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Easter

Swedish Easter

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As if ABBA wasn’t terrific enough, the Swedes lay claim to the coolest Easter tradition of all: Påskris, better known as Easter feather trees. The custom goes back hundreds of years and involves tying colorful feathers to the ends of birch twigs as a way to encourage the branches to sprout green leaves.

When you consider a country like Sweden, where the winter is long and days are short, you can’t blame people for getting anxious with their attempts to hurry Spring. I don’t know if some crazy old Swedish dude genuinely thought the trees would bud faster if they dressed them up like Vegas showgirls, but I can say, if I were a tree, I would make the effort. Accessories are everything.

SOURCES TBLR: CARNBERO | HORNSGATANS ROS | CLAUSTRAL | DELISHHH
Swedes also have — and I’m not making this up — an Easter Witch. 
Little girls dress up as witches in rags and old clothes and go door to door with a copper kettle looking for treats. Apparently they get a crapton of chocolate too. The tradition comes from the old belief that witches would fly to Blåkulla, a German mountain, the Thursday before Easter to cavort with Satan. 

Why someone thought it would be fun to dress their kids up to go to Germany to play with the devil is a little confusing to me, but I don’t doubt there is a good reason. And it probably involves chocolate. Or something they sell at Ikea. The Swedes are smart that way. 

Anyone want to read more about Easter Witches? Click here.
Anyone want to learn more about the oodles of cool Swedish Easter traditions? Check it.
Who is making a Paskris feather tree this weekend? ME!
 

Edwardian Easter Eggs

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Inspired by the Fred Astaire and Judy Garland movie, Easter Parade, I decided it was high time I made some eggs with old fashioned flair.
If you have never seen the movie, you should. It takes place in 1912 New York and the Edwardian era costumes are superb. The hats alone are worth the price of a movie rental. And, seriously, people, it’s Judy Garland. And not the coked out and bloated Judy Garland, I mean the doe-eyed and vulnerable, gorgeous with a butter voice Judy Garland. You need to see this movie.
These eggs were super easy thanks to some previously tie dyed eggs, some Mod Podge, and some German paper scraps.
(der Osterhase is German for Easter Rabbit)

The bunnies required some crinkling and snips in order to get them to adhere to the curved surface, but they found their way in good time. After all was dried I added some gold ink, a few sequins and a ribbon. Tada!

Golden Seismograph Easter Eggs

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A couple years ago a friend told me about dyeing eggs with silk ties – an idea she picked up from Martha Stewart Show staff member, Jackie Manzolillo, who picked it up from her Great Aunt Helen, who picked it up from her grandmother. It’s a family tradition. And if there is one thing I can’t resist, it’s a craft project with lineage. Of course I had to try it, and of course the eggs came out great. If you haven’t seen the original video, you should, ‘cause there be some serious granny cuteness going on. And yes, the results are mucho mucho impressive.
Since I like to try a new egg dye technique each year, and that one came out so well, as did my tissue paper eggs from last year as well, I thought; why not cross the two? 
The end result is a swirling dervish of sparkly pastel Easter goodness. This is an easy project that relies on little more than bundling and soaking — both are very kid friendly, especially if you use hard boiled eggs instead of fragile, hollow eggs. Of course, I would avoid eating eggs that have been boiled in garment dye but I wouldn’t think twice about setting them out on the coffee table.


