Easter Gifts

A few weeks back I found these great Easter cupcake boxes and wrappers at Big W. I thought that they were so cute that I had to buy a stash to use for neighbour’s and friend’s Easter gifts.

I made a batch of  vanilla cupcakes ( I thought it might be a nice change from chocolate at Easter) and decorated the tops with the cutest mini candy-shelled eggs.

Very simple but I think they look gorgeous.  I just love how they look snuggled in their special carry box.

I hope everyone enjoys them.  I am off to deliver them now so they can be gobbled up for morning tea.

 

Easter Tradition: Easter Egg Seeds

Last Easter I posted about a new Easter tradition we started that involved planting a garden with Easter Egg Seeds.  You can read the original post here.

Basically, what happens is that at some point before Easter, the Easter Bunny leaves my kids a packet of seeds to plant in the yard.  If they are good and very lucky, they will grow into Easter eggs by  Easter Sunday.

The Easter Bunny left our seeds for us to plant today.

Master O is taking his gardening role very seriously, watering and watching for any growth.  We are certain that a few eggs will sprout before Sunday 😉

While on the topic of preparing and looking forward to Easter, we had a little poke around the shops this morning and bought some Easter decorations on sale.  I think they are just adorable, so I had to share them with you.

These lovely bunnies cost me just a few dollars each at Bed, Bath and Table.

And this ceramic Easter egg, also from Bed, Bath and Table, pairs nicely with my big bunny and is perfect for holding chocolates for our guests to help themselves to.

There were so many lovely decorations on sale that I know I will cave and be back to buy more before the end of the week.  Stay tuned!

 

 

Thumbprint Easter Egg Sign

Yesterday I showed you the cute thumbprint Easter egg cards the kids and I made for their teachers.  You read about that post here.

As we had such a ball making them, we decide to also make an Easter sign for our entrance using a blank canvas.

A bit of stamping, some paint and a few stickers later and it was proudly on display on our hall table.  Cute

And don’t you just love the moss bunny? He has been my favourite addition to our Easter decorations this year.

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend.

 

Easter Craft: Thumbprint Easter Egg Gift Cards

I came up with this cute card design to accompany my kid’s teachers’ Easter gifts.

The kids were able to get involved and we had a lot of fun completing them.  Give them a go yourself.

What we used:

Blanks cards – we purchased ours or you could make these from card stock

A variety of acrylic paints

Paintbrush

Coloured textas

Green paper

scissors

How we did it:

Taking the first colour, I painted each child’s thumb and got them stamping.  I directed the kids to stamp away from the very bottom of the card – you will see why later.

Before we used the other chosen colours, we washed and dried our hands.  This helped to keep the colours crisp.

Once the thumbprints had dried, we used textas to decorate the eggs and to add a greeting to the card.

Taking a strip of green paper, I cut out a zig-zaggy section of grass.

Using some glue, we secured the grass to the bottom of the card.  As we had positioned the thumbprint eggs further up the card, they appeared to be hiding in the grass.

And that is it.  Relatively quick and easy to make and they look gorgeous.

We have attached these cards to a bundle of mini eggs for each of the kids’ teachers.

As we had such a fun time doing this, I have dreamt up other uses for fingerprint Easter eggs. Tune in tomorrow to see them elsewhere.

Easter Decorating and Activities

I don’t know about you, but it scares me just how fast Easter is approaching. It seems to sneak up on me….every year!  Over the weekend we completed a few fun projects that have helped get us into the Easter spirit, so I thought I would share them with you.

The boys had fun hanging some egg-shaped decorations along with this cute ‘Happy Easter’ banner.

I ‘helped’ (although the correct term would probably be ‘cleaned up after’) the boys as they painted some plaster Easter decorations to display about the house.

I experimented with my chocolate lollipop mould and made these cute bunny shaped ones.

This week the boys and I are decorating some props for our Easter Egg Hunt and making some more chocolate creations.  I hope to share them with you soon, but until then, take a look at some of my other Easter posts……

Click on the images to link to the post.

 

 

 

Easter Craft: Fingerprint Chicks Revisited

Today the blog has hit a time warp.  This is a post from last Easter, but it is such a fun craft, we will be doing it again.

