In this blog our wonderful stockist Cecily of shop PomPom shares her top eco friendly Easter ideas to do with kids….
Spring! The word alone brings joy or indeed, springs joy! It is a wonderful time of the year, just as it begins to feel like winter would never end, the primroses begin to peek their little heads above the earth, daffodils splash yellow in the gentle sunshine and colourful crocuses carpet the floor. Well now, that was poetic!
No poet here, but rather the full disclaimer of a merry plastic-free shop owner of PomPom. We have just launched our Spring Collection, so, I am full of the joys of wildflower Seedballs, kids gardening tools, outdoor family games and Easter chocolate treats.
How is it only two weeks until Easter? January seemed to last a lifetime and yet my kids need to get thinking about blowing eggs, creating Easter moss gardens and sowing seeds.
I thought I would share with you my 3 favourite traditions for creating a natural Easter and the foraging fun that can be had over the holidays. As always, this is as much for the adults as the children, you will both equally enjoy it! Hands up, I am no Instagram mum, so our home activities embrace the fun, the creative and the natural, even if the end result often leaves much to be desired!
Easter Tray Garden
With the weather still unpredictable at this time of year, bring the outside in, and create your own little garden in the comfort of your home. My kids love this activity.
It starts outside, where we go foraging – this can be in your garden, local park or even by the sea. We have a local wood, where we find moss, sticks, bark, stones, ferns and at this time of year all the seasonal flowers. We return to the garden, where my herb patch is raided… thyme, mint and rosemary twigs before heading to the kitchen table, laden with natural goodies.
Take a tray (or a trug or a flower pot) and lay it with soil or compost and then let your little ones go wild constructing a garden of their own. A little ramekin or pot filled with water, can be the perfect pond. Stones become the path through the garden. Bark can create a little den or fairy house. Put cut flowers in between the carpet of moss and before you know it, you have a colourful natural creation for all to enjoy.
Top tip – just make sure it doesn’t end up in a kids bedroom… I’ve found ladybirds and beetles running amuck amongst the toys!
Easter Crown
This is a lovely activity for all the family, perhaps on Easter Day, to create a fairy, wizard or Easter crown.
When the egg hunt is over, start a new game foraging for twigs. Gather some greenery – whether that is a daisy or two, or some herbs or willow branches. You will need brown tape and ribbon. Bind the twigs together by placing them along a long stretch of brown tape with ribbon on either end. You can now intertwine your greenery through the twigs to make your Easter Crown. Measure it around your head to make sure you have the right size.
Now go conquer the world!
With thanks to the brilliant book ‘Wild Things’ by Fiona Danks and Jo Schofield.
Eggcellent Easter Tree
I wonder if eggs are the most fun of all food, not only do they make for a cracking joke (yolk?!) but they can be cooked 20 ways and they are fabulous for all activities – egg and spoon races, egg blowing, egg dyeing and Easter decorations.
These are my fool proof tips for a fabulous Easter Tree
Egg Blowing
– Use a safety pin or needle to very gently drill a hole in both ‘pointy’ ends of a raw egg
– Move the pin in a circular motion to make the hole bigger
– Put your fingers on each end of the egg, covering the holes and shake
– By ‘scrambling’ the egg you will loosen the insides so the yolk can out more easily
– Hold the egg gently over a bowl, cover one end with your mouth or straw and gently blow.
– The insides will all slowly start to come out. If you feel resistance, stop and shake again.
– To clean run a very gentle trickle of hot water through to clean.
Top 3 Tips:
1) If your egg cracks slightly at one end, blow from that end, as otherwise the pressure will cause it to break in two. You can cover up the crack when you paint it. 2) Keep your egg at room temperature before blowing; the insides will come out more easily. 3) Once cleaned, microwave your egg for 10-15 seconds to harden the shell
Now you have the perfect canvas shell, you are ready to start decorating. Go outside and find flower blossom or tiny petals to stick on the egg, these look so delicate and pretty. Use any paint you have at home or indeed, do use our natural paint.
My kids’ love rifling through the vegetable drawer and spice cupboard and see what can be used for natural dye, get experimental and see what colours nature provides. Our best experiments include turmeric, beetroot and spinach. However, have fun with it – see what red cabbage does, why does it turn eggs blue?!
We use this recipe but there are many out there. Try not to make too much dye, probably easier said than done!
Egg Painting Trick
– Place a thin skewer through the two holes in your now empty egg. The wooden ones are perfect, as they are not too thick
– Find a container and rest the skewer across the top, so the skewer is balanced on the sides, so you can easily decorate the egg.
You now have gorgeous eggs ready to decorate an Easter basket or the Parisian special, the Easter Tree! Your eggs can be hung in trees or bushes on branches outside or forage for fallen branches of blossom and bring the outside in.
I can’t wait to hear how you get on, send us your pictures on email info@shoppompom.com or tag @shop.pom.pom on instagram as we would love to share those with our community and inspire more children in nature.
As always, please supervise children around raw egg. Stay safe.
About the Author
Cecily Henderson is the Co-Founder of PomPom. Proudly plastic-free from product to packaging, PomPom sells unusual and imaginative designs for babies and children from toys, gifts, games and homeware. It is the home of the indoor climbing triangle.
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