nostalgiecat: Make it a celebration....

EASTER TREE

Whilst I busy myself with some furniture upcycling commissions, I thought I'd re share this post from Easter time last year...This as one of my very first posts here on Nostalgiecat, and I can honestly say it feels like a million years ago (and a "few" photography skills later) ...

I will bring you some kind of Easter DIY next week, I promise, but for now, lets get in the mood for the "yellow season"...

So here goes...A post from about a year ago:

Since having my daughter, little miss Moo, it's become more and more important to me to uphold the holiday traditions I grew up with in Norway. Easter is one of those times a year when I become particularly nostalgic. Having lived here in the UK for more than 15 years now, I thought We'd make our own EASTER TREE , or "fastelavensris" (actually fastelavens comes about a month before easter, but bringing tree branches in to decorate is so fitting throughout this season...),this year to get us in the spirit of Easter!

In Norway, Easter is a big deal, whether you are religious or not. Traditionally the Norwegian symbols of Easter is chickens and Eggs. Another Norwegian symbol of Easter is the "fastelavensris"!

In pagan times the Norse put up birch trees inside to invite the smell of spring.

Nowadays feathered birch twigs are a decorative feature in the norwegian home during the easter holiday, as well as yellow flowers, such as daffodils.

Another Norwegian tradition close to my heart, is Easter crafts, especially painting and decorating eggs.

The feathered birch twigs are decorated with painted eggs for Palm Sunday, which marks the start of the Norwegian Easter.

We are really pleased with our "Easter tree", and little miss Moo is very proud to see her eggs hanging pride-of-place!

We used a variety of techniques to decorate our eggs:

Some we dyed with a mixture of food-dye,white vinegar and water, others we simply sprayed with liquid watercolor in mini spray bottles. (This is particularly fun for smaller children, as it can get quit messy....in a good way!)

I decoupaged some of the eggs with old norwegian "glansbilder" and napkins, and some I decorated with decals and rub-ons!

So although we are missing out on the whole Norwegian Easter experience, with skiing-trips to the Easter mountain and watching the Easter Crimes traditionally shown on telly, We now have our own "Fastelavensris", and look forward to a big, traditional Easter breakfast.......