This is egg season - big moments to celebrate scrambled, dyeing, and seeking! If your baby is celebrating their first Easter, you should be excited about the fun activities kids enjoy during this Spring holiday. From baskets filled with sweets and treats to the cutest Spring designs, it’s easy to get into the festive spirit.
One of our favorite Easter traditions is the process of decorating eggs and creating fun designs with kids. Add a little spring in your step with these Easter egg ideas that you can try with your family, and let the hunting and seeking begin!
The Real Egg Deal
If you love using real eggs in your Easter traditions, start with hardboiled or hollow eggs (real pros wash eggs and hollow them using a pin and the blow-out technique). Try these easy egg-decorating techniques for a creative adventure with the kids.
Finger Art
Turn those eggs into works of art by your kids. You can dye or leave them in their raw format, then place them in a box with sand or other material to keep from moving. Dip your kids’ fingers in paint and help them create hearts, flowers, and little bunnies with their fingers.
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For babies and smaller children, dip their finger in paint and create hearts with their little fingers. Watch their excitement during a little sensory play.
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For older kids and toddlers, let their creativity take control. Help them combine different colors and ask them what they’re creating.
Natural Dyeing
Use science to create colorful Easter eggs with foods around the house. Collect some of the following items and boil them in separate pots: beets, turmeric, coffee, raspberry or other berries, yellow onion skins, matcha tea or other teas, or cabbage.
Pour the water into separate small bowls and let the water cool down. Ask your kids what color they think their eggs will become. They’ll be surprised to see how some colors change after boiling in water.
All the Colors in the Rainbow
Mix 1/2 cup boiling water, 1 teaspoon vinegar and 10 to 20 drops food color in a cup to create your own egg dyes. With different colors to choose from, recreate some of these Little Sleepies prints:
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Blue Watercolor and Watercolors: dip your egg in a blue color once, let it dry, and layer the eggs on the blue color again. Try to swirl the color around the egg.
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Marble Swirl: again, dip in one color, let it dry, and then try another color with a swirl or short dip to create a swirl.
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Ombré Hearts: such a fun way to show kids the power of color. Dip your egg in one color and let dry. Then dip in the same color three-fourths of the way in and let dry. Dip again in the color half way and let dry. And finally, dip just a small tip of the egg and see how the layers add up!
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Sunshine: dip your eggs in yellow dye and add little eyes and nose to recreate this Signature design.
Plastic Measures
Use plastic eggs as an easier alternative to decorating eggs if you plan to seek them later (and it helps that you can add a little treat inside). Before you hide them on the big day, spend time with your kids adding some flare. Here are some ideas:
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Mark the eggs: with adult supervision, use permanent markers to write their name on the eggs or practice counting by writing the numbers on the eggs.
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Copy our prints: if your kids are decorating in their Petal Hop To It pajamas, ask them to recreate the designs on the egg, like a carrot or buzzing bee.
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Tissue paper as art: cut strips of tissue paper and dip a small brush in Mod Podge. Let your kids place the tissue strips around the eggs, and let dry.
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Sparkle with glitter: using Elmer’s Glue and bowls of glitter, help your kids add glue to the egg - by writing, designing, or painting - and then dip into or sprinkle glitter on the egg, and let dry.
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Custom stickers: if your house collects stickers, decorate eggs with your favorites. Ask your kids to create a story on each using stickers.
For babies and smaller kids, let them hold the eggs and help decorate with finger painting or the tissue art. Let them be a part of the fun!
Wooden Party
Create memories for years with wooden eggs. Start a tradition by letting kids decorate wooden eggs with a different theme each year or writing their name each year until they beg you to stop!
Create fun designs with a few easy steps:
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Use a permanent marker to create lines around the eggs or random shapes.
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With watercolor paints, let your kids fill in the shapes they just made. The more colors, the better!
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A last optional step is to add a protective coat of beeswax for safekeeping.
Egg Decorating Style
The best part of creating Easter egg art is that there are no rules, including style. Keep kids comfortable in their pajamas as they hippity hop around the decorating station. And when it comes time to seek, dress them in our popular Easter outfits for a fun day of play!
Do you have any creative egg decorating ideas that you can share with us and other parents? Add your idea below or share on the Little Sleepies VIPs Facebook group.
