One of my favorite parts of spring is making Easter crafts, and I wanted to share those with you. And my neighbor Ellen Oppenheimer has provided two wonderful craft ideas to help children learn Passover traditions.

Easter takes place on Sunday, April 9 this year, and Passover will be celebrated Wednesday, April 5 to Thursday, April 13.

On Easter, when I was a child, my siblings and I wrote our names on hardboiled eggs with crayons and then dip-dyed them in glasses of water with food coloring and a bit of vinegar. The finished eggs would identify our Easter baskets filled with treats which were well hidden by our eldest siblings, acting as the Easter Bunny.

My husband’s mother had a beautiful collection of decorative eggs that were hand-painted and glazed. Because they used blown-out eggs, they lasted year after year, and she displayed them in a beautiful footed dish. Easter was special to her because her birthday, April 12, often fell on the holiday. In addition to the eggs, she would have a “hunt” for her children and grandchildren, hiding plastic eggs filled with coins or candies inside the house and in the yard.

Decorative eggs can be done two ways, using blown-out or hardboiled eggs.

Blown Out Eggs

To blow out the contents of eggs, start by washing the egg and drying it. Then shake it up. This breaks the yolk inside. Create a hole in the top and bottom with a push pin, holding the egg steadily and, with gentle pressure, widening the hole at the bottom. You can also use the pin to help break up the yolk. Then gently blow into the top of the egg, and let the contents run out of the bottom. Rinse the eggs inside and out and let sit on a paper towel to dry completely. Here are more detailed instructions: https://www.saudereggs.com/blog/how-to-blow-out-an-egg/.

Once they are blown out, you can decorate the eggs creating colorful patterns and designs with sharpies. Once the decorating is completed, thread the egg on a wooden skewer that has a ring of masking tape wrapped about 3 inches from the top to prevent the egg from sliding down. Stand them up in a styrofoam base or a terra cotta pot filled with stones. If you spray them with clear acrylic spray, they will be shiny and last for years. I store mine in a used egg carton and display annually, just like my mother-in-law.

Next Level Egg-Dyeing

My friend Terry Vegliante has taken egg dyeing to another level, developing and creating decorative eggs using some very interesting techniques. She sent me the “recipes” for some of her favorites. Remember, when using dye baths, cover your table with a vinyl cloth and make sure to follow package directions. Dyes can stain more than just the eggs. You can use regular food coloring, but the dye will hold better if you add a tablespoon of vinegar to the dye bath.

Onion Skin Eggs: Take onion skins (any onion would do) and wrap a raw egg in the skins. Put the skins and egg in cheesecloth and boil until hard, approximately 10 minutes. Take out of water, cool down, and unwrap. You will get this beautiful marble effect with a very earthy color.

Rubber Band Eggs: Wrap an egg several times with rubber bands of different thicknesses. Dunk in prepared dye baths for a few minutes. Start taking off the rubber bands and repeat the process once the first color has dried. Use only two colors for this technique. Use rubber bands that stretch easily or don’t need to be wrapped too many times to stay on.

Tie Dye Eggs: Take a hardboiled egg, at room temperature. Prepare egg dye; I use PAAS. Dunk a paper towel in dye and loosely wrap around the egg. Leave on for three to five minutes (this is the hardest part), then unwrap. Repeat with other colors. Start with lighter colors then layer on darker ones. You can either start with a white egg or dye with a light color before wrapping.

Marshmallow Peep Topiary

Terry has a whole display of all types of eggs and one year she made the most beautiful topiary using colorful marshmallow peeps. While it takes a bit of time and some materials, it is a show-stopper and a fantastic centerpiece.