The lead up to Easter is one of my favourite times of the year.  I think it has a lot ot do with the weather and the fact that the mornings are crisp but the days are warm with clear, blue skies (well, maybe not here at the moment).  It may also have to do with the fact that I am absolutely addicted to Hot Cross Buns.  I am NEVER the one who complains about the fact the grocery stores have packets of buns for sale on Boxing Day.  However, I always feel if you blink you will miss enjoying the lead up.  With the craziness of the Christmas/New Year season you seem to just get back into the ryhthm of life and Easter is at your doorstep.  So it was Friday just gone that it dawned on me that I had only 2 weeks until the Easter Weekend.  I had not even thought about Easter at all.  So I seized the day and created a craft project for Master O and I.

Last Christmas I fell in love with the Fingerprint reindeer  Bianca at A Little Delightful  completed with her son.  Taking inspiration from this and these cute little chicks you find everywhere at Easter time,

I created a fingerprint chick project.

With little time or effort, I designed and printed some placecards for our Easter table.  Then with some yellow paint, Master O fingerprinted the cards. 

When they were dry, I added the chick’s features with black and orange felts.  To make sure they were going to be sturdy and last if we wanted to use them next year, I laminated them.

I think they are super cute.  Tomorrow we plan to make some matching cards and present tags.

Easter Craft: Fabric Rabbit Artwork

Here is a simple and easy Easter artwork to make to grace your mantel.

You may have seen versions of this about the traps, there is really no wonder, as it can be whipped up in no time.  It can also be made on a budget.  I made mine using, and reusing, items I had sitting around the home.

Here is how I did it…..

I attached my background fabric to a piece of cardboard using adhesive spray.  The rabbit silhouette, which I cut out using a template I found on the net, was also attached to the artwork using adhesive spray.  I was going to leave the rabbit as is until I came across a yo-yo I had left over from another project.  A bit of glue later, my bunny was jazzed up.  To learn how to make your own yo-yos, check out the tutorial here.

Once the glue was dry, I popped it in a frame and placed it on my sideboard. Done!

Easter Craft: Rabbit Napkins

Here is a quick craft project that will pretty up your Easter table – rabbit napkins.

Firstly, I printed out a rabbit silhouette from the internet.  I traced this silhouette onto some scrap fabric, then cut out the rabbits.

I used a straight stitch to attach the silhouettes to my napkins by sewing around the inside of the rabbit’s outline.  I am far from perfect on the sewing machine, but I just went slow around the curves and it turned out more than satisfactory.

And that’s it.

You know what I love about this craft idea? It can be tailored to all sorts of holidays or events.  What about a flower for Mother’s Day, a tie for Father’s Day, Pumpkins for Halloween or stars for Christmas? I am going to have to keep my eyes open for great sales on napkins during the year, I don’t think I could bear to unpick those cute little bunnies.

Easy Easter Rag Wreath

Two weeks ago I was in a homewares store looking at their Easter decorations.  They had a very cute rag wreath for sale, but at $39.99, there was no way I was going to buy it when I could make it myself using materials I had at home for next to nothing.

A rummage through my fabric box, I came up with a few cute colours and patterns perfect for my own budget Easter wreath.

I cut the fabric into strips about 4-5 inches (12 cm)  long and 1 inch (3cm) thick. I wasn’t too exact with this.  If they varied a bit, or my cuts were less than straight, I didn’t care.  Once I had a good stock pile of strips, I was ready to tie these to my wreath.

The base of my wreath was a wire circle purchased from the embroidery section in a craft store. The 12 inch (30 cm) round was less than $2. If I hadn’t had this on hand, I would have shaped a wire coat hanger into a circle to use.

I tied the fabric strips to the wire with a simple knot until the whole wreath was covered.  

I chose to alternate the different fabrics around the wreath, but I think it would look just as good tied randomly, or completed with just one choice of fabric.  I did think this process was going to be tedious and long but it was far from so.  Once the wreath was full, I ruffled and twisted the tied strips to ensure that the wreath looked full.

As it has been raining uncontrollably here, I didn’t risk wreaking my efforts by hanging it at the front door.  For now it is hanging on the inside of my front door, which I really like.  I love that I get to enjoy it as I move about the house and it has brought an injection of colour, much needed during this dismal weather.