Materials

  • Eggs with their guts blown out (see this video)
  • Silk neckties (can also use scarves or fabric scraps – must be 100% silk)
  • Tissue paper cut into long strips (dark colors work best)
  • Non-metal pot (I used my slow cooker, but you can find ceramic and glass pots at the thrift store – no metal)
  • Vinegar
  • Coffee filters
  • Dental floss or strong white thread/twine
  • Mod Podge
  • Gold Paint Pen 
Again: watch the original video. That way you can skip most of these directions. Or piece it together from the pictures. I love craft tutorials with more pictures than words, don’t you? Brevity is a virtue. I ramble too much but I’m good with sequins – that’s my virtue.
The number of eggs will determine how many neckties you need, but I would estimate 4-6 eggs per tie (I found these ties at the thrift store for 50cents each. Not all neckties have obvious fabric indication tags, but if a tie is 100% silk, there is a decent chance the manufacturer will brag about it with a big ol’ tag). 
Cut the tie apart into pieces large enough to surround each egg, roughly 5″ square or larger.
The dying process is based on a simple bundling technique.
Egg > Tissue Strip > Silk Piece > Coffee Filter > Tied Together with Floss
Use tongs to submerge the egg bundles in hot water (not boiling) with a splash of vinegar. Leave them there to soak. Be sure to use a non-metallic pot, as it will react with the acidity of the vinegar and effect the dye process. I don’t know about you, but I don’t have any non-metallic pots sitting around so I resorted to using my slow cooker with a ceramic insert. The slow cooker also allowed for a clamp-on lid, which was helpful in keeping the eggs wet, even if they insisted on floating (fully submerging eggs in a crowded pot isn’t easy).
You will have to experiment to see how long they stay in there. Some dyes will release in a few minutes, some will take a few hours.
As you can see, the paisley print was a direct transfer in some spots, while the strip of green tissue created reverse-print stripes in other spots. The overall effect is very muted and pretty. And abstract. Which is a nice way of saying no one will notice if you make a mistake. Don’t you love that?
It’s important to coat the outside AND the inside with diluted Mod Podge (we went over this last week). I also added a dash of glitter paint to the mix. Because, you know, I’m tasteful.
Now for the fun! Use the ‘stripe’ created by the tissue paper as a guide on where to use your gold paint pen. I chose to draw staggered vertical stripes along the outer borders of the stripe. I was trying to give the visual impression of “music” but it came out looking more like an “earthquake.” Hence the name of this project, Golden Seismograph Eggs.    
I almost gave them the name Earthquake Eggs but I like the word seismograph. I also like the words mercurial and besmirch. Last week I was on the phone with a guy who used troglodyte in a sentence without even trying. Man, some people are so cool! 
Interested seeing some other folks dye eggs with neckties? Check out Dabbled and Parents Magazine.

How to Make Hollow Eggs Last Ten Years (or more!)

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Every year I blow a new batch of colorful Easter eggs, and every year people tell me I am crazy for spending all that time on something that “will never last.”

But here is the thing: they do last. 

Or, I should say, they can last if you take a couple extra steps. Last year I skipped a critical step and they didn’t last. They done busted. I opened up my egg basket (and yes, I keep all my eggs in one basket) and this is an example of what I found:

The egg on the left came from a batch that I sealed with polyurethane spray, while the one on the right was sealed with two coats of Mod Podge on the outside and on the inside. That is the important part — the inside. Egg shells are very porous  and they become more and more brittle as they dry out. If you seal the shell from the outside AND the inside, the Mod Podge will soak into the shell and create a web-like bond, strengthening the surface. The end result is almost like plastic. Delicate, but strong. Those eggs will last for years. The egg on the above right has survived eleven years and four house moves, and I can still drop it on the coffee table from 10″ up without a crack. Not that I suggest you try dropping your eggs, but you get the point — who knows how long it will last?!

I know what you are saying… OK fine, I get it, but how do I seal the egg shell from the inside?

Boom. Here it is:

Bear with me, this is going to sound more complicated than it actually is:
First create a sealant coat out of equal parts Mod Podge and water. You can brush it on the outside easy enough, but getting it on the inside takes some finesse. If you have access to an eye dropper, go for it, but if you have straws around that will work too –just insert one end of the straw in the liquid and hold your finger over the opening on the opposite end of the straw, creating a temporary vacuum that will allow you to carry the liquid to the egg. Then lift your finger off the straw to drop the liquid inside the egg through the top hole (this is very scientific). Put your fingers over both egg holes and shake away! Let the excess liquid fall out as it dries. As long as the shell is dry from the start, it will absorb plenty.

Cliff Notes Recap: 
Insert watered down Mod Podge in the egg by any means necessary, shake it around, then let it fall out and dry. Whoop, there it is.

Treat your eggs nice and they will last you, well, a long time. Long enough to survive a thrashing from Lola, anyhow.

Never tried blowing hollow eggs before? Here is a great video.
Never worked with Mod Podge before? Let Amy break it down for you. This is good stuff!

Easter Highlights

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A lot of new folks have come by Ye Olde Blog in the last two weeks looking for Easter projects, and since my site isn’t always the easiest to search, I thought I would compile some of my favorite posts from last Spring in one spot (just click on the photo caption and it will take you to the full tutorial).

I would post new Easter projects this week but  it’s bad juju to break out the Easter hoopla before St. Patrick’s day has past.  Yes I said bad juju. Well Established Fact: I am freakishly superstitious. And leprechauns –being dwarfed and drunken symbols of luck and all that– freak me out. Don’t even ask. It’s just best for all parties if I keep the bunnies and the Irish business separate. Easter fun to come next week. Pinky swear.

