March? What? Where did winter go? In the PNW, March is a month of erratic weather. We can have snow, hail, rain, sunshine, warmth, gloom, lightening, and white puffy clouds -- all in the same week. Despite the climate craziness, I try to send positive vibes out into the universe and think spring.
Sunday afternoon, I was getting out some spring decor pieces and found the egg carton filled with a dozen of my DIY painted and speckled eggs. Maybe you remember, I painted these a couple of years ago. I'm mentioning them again because a) it took me a couple of weeks to blow out enough eggs to do a dozen without cracking the shells, and b) this is a super frugal decor project. (I'd say super frugal is when you turn compost items into home decor, don't you think?)
To get the clean eggs, I pricked both ends of each egg with a straight pin, making the hole in the flat end of the egg larger than the hole at the pointed end. To blow out the insides, I blew through the smaller hole. After blowing a batch of eggs for cooking, I washed the eggs in a bowl of warm soapy water, submerging the eggs and allowing water to seep inside. I then shook the soapy water around inside the eggs and blew out the soapy water as I had blown out the eggs originally. I placed the eggs on a heat register to thoroughly dry. Any warm spot will work, even an oven that is cooling from use in baking.
When I had a dozen cleaned and dried egg shells, I used a small dab of paintable caulk to seal the holes on both ends of each egg. Once the caulk dried I hand-painted each egg a solid color with acrylic paints. Going for a natural look, I chose a pale green, pale blue, and tan for my set of eggs. I also think speckled eggs would be pretty in pastels, such as pink, yellow, lavender, and green.
After the base layer of acrylic paint had dried, I put all of the eggs into a cardboard box, then placed the box in the bottom of the bathtub for speckling. This part can get messy and might be a good project for outdoors, weather-permitting. But the bathtub worked and was easy to clean afterward.
To speckle the eggs, I dipped an old toothbrush into dark brown acrylic paint and flicked it over the eggs, turning them over a couple of times to ensure they were covered on all sides with speckling.
Once dried, I used them in an arrangement, nested in with some moss.
If all of this seems like a lot of work for some spring decor, consider this -- I have saved and re-displayed these eggs several years in a row now. I keep the eggs in an egg carton from one year to the next. By being careful with handling them, I haven't lost a single egg yet.
Ah spring -- new life, painted eggs, crocuses blooming, birds chirping, and a bunny sighting. Spring stirs hope in my winter-weary spirit.
What says spring to you?
Longer daylight hours, flowers from bulbs peeking up, hearing more birds, and sunshine make me feel like spring is getting close. Spring is more of a concept than anything else in Michigan--it can seem springlike one day and winter the next. I will start to put out a few spring decor items (mostly Easter-themed, but I do like to switch out my silk flowers to more springlike ones). I'm getting tired of looking at my winter-themed front porch (sled, greenery) and in the past I've just removed it and waited till May when it's time to plant flowers in pots, but this year I'm thinking about inexpensive ways to switch it up to brighten the area and boost my mood. Any ideas?
ReplyDeleteHi Kris,
DeleteMore of a concept -- I like that!
I've been taking walks in the neighborhood looking for inspiration for outdoor spring decor. I'll post some photos this week of what I've found so far. Some of the ideas are very do-able and inexpensive. I don't know if your porch is covered, but you could add a pot of faux flowers from some (cheap) place like Dollar Tree near the door where you go in and out. Or just add stems of faux flowers into your greenery, taking out anything that screams Christmas. I do think these sort of things are mood boosters.
I remember those eggs and think they are very pretty. I like the natural look. I remember blowing out eggs as a kid and it was not easy. I'm getting lighted-headed just thinking about it.
ReplyDeleteMany things say spring to me, but the definitive one is crocuses blooming. After I figured out that there were not any crocus in the yard at this house, that's one of the first things I planted. So far this year, all I can see are the tips of the leaves emerging from the ground, but they will be coming soon enough.
Hi Live and Learn,
DeleteHa ha. I guess that's why I cleaned the eggs over a two or three week period. In thinking back, I think I was cleaning out eggs mostly for baking projects, just one or two at a time. Because you're right, the egg stuff doesn't just fall out of the egg shells.
I love crocuses, too. I've planted a lot over the years. The squirrels also love crocuses, so I've had to replant those many times. But I'll keep doing it because they are the first flower that we get en masse. Very soon . . .