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Homemade Easter Gifts for Kids

If you ask kids what they like most about Easter, they'll probably say the arrival of the Easter bunny. If you're still hopping down the bunny trail, you owe it to yourself to check out these fun Easter gifts for kids.

Egg Dyeing Smock

Help the kids and adults on your list keep their clothes spotless by making them these cute bunny-stamped smocks.

The Gift of Knowledge

It is generally agreed that Easter received its name from Eostre, an Anglo-Saxon goddess of spring. Eostre symbolized the rebirth of the day at dawn and the rebirth of life in the spring. Christians celebrate Easter as the resurrection of their savior, Jesus Christ, which occurred during Passover. The Jewish feast of Passover, or Pesach, commemorates the memory of the deliverance of the Jews from Egypt and celebrates the advent of the Messiah as foretold by the prophets.

Present Tense

Textile medium is a liquid helper that transforms acrylic paints into washable fabric paint. The advantage of this product is that, if you already have the colors you need, you don't have to go buy the same colors in fabric paint. Just add one part textile medium to two parts acrylic paint to make a paint that's washable and flexible. Be sure to wash the unpainted fabric first without using fabric softener. Then allow the painted material to dry for seven days. Heat set the painted area by placing it on an ironing board and putting a cloth over the area. Using an iron set to the fabric temperature, iron over the area for 20 seconds. Wash the material in mild soap when necessary. See the manufacturer's directions on the textile medium you use.

Present Pointers

You might want to include this egg-dyeing smock in a basket with Easter egg dye and an Easter egg holder. Older kids would enjoy a Psanky egg-making kit that teaches them how to make beautifully designed eggs out of wax and dye based on the Ukrainian art form (Psanky). You can buy these kits in most craft stores or order them on the Internet.

Time frame: Two to three hours plus seven days to set

Level: Moderately easy

What you need:

  1. Wash the pillowcase with detergent but without using fabric softener. Cut a large hole (approximately 10 inches) in the center of the short end of the pillowcase for the head, and two smaller holes (approximately 6 inches) in each side of the pillowcase for the arms (close to the end with the hole for the head).

  2. Place a piece of cardboard under the working area of the smock.

  3. Mix the textile medium with pink paint in a disposable cup or bowl, using approximately 1⁄4 cup of paint to 1⁄8 cup of medium. Stir well.

  4. Use the paintbrush to paint the mixture onto the bunny stamp. Carefully position the stamp on the bottom edge of the smock and apply gentle pressure. Remove the stamp, being careful not to smudge the design. Repeat across the bottom of the apron, leaving room in between bunnies for the carrot stamp. Stamp one bunny on the top center of the smock or use your own design.

  5. Repeat step 4 using the orange and green paint on the carrot stamp. Stamp a carrot in between each bunny on the bottom and on each side of the bunny on the top.

  6. Use the black or purple fabric paint to write "Happy Easter" across the top of the smock.

  7. Allow the smock to dry for seven days. Place it on an ironing board and cover it with a piece of cloth. Press the area with an iron for approximately 20 seconds to set the paint. The smock can now be washed as necessary.

Fuzzy Friends

Present Pointers

You may want to consider buying extra pompoms for this fun and easy project: Glue pompoms onto an old glove to make puppets. Design a different animal for each finger. A great last-minute gift!

Surprise the kids on your gift list by making these cute and cuddly Easter pets to decorate their Easter baskets. You might want to give them a box of the leftover supplies so they can create their own fuzzy animals.

Time frame: Half to one hour

Level: Easy

What you need:

  1. For the bunny: Glue two white pompoms together. Cut two hind legs and two bunny ears out of white felt. Glue these to the pompom body. Glue two small eyes to the head.

  2. For the chick: Glue two yellow pompoms together. Cut a triangular beak out of orange felt and glue it to the face. Glue on two plastic eyes. Use an orange pipe cleaner for the feet: Make a circle out of the middle of the pipe cleaner and glue it to the bottom pompom. Bend the ends of the pipe cleaner into two circles. Pinch the circles in half to form "V" shaped feet.

  3. For the duck: Glue two white pompoms together. Glue a smaller orange pompom on the mouth area. Cut feet out of orange felt and glue them to the body. Glue two eyes onto the head.

  4. Place your pompoms in hollow, snap apart, plastic Easter eggs. Put the Easter eggs and leftover supplies in a gift basket and present it to the kids on your list.

Papier-Mâché Easter Eggs

If you don't mind a little mess, papier-mâché is a relatively easy medium for creating unusual homemade items. These handcrafted Easter eggs filled with goodies will brighten up any Easter basket.

Time frame: Two to three hours plus overnight to dry

Level: Moderately easy

What you need:

  1. Cover your work area with newspapers or a plastic tablecloth.

  2. Decide how many eggs you want to make and blow up the balloon(s). Tie a knot in the end(s).

  3. In a shallow bowl, make a paste from the flour and water. The paste should be thick enough to thoroughly coat a piece of newspaper without dripping off. If the paste is too runny, add more flour; if it's too stiff, add more water.

  4. Tear or cut a newspaper into one-inch strips. Dip the strips into the flour mixture and run your fingers down the strip to remove excess paste. Paste the strip onto the balloon in a vertical direction, going from the knotted end to the top and back down again. Repeat this process until the balloon is covered. Do not cover the knot of the balloon. Keep a one-inch "hole" in this area to insert the candies. Next add strips horizontally until the balloon is covered with a 1⁄4-inch layer of newspaper. Press the strips to the balloon and rub a layer of the paste over the top to smooth any wrinkles. Allow the egg to dry overnight.

  5. When the egg is dry, carefully pop the balloon and pull it out through the hole. Fill the egg with wrapped candies and seal the hole with masking tape.

  6. Paint the egg with colorful craft paints and allow it to dry. Spray the egg with clear acrylic finish spray and allow it to dry thoroughly. The kids could keep the egg to reuse as a decoration for Easter by carefully removing the tape to get to the candies, or they could crack the egg open by hitting it against a hard surface (such as concrete).

Confetti Conkers

Dyed Easter eggs are a standard for Easter celebrations. You might want to try these fun confetti eggs to share with the tots.

The Gift of Knowledge

The Mexicans celebrate Easter by making these fanciful confetti Easter eggs to share with their friends and family. They save their eggs throughout the year and dye or spray paint them bright colors. The inside of the egg is filled with confetti. The tradition is to conk each other with the eggs, releasing the confetti into the air.

Time frame: One to two hours

Level: Easy

What you need:

  1. Holding the egg over the sink, make a hole in the pointed end of the egg using the needle or nail. Carefully enlarge the hole until it has about a 1⁄2-inch opening.

  2. Shake the egg out of the shell into a sink. Rinse the egg's shell and allow it to dry.

  3. Dye or spray paint the egg a bright color. Allow it to dry. Place confetti inside the egg with a spoon, and cover the hole by gluing a strip of tissue paper over it. Repeat this procedure with the remaining eggs. Place the finished eggs in the egg carton and wrap them in tissue paper.

  4. The Mexican tradition is to crack the egg on or near a friend to release the confetti into the air. (Keep these eggs out of the reach of infants or toddlers.)

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Excerpted from The Complete Idiot's Guide to Making Great Gifts © 2001 by Marilee LeBon. All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. Used by arrangement with Alpha Books, a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

To order this book visit the Idiot's Guide web site or call 1-800-253-6476.


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