By Karen SwanEaster and kids craft seem to go hand-in-hand don’t they?  If you’re not stapling ears and cotton balls to paper plates to make rabbits, you’re trying to unleash your inner artist and follow some complicated, professional craft blog, promising ‘easy ombre eggs, so simple the kids could do them!’, but find that they are a: not simple and b: a grown woman can’t do them!

I’m here to save you from a craft fail.

My three year old and I do these every year, and, failing a few non-sticky stickers and the odd broken egg, we’ve had great results and a lot of fun in the process!  I have to credit my inspirational and very, very talented Steiner Playgroup leader, Jo, with the crepe paper eggs.  Jo is an absolute inspiration of all things Waldorf crafty and her wool felt creations are truly things of great beauty.

So, gather your bits and pieces, most of which you’ll already have in your kiddie craft stash.  A quick dash to the local shops and you should find all you need if you’re out!  For both techniques, you’ll need eggs that have been blown out (make scrambled eggs for brekkie!) and cleaned and dried thoroughly.  I can’t stress the ‘clean and dried’ strongly enough.  Trust me, four of my eggs, blown and kept in a container without being completely clean and dry, resembled a science experiment gone wrong………still haunted by the image and smell!

To blow the eggs: Use a needle and make small holes at the top and bottom of the egg (room temperature is best).  Hold the egg over a bowl and blow through one end as the yolk and whites pour out the other.  Wash and leave to dry.

Sticker Eggs

A stunning result for very little effort!

Find some stickers that have a great shape and outline.  I love a butterfly motif, but if you want to get more ‘Easter-y’ then bunnies or even a cross for a more religious theme would be wonderful.

Steer clear of foil stickers as they don’t tend to adhere well to the eggs, remembering that the eggs aren’t flat, so the sticker needs to wrap around the shape.

Make sure the egg is perfectly dry, then carefully place the sticker.

Fill bowls with water and add a few drops of natural food colours (I use the Hoppers range)

Gently put the egg in the water and ensure it’s covered completely.  Leave in for as long as required to achieve the colour you want.

Carefully remove and place in a muffin tin, empty egg carton or cake rack to dry.

Once dry, peel the sticker and Voila!

(a variation on this is to draw a picture with a wax candle or crayon before soaking – the dye won’t adhere to the wax.)

Crepe Paper Eggs

We love these eggs at our place!  My son just sticks on whatever paper he chooses, but I set myself these impossibly high standards of trying to layer the paper ‘just so’ to create the perfect rainbow egg.  I’m yet to achieve it!

(hint:  the colour runs from the crepe paper (that’s the point!), but it does make this a messy exercise.  Old clothes, a tablecloth and a good hand wash after are a must!)

You’ll need some brightly coloured crepe paper, cut into little squares and placed in a bowl and another small bowl of water.

Take a blown egg and, using your fingers, rub water over it.

Stick pieces of crepe paper (wetting if need be) over the egg.

The colours will bleed together, so it’s nice to leave some space between the paper.

Once the egg is covered, place it in an empty egg carton until the paper dries.

Once dried completely, remove the paper and reveal the colours beneath!

You can hang the eggs as I have here.  We make a little Easter tree using  found tree twigs and our eggs, with our nature table display underneath (with a few felt bunnies thrown in for the season!)

To hang:  break off a matchstick into 3 pieces.

Tie a length of cotton to the each piece

Carefully insert the matchstick piece into the whole at the narrow end of the egg.

The matchstick will turn itself horizontal when you lift the cotton.

The kids can also make a simple basket out of thick card that they can colour in first.  You’ll find a template here