Tissue Paper Easter Eggs

 
 
We do not usually blow the egg out of the shell when we make Easter eggs.  But my sister has beautiful eggs that she saves from year to year and about this time in the spring she gets them out and hangs them from the chandelier in her dining room.  It is a lovely symbol of spring, and I decided to try it this year.

 

Most years, we decorate our eggs with flowers and natural dyes, but blown eggs do not submerge easily into the dye.  And it's always nice to try something different.  So this year, we decorated the eggs with pastel-colored tissue paper.  The result was delicately-colored eggs that looked so perfect for the beginning of spring.  The tissue paper gets dipped in water laced with a bit of white glue.  When the eggs dry, the paper can be peeled off and the color will remain.  Or the paper can be left on.  As Gabe's mom, Eva, observed, with the tissue still on, they look like papier mâché. 

 
I am sure that there are many techniques for blowing out eggs, but the one that worked best for us was to start with a small needle and then progress to a bigger needle, a small nail, and finally a bigger nail.  Once the children realized that a larger hole made it easier to blow out the egg, some of the holes got really big.  This is not such a problem with this decorating technique, though, because the tissue paper can be placed strategically to cover the holes.

Egg dyeing, daffodills, Easter and Passover around the corner.  Can it really be spring?

 
 
Second helping (from the archives): Natural Egg Dyes with Botanic Prints

Tissue Paper Easter Eggs

a dozen white eggs
2 needles of different thicknesses
2 nails of different thicknesses
a wooden mallet or block
a few small sheets of colored tissue paper
scissors
a small bowl of water mixed with a splash of white glue
an empty egg carton to hold the eggs while they dry
6 toothpicks, broken in half
thread

To blow out the eggs, begin by gently tapping the smallest needle into one end of the egg.  Work your way up to a bigger hole by progressing to the bigger needle, the smaller nail, and finally, the biggest nail.  Tap gently and slowly to keep the egg from cracking.  Repeat on the other end of the egg.  Insert a long needle into one end of the egg and pierce the yolk (you will know you have succeeded if the needle comes out yellow).  

Over a large bowl, blow into one end of the egg until all of the egg appears to have dripped out the other end.  Depending on the size of the holes and the force of your lungs, this could take a few minutes per egg.

Once the egg is out, rinse the shell to remove any residual stickiness.  To decorate the eggs, dip pieces of tissue paper into the glue-water mixture and affix them to the eggs.  Cover the holes if you like.  When the eggs are covered to your liking, set then in the egg carton to dry.  When the eggs have dried completely, either peel off the paper or leave it on, depending on the look you want.

If you want to hang the eggs, tie a piece of thread around one end of a toothpick half.  Tie a loop in the other end.  Push the toothpick through the hole in the egg all the way.  Once it is inside, gently shake the egg until the toothpick settles away from the hole.  Use the loop on the other end of the thread to hang the egg.

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Comments

[Barbara Beachler]

The eggs are really beautiful! Could you tell me where you got your tissue paper? All I could find were primary colors.
Thanks!

[Margy]

Barbara, I've had this little pad of tissue papers for a long time, but I believe that I bought it at the Little Shop at Acorn Hill.

[Michelle Breum]

Very cool. We've blown the egg out of some eggs already. We were thinking of painting them. The tissue paper idea is good. I've subscribed to your blog. It's good.