4” or 5” Styrofoam Ball

48 marshmallow peeps in single or assorted colors (more or less depending on size of Styrofoam ball)

18” Dowel

Ribbon to wrap the dowel and decorative wire ribbon to create a bow

Terra Cotta Pot filled with rocks or decorative stones from a garden or craft store

Toothpicks

Stick a dowel in the terra cotta pot of stones so that it is weighted and stable. Place the Styrofoam Ball on the top of the dowel piercing through at least halfway. Wrap a band of masking tape below the ball to keep it from slipping during the process. Wrap the dowel with ribbon and tape or hot glue to keep in place. Start adding peeps in rows using toothpicks to adhere them to the Styrofoam. Keep going until the Styrofoam ball is covered. Add a bow, and edge or decorate the pot. Add other decorative touches as you like. A great centerpiece and edible!

Sugar String Easter Baskets

I did this project with the Clever Crafter group at my local church. Wrapping the string around the balloon was the hardest part. A good tip is to gradually change direction when wrapping the cord until the balloon is covered completely and to make sure that the string is thoroughly soaked before setting to dry.

9” Balloon

250 – 400 yards of Cotton Twine

3 cups sugar

1 cup water

Food coloring

Paper plate

Small plastic yogurt containers or small bowls

Needle

Acrylic Spray

Ribbons, bows, flowers, other decorative elements

Prepare bowls of colored sugar water with 3:1 ratio of sugar to water. Add generous amount of food coloring and stir until thoroughly dissolved. Use warm water for best results. Color of water will be much lighter, so use plenty of colorant.

Blow up balloon to desired size and tie off. Hold end of cord against the balloon and wrap in every direction until web of cord completely surrounds the balloon and there are no gaping holes between winded rounds. Make sure you have enough twine. You may use embroidery thread, but depending on the size of your balloon you will be using plenty of cord, perhaps even a full-size ball for largest balloons. Make sure it is cotton and not waxed or treated in any way.

Tuck in the end once you are satisfied with the wrap. Roll the covered balloon in the sugar water until the cord is soaked through. Pick the balloon up by its tied off nozzle and let drip over the bowl. Then sit the balloon on a small plastic cup that is seated on a large paper plate. Balloon will drain and harden overnight. Discard cup, plate and sugar water drippings.

Pop the interior balloon with a needle. Tap the “bottom” and a table, then push up inside the flattened area to give it a pucker until you “egg” is free-standing. Cut an oval hole in the “front” with scissors and remove the balloon. Spray the entire balloon outdoors with acrylic spray. Decorate the oval edge and balloon with ribbons, sequins, and silk flowers using a hot glue gun.

Fill the inside with paper “grass” and eggs, candy, figurines, or whatever seems nice for the season. The baskets are reusable and can be stored in a plastic bag until next year or filled with silk flowers as a Spring decoration.

Passover Seder Crafts for Kids

Here are a few ideas from my neighbor Ellen Oppenheimer to help children learn Passover traditions.

Seder Plate: The Seder Plate is the focal point of the first two nights of Passover. The Seder tells the story of Exodus through the senses of sight, taste, and feeling. The plate traditionally has five or six items which each represent a part or multiple parts of the Passover story. The Seder plate contains six different foods: matzo, a green vegetable, a lamb shank bone and haroset, which is a mixture of apples and cinnamon, bitter herbs, and an egg. In the Seder plate, each food is meant to tell the story. Ellen’s grandmother painted a ceramic plate that is now part of her family’s yearly tradition. Parents can do an internet search on “seder plate crafts for kids” or “free printable crafts to teach the seder plate and find dozens of easy crafts for all ages of children using simple supplies.

Elijah’s cup: Elijah's cup is an important, symbolic part of Passover. It is especially popular among children, especially when the time comes to invite Elijah into your home. While you can always buy a fancy cup, a handmade one can be much more special. Allowing your children to make and decorate Elijah's cup themselves is also a great opportunity to teach them about this special part of Passover. This step by step link shows one of many ways to make the cup using household items , https://www.wikihow.mom/Create-an-Elijah%27s-Cup-Craft-for-Kids. Ellen’s young students added decoupaged tissue paper layers and gems to create theirs on plastic stemware from the dollar store.

However you celebrate this special time of year, doing crafts together creates not only a beautiful object, but a lasting memory filled with love, joy, and learning.