Easter Crafts...Some Old, Some New

Since this is the first year of this blog I get to share all the stuff I've done in past years for each of the holidays.  So it looks like I've been busy, but really I haven't...not that busy.

First I'll share some things I've done in the last few years and then I'll show you one thing that I've been working on for the last few days...my one Easter project for this year.

Starting with Painted, Styrofoam, Beaded Eggs...I tried to make that name as long as I could!

I think I actually came up with this idea on my own!  (I usually have to see an idea first and then copy it).

I just bought a bunch of styrofoam eggs, painted them and then put glue on them in varying designs with a paintbrush.  Then I rolled them in tiny little colorful beads.  They've been kind of fun.

Next up, Torn Fabric Carrots

I made some of these last year and they were fine but then I made some more this year for my mother in law's birthday (she loves carrots) and I like them better so I will be showing you the new ones.

Here they are catching the early morning rays (sorry about the glare).

I'm not sure where the idea for these came from...not from a blog, but I may have seen a similar idea in person somewhere.  Anyway, I've seen things like this online since but I feel like I can kind of take credit for these.

I bought styrofoam cones and chiseled down the sharp edge at the bottom to round it off.  Then I took strips of torn, orange fabric and wrapped and hot glued it to the cone.  For the stems I just took green raffia, tied it in a knot and hot glued it into a little hole that I dug out in the base of the cone.

Here's an inside shot.  Kind of fun!

I definitely remember where to give credit for the next one....Felt, Peep Bunny Bunting!

Dana, from danamadeit.com is super talented and I love her photography.  Her pictures are always bright and cheery.  She always has cute ideas and this bunting is no exception.  She gives full instructions and a pattern here.

A couple of years ago, my sister and I had a fun day making these together. 

I'm glad she saw these and wanted to try her hand at them.  It was tons of fun!

(On a quick side note, when held up to the light you can see the ribbon running through the ears.  Angie's husband dubbed them "Rambunnies" because of this and my husband came up with this cutie...

He loves to fool around in Photoshop.  My favorite part is the pink beard.

It's embarrassing to admit but I don't even really know who Rambo is...it's still pretty funny though.)

 

Okay...moving on to Simple Fabric Bunnies

 

I don't really have a good name for them.  This was my inspiration...so cute...hers were little sachets.  I thought it would be cute to make them in varying sizes.  So here's my version...

 

 

I love the simpleness of them.  I also love the fabric.  It's hard to see in this picture but it's kind of a faux eyelet look.  On the link above she gives you the pattern...super simple and cute!

And finally for my most recent project, Braided Fabric Easter Baskets

My inspiration was from Vanessa from V. and Co. (vanessachristensen.com)

She did these super cute baskets. 

Wow!  It looked awesome but time consuming and a lot of effort.  I wanted a similar look but quick and easy.

I decided to try something and my sister in law said I should do a tutorial so here it goes...

 

I started with a pile of fabric, 

 

a plastic lid from the food storage cans...you know the ones...they pile up because you get two new ones in every box, but why throw away the old ones 'cause hey, they might come in handy some day right?  Andy they did...today!  

 

I also had my handy dandy mini glue gun and some coordinating felt.

 

I traced the lid onto the felt and cut out two circles...one for the top and one for the bottom.  I then glued them on accordingly.

 

 

Next I took three strips of torn (very important because cut fabric just wouldn't have the same look) fabric, knotted them at the top and started braiding.  

 

This was the most time consuming part of the project but also kind of fun.  My strips were the width of the fabric...so kind of long (while I braided the ends got tangled up quite a bit) but it ended up being perfect for my needs.

Tie a knot at the bottom, trim excess fabric close to the knots on both ends, repeat 11 more times and you end up with this...

I'm realizing that Ben must have smudged my camera lens while playing with it recently.  It gives it a nice soft effect don't you think?

Anyway, start gluing the braids around the lid and then on top of themselves...does that make sense?

I did about 6 1/2 braids to get my desired height and then I started layering the top two coils with 2 1/2 more braids.  I felt like the basket was kind of shapeless and I thought that adding a little more dimension would help.  So on the second to the top coil I doubled up the braids and then on the top coil I tripled them.  As I was layering I also added the handle.  I took the last three braids and braided them together so I ended up with a super think braid.  I cut it to the size of handle I wanted, glued the ends together (I didn't want to knot them again because I didn't want the bulk).  I tried to flatten the ends a bit too when I glued them and then integrated them into the layering.  That's probably not a very good description but it's the best I can do.

 

I am very happy with the result.  I made one for each child in their favorite color.  Ben doesn't know it yet but his favorite color will be green :)

They're kind of small but hey, less candy is good right?

 

 

Yeah!  Homemade, sentimental Easter baskets that hopefully my kids will love and pull out even after they're married and look back on with fond memories.

Thanks for letting me share!