Blooming Easter Baskets (made from coffee filters and plastic bowls)
The World’s Foofiest Easter Wreath (made from coffee filters, staples and cupcake liners)

Cupcake Flower Easter Basket (made from cupcake flowers below)
Cupcake Flowers V1 (you will want these for making the basket above)
Cupcake Flowers V2 (made from cupcake liners or coffee filters and a silk flower stem)
Paper Mache Bunny Vase (made from a jar of animal crackers)

Ruffled Chicken (made from a cereal box and kid’s hand prints)
Wallpaper Eggs (made from onion skins and pantyhose)
Spangled Up Eggs (made from tissue paper and parsley)

From the Archives: Onion Skin Eggs

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The expiration date on the carton indicates they are from Spring of 2002.

Whoa Nelly, them some old eggs!  

I told you, I have a lot of old eggs laying around. Just wait till I excavate from under the bed. Last time I went under there I surfaced with two of the billy goats gruff.

These eggs are lovely though, aren’t they? I remember making them in the kitchen of my old apartment with my Aunt Nancy. She brought over a giant batch of parsley, onions and panty hose,  and I just about cried my eyes out trying to remove the onion skins to extract the dye (click here for directions). Beautiful as they are, this is one Easter project I will not be duplicating any time soon. I wear way too much mascara to let myself cry that ugly.
 

Paper Mache Collides with an Animal Cracker Addiction

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The eggs are finally up.

I know, right, it took me long enough, but considering my new found inferiority complex concerning eccentric German men and their holiday traditions, it’s an Easter miracle I put up an egg tree at all this year. And here is the thing: this isn’t even half the collection.

There are more.

I rotate.

Because I’m a hoarder.

An egg hoarder.

Don’t you judge me!

Some of these eggs are ten years old. No idea how they have made it this long because Lord knows I’m about as dainty as a rhinoceros and these eggs should have been smashed ages ago.

Notice the base.

It’s a rabbit.

Technically, it’s a bear dressed as a rabbit.

Actually, technically, it’s an animal cracker container dressed as a bear, dressed as a rabbit.

This is what happens when paper mache collides with an animal cracker addiction.

Cher and the Ruffled Chicken

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Chickens are in.
I went out shopping for a baby shower gift the other day and found myself surrounded by chickens. Not bears. Not Elmo. Not Barney the purple dinosaur.

Chickens.

Has anyone else noticed how certain animals come in cycles of popularity? These days, chickens are everywhere. So are owls. Maybe chickens are the new owl. I’m pretty sure owls were the new giraffe.

I’m hoping the new chicken will be the seahorse. Is there are anything more musical and triumphant looking than a seahorse?

This animal thing is new, though. When I was a kid it was all about clowns. Every kid I knew had scary ass clowns printed on their sheets or wastebasket or something. Creepy. At least it wasn’t as bad as those who were raised in the late seventies, or what I affectionately refer to as The Mushroom Years – a stretch of time when clumps of ocher colored fungi adorned everything from wall clocks to toilet seats.
Do you know someone who is still harboring a decorative mushroom wall hanging?
Yeah. Thought so.  

Ready to join in the chicken trend?

Start by tracing a cutting out hand prints. Quantity will vary, but I can tell you it took 18 six-year-old hand prints to cover a large pasta  box. Bigger hands or a smaller box would trim it down, but really, who wants a trimmed chicken?

 Roll the feathers slightly by curling them around a pen or pencil. This goes faster if you work in big stacks of hand prints.

Remove one side of the box and cut out the chicken’s head (dang that sounds gross)…(freehand it yourself or download the template here). Attach the head to the box using a glue stick or double-stick tape.

 Glue a row of feathers to the inside of the box. Repeat on the outside.

SHAZAM! 
Stick a fork in it. That chicken be done!
This is very Eastery but there is certainly no reason you couldn’t use it as a bread basket or something. Right? Or make a turkey. Or change the colors. 
Actually, truth be told, the original source of inspiration for this project was a float in a gay pride parade (rainbow colored, natch.) Made from crepe paper ruffles with a giant dragon head, it was as big as a flat bed truck and loaded with beefy men in hot pants dancing to Cher’s Strong Enough (the remix, natch.)
What? Don’t act like you don’t get your best ideas at a gay pride parade. The colors, the sounds, the creative liberation….you should totally go. 
Did I ever tell you about the time a drag queen showed me how to apply mascara using a toothbrush?
Another time perhaps….
Happy Easter Y’all 🙂

Munchkin-Friendly Easter Baskets: Fast and Free

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I made these big flowering Easter baskets last week. As much as I like them, they require hot glue and a lot of cutting and coloring, etc. I thought it would be nice to do a version suitable for small children and left-brain types who struggle with crafty terms like “smoosh” and “twist” and “fluff.”
These are easy peasy. Ten minutes. Zero money. 
Sound good? Let’s get started.
If you can’t make this project from stuff laying around in your junk drawer, you need to improve on your junk drawer.
Materials
  • Empty water bottle/plastic condiment tub/ food container
  • Coffee filters
  • Markers
  • Glue
  • Optional: Pipe cleaner or ribbon (to make the basket handle)
Scribble on your coffee filters with magic markers. Any sort of marker that is not labeled as “permanent ink”  will do the trick. Spray with water and let them dry overnight.

