a white egg with black spots.

Inspiration: Leopard Gecko

Derik

Icy Wintery Egg

Across a frozen landscape of white, ice chunks seem to surround surface of the egg. Bright white snowflakes fall across the frozen ground from one tip of the egg to the other. Will the inhabitant of this egg come out blue from cold?

Inspiration: Frozen pond

Derik

Submarine Iridescence Egg

Shimmering, opalescent white, this large egg seems to be not an egg at all but some pale sea creature clothed in broad flat scales. The colors of water cling to them; the appearance of overlapping edges created by flickers of blue and green against the silvery white of the smooth, glistening surface. Hints of aquatic turquoise and tropical teal swirl about its sides, caught in eddies and currents from the stroke of unseen fins.

Inspiration: A pale white fish belly.

Griere

Glittering Dunes Egg

So much like sand that its surface appears to be rough and nubbly to the touch, this great big egg seems to be made of pale desert. Pristine sand, as if baked and bleached by a relentless sun, glitters white and flaxen on the dark hatching grounds. Barely perceptible shifts in hue, richer hints of gold giving way to perfect white, form the illusion of mounding dunes along the even, gritty surface.

Inspiration: White sand.

Griere

Dazzling Diamond Egg

A small egg, it makes up for its diminutive size with a blinding brilliance of faceted white. The base and crown hold its jeweled middle like a fine setting cast from the palest of white golds, a smooth shining silver with the faintest touch of warm cream. But around its wide equator, a myriad of tiny smooth surfaces reflect the light like a colorless band of clean-cut diamonds.

Inspiration: White diamonds set in white gold.

Griere

Childhood Friends Egg

This egg is a mess of splashes of pale pastels on a creamy white background. Perhaps the white was clean at one time, but now it bears the hints of icy blues, mint greens, candy pinks, and the occasional browns almost like stains from past adventures.

Inspiration: This egg is inspired by that favorite baby blanket, white with child-friendly designs, that by the time baby grows out of is torn, tattered, and well-loved.

Kamia

Safe Haven Egg

This especially round egg could be called a fine ivory in color. There's a sense of safety, of protection about it that can't quite be explained, though it may rest in the pattern the egg bears. Across it is a latticework of darker tan lines, creating a shade-like design that makes the egg look quilted.

Inspiration: A Padded room in an Asylum.

Kamia

Ugly Duckling Egg

This egg has the slightest splash of orange on the top, like a sunrise, and two more at the base, a striated sunset. On the white of the egg it is marked in bold black markings, crisscrossed lines representing abstract wings, or is it an avian's tail there? though they are few and far between. Closer to the Istan sands, blue waters become visible at the base of this egg's shell, creating the illusion that they are rising off of the black sands.

Inspiration: A swan on a lake.

Kamia

O Starry Night Egg

This grey egg has a splattering of darker grey pocks over its surface that at a distance cause it to look as if the egg was dented. Despite this fact, it still hold a shimmering sheen, and when the light strikes off it just right, it glows againist the Istan sands.

Inspiration: The full moon.

Kamia

Moon Over You Egg

This egg is based in pure black at the bottom, like a dull, endless viod, that fades as it continues up the egg. First it's just shimmering specks over the surface, til at the top, it's a white that by contrast, seems to glow.

Inspiration: The full moon.

Kamia

Stick With Me Egg

This egg is small, and looks like it's been rolling in the dirt... and the mud... and leaves... and pretty much any messy thing it could. Its base color is a dirty muddy brown. Splashed over this are green foliage, and spashes of red meat scrap-looking shapes. There's even some rusty tuber peelings twisting here and there.

Inspiration: White school glue... that admittedly has been well-used.

Kamia

Hills Like White Elephants Egg

A lushly colored egg of blue and green, patterned in such a way as to give the effect of a landscape, like a river running through a forest or a jungle. Along the lower half of the egg runs a thin, golden brown band that circles the egg completely. On the top of the egg is a proliferation of white speckles, thick enough to nearly cover the egg in white. From a bird's eye view, they might look like clouds, but from the side, they appear more like white hills in the landscape.

Inspiration: The story 'Hills Like White Elephants' by Ernest Hemmingway. A white elephant is both a good luck symbol and also a metaphor for a burden.

Noemie

All In White Egg

A delicate pattern of black on white covers this medium-sized egg. From afar, the pattern makes the egg look like lace, or maybe as though it were covered in delicate gossamer petticoats, a gauzy dress. Look closer at the egg, and it's apparent that the pattern on the white is made up of hundreds (thousands?) of tiny black dashes. The pattern is fluid enough to be the music to a song, or maybe the words of a poem.

