CRAFTS: Decorating Easter Eggs

In the run up to Easter, here's an egg decorating special for you all!

I love decorating Easter eggs. It's one of those crafts than can be enjoyed by kids and grownups alike. 

You can create cute and funny animals or make your eggs as fancy as you like.



Many people boil eggs before decorating them, but if you want your works of art to keep, you can blow the eggs out and paint the empty shell. 

Hard boiled eggs sometimes work better for small children because they break less easily. If painting with children, don't forget to use non-toxic water based paints.

Below is a step by step guide to blowing out egg, plus a few decorating suggestions. 

Have fun!

Materials:

For blowing out the eggs:

Eggs

A nail or a thin pointed screwdriver

Round toothpicks

Clear nail varnish or picture laquer

For decorating kids' "animal eggs"

Paints and brushes

Glue

Scissors

Cardboard

The cardboard tube from a toilet roll

Instructions:

1. Wash the eggs. Yeah, you know where they've been!


2. Start by making a small hole at each end of an egg. Twist the sharp end of a thin nail or a pointed screwdriver against the end of the egg, applying pressure carefully so the egg doesn't crack. Repeat on the other end of the egg.







2. Once the egg has a hole at each end, push a toothpick in and prod at the yolk inside to break it. 










3. Once the yolk is broken, hold the egg over a bowl and blow hard into one of the holes. The egg will begin to pour out the other end. If it doesn't, use the tooth pick once more. Once the egg is empty, wipe it dry. (Then make a delicious tortilla española or a revuelto later.)

Decorating the Animal Eggs: 

1. Decide what decorations you want to do. I decided to do three fun animals - a chick, a pig and a frog. Paint each egg entirely with a base colour first and leave to dry.

2. Make the "animal feet" using the cardboard tube from inside a toilet roll - and cut some ears and a snout for the pig, some eyes for the frog and a beak for the chick...

3. Glue the bases, eyes and other body parts onto the animals and paint them…

Painting the Fancy Decorative Eggs:

1. Paint the eggs in a base colour and leave to dry. If you want the eggs to 'harmonize', then choose only three or four colours. I chose royal blue, bright red and gold.

2. You can either paint the eggs standing in eggcups, painting the top half first, then letting it dry and doing the other half later. Or you can push them onto skewers, knitting needles, etc. Place a little bit of scotch tape below the egg to stop it from sliding. Stick the skewer or needle into a halved potato to keep it steady. Now you can easily paint the eggs all the way round.

3. Show your Easter eggs off in swanky egg cups or shot glasses!

My family is looking forward to the Easter holidays already. Wishing you a lovely spring break too!