I wish that there was enough light around to photograph the Easter wreath properly.  It is really cute.  Probably a little too girly for a male dominated house, but for now the boys are a too young to notice and I don’t care!

Linking up with some of these fun parties
Monday: I should be Mopping the Floor, Cherished Bliss, The Gunny Sack, Skip to my Lou, Craftomaniac, It’s so Very Cheri, Keeping it Simple, Creating Really Awesome Free Things, Alderberry Hill, Its A Blog Party, A Pinch of Joy, Making the World Cuter, Mad in Crafts,  Sew Can Do, Sugar Bee Crafts, Tip Junkie, New Nostalgia, Ladybug Blessings,  How to Nest for Less, Watch Out Martha, Clairjustinexoxo,

Tuesday: Coastal Charm, Today’s Creative Blog, Not Just a Housewife, A Bowl Full of Lemons , DIY by Design, Funky Polkadot Giraffe, Home Stories A to Z, Hope Studios, My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Organising Homelife,  Carolyn’s Homework, The Blackberry Vine,   A Little Tipsy, Gingersnap crafts,   The Thrifty Home, Its a Very Cherry World,  Cornerstone Confessions,   Rae Gun Ramblings, Clean and Scentsible, Creatively Living , Ivy and Elephants, Romance on a Dime,   The Real Housewives of Riverton, DIY Dreamer,  Primp, JAQS Studio, 

Wednesday:  My Girlish Whims, Uncommonly Yours, Creations by Kara, Raising Homemakers, The Thrifty Home, Twin Dragonfly Designs, A Creative Princess, Sugar and Dots, Seven Thirty Three, Fabric Bows and More, Someday Crafts, Handy Man, Crafty Woman, Trendy Treehouse, Women Living Well, We are that Family, The Mommy Club , Raising Homemakers, Sew Much Ado,t Simple,  Fireflies and Jellybeans, Beyond the Picket Fence, Free Pretty Things for You, DIY by Design, Bloom Designs, Mom on Timeout, We Like to learn as we Go,  Family Home and Life, Savvy Southern Style, Fine Craft Guild, Embracing Change, HandyMan, Crafty Woman, Polkadots on Parade, No Minimalist Here

Thursday: House of Hepworths Delightful Order, Its a Keeper,  The Frugal Girls, The 36th Avenue,  Thrifty 101, A Glimpse Inside, Brambleberry Cottage, Bear Rabbit Bear, Michelle’s Tasty Creations and Crafty Ideas, Shabby Creek Cottage, Goings on in Texas, Happy Go Lucky,  Raising Oranges,  The Answer is Chocolate, The Taylor House, Crafty Scrappy Happy, Imparting Grace, Made in a Day, 52 Mantels, Loving This Crazy Life, Days of Chalk and Chocolate, Confessions of an ADD Housewife

Friday: The Shabby Nest, Chic on a Shoestring Decorating, At the Picket Fence, Whipperberry, French Country Cottage, Thirty Handmade Days, Creation Corner, Finding Fabulous, Stuff and Nonsense, Fingerprints on the Fridge Naptime Crafters, While He Was Napping, My Romantic Home, Bacon Time With the Hungry, Hungry Hippo, Kitchen Fun With My Three Sons, Remodelaholic, Happy Hour Projects, Simply Designing, Simply Sweet Home, Tidy Mom,  Young and Crafty, Serenity Now , Life as Mom, At the Picket Fence, Tatertots and Jello, Craft Junkie Too, A Little Knick Knack, Blissful and Domestic, Maiden D’Shade, Petites Passions, Bubbly Nature Creations, Here Comes the Sun, Liz Marie Blog, THe Grant Life, Craftionary, Redoux Interior, Common Ground, Just Us Four, Delicate Construction, AKA Designs, Family Ever After,

Saturday:  Be Different Act Normal, The Girl Creative , Funky Junk Interiors , A Vision to Remember, Positively Splendid , Its Overflowing, Natasha in Oz, Shaken Together, Homemaker in Heels, Addicted to Decorating

Sunday:  I Heart Naptime, Under the Table Dreaming, DIY Showoff, Nifty Thrift Things, Sumo’s Sweet Stuff, Homemaker on a Dime, DIY Home Sweet Home,  Cherished Treasures, My 1929 Charmer