Inspiration: Emily Dickenson, who was said to have worn only white for much of her life.

Noemie

Another White Dash Egg

This egg is all in black, a rough, course shade that stems from both the gritty color and the texture, the slight roughness, of the egg itself. The egg would be entirely black, were it not for a pattern of thick white stripes that bisect the egg neatly, lengthwise. Though a different color, these stripes, too, have the same gritty quality, but are of a surprisingly uniform and exacting rectangular shape. They lend movement to the egg, seeming to speed by, though completely stationary.

Inspiration: Dashes dividing the lanes in a road, and the song by Butterfly Boucher.

Noemie

White Magic Egg

White is the combination of all the colors together, and in a way, so is this egg-- but instead of white, it is a soft iridescence of all the colors in the rainbow. Soft swirls of reds and oranges intermingle with blue and greens and indigos in a pattern that makes one color almost indistinguishable from the next. It's a soothing sight, making whomever looks upon it feel calm and serene.

Inspiration: White magic

Noemie

White Flag Egg

The sea engulfs this egg, deep blues forming a pattern upon it that seems to continue on for eternity, to unknown depths. Greens of a similar dark shade as the blues creep onto the surface of the egg, increasing that feeling of endlessness. But the entire egg is not colored this way-- a large swath of white cuts along one side, disrupting the ocean blue like a determined surrender.

Inspiration: White flag for surrender, and the song by Dido.

Noemie

Casablanca Egg

This smooth, perfectly shaped egg is a study in black and white. The pattern of the coloring lends itself to movement, seeming to flicker across the surface, though realistically staying still. The pattern, like clouds, seems to show one shape, then another. But eventually, it shows a cityscape--or is it a gin joint, or a beautiful woman? Or ultimately, a shadow of the weyr itself, with its volcanic spires and lush, thick jungle. The Pernese may never have Paris, but they'll always have Ista.

Inspiration: The movie 'Casablanca', which was filmed in black and white, and the title, of course, is the Moroccan city that means literally 'White house'.

Noemie

Winter's Glory Egg

The curves of this largish ovoid appear pristinely perfect in their cool winter whiteness, the implied texture of the egg almost fluffy when viewed from a distance. Upon closer inspection, however, the snowy blanket resolves into the crisp outlines of thousands upon thousands of unique, geometric crystals overlapping one another - floating over its surface in stately serenity.

Inspiration: There's few things more lovely and captivating in nature as snowflakes! image

Caitlyn

Sea's Nacre Egg

Nearly circular in appearance, this egg is a study in breathtaking subtlety. Nacreous, gentle white wraps the shell in smooth layers, unblemished by dimples or striations. Wherever the light breaks up on the surface, sheens of iridescent pastel pink, blue, green, and yellow flow, rendering this egg near sublime in its beauty.

Inspiration: Inspired by the perfect, white, natural pearl. Pearls are made when a tiny irritant finds its way into a mollusk, and the animal secretes layers of calcium over it to soothe itself. The process can take years, and rarely is a pearl perfectly round.

Caitlyn

Slyder Egg

This strange egg departs from the standard, elongated ovoid in its small instances of implied angularity. Upon a classically white background, pale grey shadows lend a sense of outlines and negative spaces - carving a tiny, turreted castle of three layers upon the shell's surface. Bits of royal blue stripe it here and there, but whatever words might have been spelled out are utterly illegible.

Inspiration: White Castle hamburger chains were the first fast food burger places in the USA, and their distinctive shape and size made them an icon to many - a yearning for the little burgers often called 'The Crave' for Slyders. Slyders refers to the burgers' greasiness.

Caitlyn

Lacey Linen Egg

This smaller egg is a perfect, starchy white from apex to bottom, but its prettiness lies in its intricate complexity. Multitudinous openwork patternings a mere two shades of white deeper than the 'foreground' shell weave lacy designs seemingly spun from purest linen, rendering this rotund ovoid delicate and frilly.

Inspiration: Doilies serve both decorative and practical functions, and their delicate nature makes for a sense of pride in having kept them for generations. Consequently, old doilies are valued far more than new ones. image

Caitlyn

Natural Satellite Egg

A full, large sphere, this egg's bright yet serene appearance brings to mind much that is delightful and mysterious about the night. The white of the shell is sublimely silvered, ethereal and elusive - and the implied pits of all sizes that pock the surface in tones of gentle grey only increase the aura of mystery surrounding it.

Inspiration: The Moon sports maria, terrae, and regoliths aplenty, but it still goes beyond mere scientific interest, capturing the wonder of artists, lovers, and poets. image

Caitlyn