If you want to steer clear of chocolate this year, why not decorate some eggs instead and create an Easter tree. It can be great fun for all the family.

Things you’ll need

• Any fresh egg, the larger the better, particularly extra large hen or duck eggs.
• A sharp pin and a nail/pin (like those used with picture hooks)
• Masking fluid, Copydex glue.
• Scissors.
• Stains and paints. We used red cabbage liquid, onion skin liquid ( prepared beforehand by boiling plant material until the dye had been extracted and stored in jars until needed), acrylic paints.
• Pictures of flowers and leaves. We also used transfers of plant materials.
• Fresh plant material- we used fern fronds and leaves.
• The foot from a pair of tights.
• Bag closure or string.
• Jars large enough to completely submerge an egg
• Firm hold hair spray.
• Transparent fishing line/gut.
• A branch to hang them on - we used contorted willow.
• We also used mini hanging vases with flowers in to add to the decoration and a tub of spring flowers at the base.

Step by step

1. With the fine sharp pin bore a hole in one end of the egg. Repeat at the other end of the egg.
2. Using the picture hook nail enlarge each hole until approximately twice the size of a large pin head.
3. Clean one end of the egg and blow through the hole until all the contents of the egg have been pushed out. If difficult enlarge the holes a little.
4. Run some water into the empty egg, through the hole, placing your finger over the lower one to stop the water running out. Shake the egg and then blow out the water and the shell should now be clean on the inside.
5. Repeat the process until you have all the eggs you need.
6. You are now ready to decorate the eggs.

Possible Methods

1) Dyeing and painting.

Take the fern frond and paint with the masking fluid, leave to go sticky and then apply to the egg. Repeat until you have applied the required number of fronds. Leave to dry, this does not take long. Place the egg in the base of the foot of the tights stretching the material to keep the fronds fixed in position. Twist it tight and tie off with string or the bag closure. Immerse in your chosen dye and leave, preferably overnight, or even longer depending on the depth of tone you require. Take the egg from the liquid and leave to dry completely. Remove the tights material and then the fern fronds to reveal the image on the egg. Spray with the hair lacquer to fix the image and leave to dry.

Instead of liquid dye, after fixing the plant material to the egg, try painting with acrylic paint and leave to dry before removing the plant material. Again fix the image by spraying with hair lacquer.

Many plant image transfers are also available and these can offer a simple way of widening the range of designs you can create.

2) Printing

Stain the egg and when dry, add paint to the surface of the plant material and press on to the egg taking care not to let it slip or the image will be blurred. Designs can be simple or as complex as you like.

3) Decoupage

Potential cut-outs are endless. Cut out flower/leaf pictures - these can then be attached to the egg unstained, stained or painted, in singles, groups or in patterns. Once completed and the glue is dry, again spray with hair lacquer to fix the images and give the egg a gentle shine. If you want a high gloss then use a thin clear varnish.

Finally all that is needed is to hang up the eggs. Thread some transparent fishing line through the egg, knotting the lower end or glueing it to the base of the egg.

Hanging vases www.theorchardhomeandgifts.com/

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