Cool beans, huh? You can also get amazingly colorful filters by reserving the leftover coffee filters you used to dye eggs with tissue paper.

 Make a stack of two filters, fold in quarters and cut a rough zig-zag edge. If you’re working with wee-little ones, tearing the filters will work too.

Next, cut off the bottom of a water bottle. The exact height will depend of the circumference of the bottle (this will make more sense in a second, I promise).

 Put some glue on the bottle. White glue works best, but if you are working with paste eating munchkins, paste will work too. Double-stick tape will also do the job done, if you aren’t into messy. But glue is best. Messy is best. Always. 

Stick on one of the filters.

Flip it over and repeat on the inside.

 If you like a handle, punch some holes in the plastic bottle and add pipe cleaner.

Or, don’t add a handle. I kind of like it without the handle. Looks like a little nest or something.
I cut rounded corners on this one. Looks a bit like a wedding takeaway now, no?

 
 Quick variation: swap the water bottle for a sliced up cardboard toilet paper roll.

Voila: egg tuffets!


Tissue Paper and Parsley Eggs

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Some people hate Easter.

It’s as though the holiday wasn’t trendy enough for them. They don’t like all the fluffy little chickens. They don’t like floral bonnets. They don’t like little girls in white patent leather shoes. They don’t like pastels.

Wow. It must suck to be them.

Let’s grind it in a little further, shall we?

I’m skittish about the whole subject of dyeing eggs. My Mom despised food coloring and never kept it in the house. I think it was because of that whole “red dye causes cancer blah blah blah” crap from back in the day, but the sentiment lingered. To this day I try to avoid using the stuff whenever possible. It stains and seems, well, unnatural. Am I the only one who feels like that?

To tell you the truth, I would be happy to avoid egg dyeing in general. One time, at work, I sent an email blast to about 9,000 people, inviting them to a Easter Themed Dying Party, as opposed to an Easter Themed Dyeing Party.

Small typo. Big difference.

The boss was thrilled with me that day.

It did not help matters that this was years ago, when The Passion of the Christ was playing in theaters. People were all aflutter thinking it was some trendy new controversial event.

Holy crap I hated that job.


These days I’ll happily stick to dyeing eggs with tissue paper instead of food coloring. It’s cheap and easy too. Plus, they come out all mottled and unpredictable. I like my eggs unpredictable.

Materials

  • Eggs. Duh.
  • Torn up tissue paper (Note: NEW tissue paper works best. Don’t use that old scruff you recycled from your Christmas gifts. You can make sure the dye will bleed by touching the paper with a wet finger.)
  • Coffee Filters
  • Thread
  • Italian Parsley (Optional)
  • Hot water with a spoonful of vinegar

Tear your tissue into scraps (roughly the size of small child’s hand) and layer them around the egg.

  • Tip: Tuck parsley leaves in between the tissue and the egg. It won’t leave an exact imprint, but it will effect the egg shell’s rate of absorption and help give softly marbled look.
  • Tip: Certain color tissue will lose dye faster, so don’t go in expecting a rainbow on a single egg. Choosing colors similar in tone (red and orange, blue and green, blue and purple) will always yield lovely two-toned results.

Over the tissue, wrap the egg in a coffee filter and wind some thread around to keep it in place. Set them in a bowl of warm water with a splash of vinegar.

Take a load off. Let the eggs rest there in the water for an hour or so. The orangy-pinkish egg above stayed in the water for 30 minutes, whereas the hot pink tomato colored ones in the rear stayed in overnight. Same tissue papers, different results.  Like I said, I like my eggs unpredictable.

Once they are dry, blow their guts out and go to town; sequins, gold leaf, glitter, you name it!

Happy Easter 🙂
WARNING: These eggs are not for eating! As John said: Are we eating these eggs? Mel Gibson-themed workplace traumas aside, I have to scratch my head a little at the idea that food grade Easter egg dye freaks you out more than whatever toxic-ass sh*t is in random tissue paper. As someone who works tangentially in the food safety industry (enough to throw around fancy phrases like “vermin harborage” and “tangentially”), I must warn against eating these gorgeous, kaleidoscopic parcels of death.