Easter crackers....DIY

...DIY

I spent this morning making these fun Easter crackers for our Easter breakfast table, and I just love how they've turned out!

They are really easy to make, I will show you how:



Use your empty toilet rolls to create the shell of the crackers, and use any napkins, tissues or gift wrap you have to decorate with... There's two other things you will need for this make, the first is THE CRACKER SNAPS...I ordered mine from here

Second, You will need to cut some A4 paper to create those neat cracker ends...I have done the hard work for you and measured out where to cut the paper to fit an average toilet roll:

 I have created this template for you, to make the first step easier:

Cracker template...click, save to your computer and print



Step1:

First, use a scalpel to cut out the diamonds on the template..

If your toilet roll is extra large, you may have to elongate the diamond shape...

 Step 2

Attach the template to the toilet roll with double sided tape (Or you could use glue, but tape is less messy). The cut out diamond shapes should sit outside the edges of the toilet roll.

DECORATE

Cut a piece of tissue paper, or napkin to fit, about 2-3cm over the edges of the ends of the toilet roll.

Roll it on and secure in place with some double sided tape.

Use some string to tie off one end of the cracker....
Trim off any excess paper.

FILLING

 

Place the cracker pull inside, then fill with treats...I chose little Easter stickers, Little chicks and chocolate eggs...
Tie off this end of your cracker as well...


FINISHING TOUCHES

Why not make your crackers extra special and fun for the kids by drawing on little faces and attaching bunny ears or beaks and feathers...

Create some funny characters...get the kids involved!!

 

I just love the little characters...

And they will look great at the Easter morning breakfast table... 

Cute...don't you think?

I love Easter: Its all about spring, colours, sunshine , good food and lazy days...

In Norway everyone heads to their cabins in the mountains for a spot of skiing...

I do miss those Norwegian Easter traditions her in the UK, but I guess we'll have to create our own....

....and I think I have just found one we can easily do every year...Our very own homemade Easter crackers....

xxx

June



Easter wish list....Y...is for a touch of yellow

Instantly downloadable artwork from OfCarola

Y

....is for a touch of yellow

Easter is right around the corner....

I'm not sure about you, but Easter always takes me by surprise....every year!

Yesterday I dug out our box of Easter decorations, and realised that bar a few Easter eggs and some feathers, we haven't got a lot to set the mood...

There is no denying the Yellow is THE colour of Easter, and I haven't been a big fan in the past...But I spent last night window shopping online for a few Easter-y décor updates for the home, and I have curated this Seasonal Home accessories collage I just had to share with you all today:

I admit, the subtle touches of yellow has won me over!

1.Yellow linen table cloth from H&M for the Easter breakfast table

2.Remix blanket  from Ferm living for cosy-ing up on the sofa..

3. Set of 3 Normal ceramic easter egg decorations by Lindsay interiors from not on the high street for decoration

4.Large glass vase from House Doctor to display some pussy willow twigs and some daffodils..

5.Hare rabbit head wall trophy   by Clive Roddy from Not on the high street , just because....

6.Little geometry cushion from Ferm living to brighten up the front room.

7. Carla coffee cups and saucers from Bloomingville...I just adore this patterned table ware range!

8.Hexa glazed yellow stoneware bowl from Habitat, for all those Easter treats...

9.Set of 4 Abode egg cups by Mengsel (One of my favourite print makers) for Not on the high street, for the Easter morning breakfast table...

Now, if only I had the money....

I will be back soon with a fun DIY for the Easter breakfast table...

xxx

June



Concrete vase DIY...from a plastic bottle

....from a plastic bottle.

 

I am back!

Feels like I've been on blogging holiday for ever, not just 1 week...but now I'm back!

I have lots to tell you all about, like the furniture painting commissions I have been doing and Our bedroom  makeover progress, amongst other things... But just to ease myself back into it, I wanted to share another quick little concrete project tutorial with you today...

This one all starts with a plastic bottle...

When my mum and dad went back to Norway last week, they left behind this beautiful faceted plastic water bottle...(That's how my mind works...see beauty in everything!!)

I immediately knew what to do with it!!

I'd seen Ben Ueyda''s concrete bottle vases a few weeks ago, and knew that the shape of this humble plastic bottle would make a fantastic concrete vase...

This is so easy to do, so keep your eyes peeled for lovely shaped bottles next time you are shopping, and you can make your very own concrete vase...

Here's how:

You will need:

Plastic bottle

Quick setting concrete mix

water

mixing vessel/ mixing stick

dinner candle (or anything else you may have to create a long tubular cavity in your vase, such as a thick pen...)

Marker pen

scalpel 

#

The first thing to do is to work out how much concrete mix you will need, and to what level you want to fill your bottle:

The easiest way to work this out, is to fill your bottle with water, then push  the candle into the bottle through the top....add or remove water until you are happy that the level in the bottle will work for your vase...Remove the candle, and mark the level of the water off with the marker pen on the bottle...Now you have determined the volume of the cavity left by the candle, and to where you want to fill the bottle with the concrete mix.

TIP: Use approximately half of the water left in the bottle to mix up the concrete for a "governors geige" (A decent estimation of how much you will need to mix up to fill the volume)...

1. Mix up the concrete...not too thick, just runny enough to pour into the bottle. Pour it into the bottle and tap a few times to get rid of any air bubbles in the mix...

2. Push the candle in, and leave to set.

TIP: Try to twist the candle out when the concrete has just set, but don't worry if you don't catch it in time...

3. When the concrete has fully set (approx. 1-2 hours), use your scalpel to cut the top off the bottle...

4. Rip off the plastic bottle.

5. Leave your concrete vase to cure for a couple of hours.

If, like me, you didn't manage to twist the candle out in time, simply light the candle and let it burn down...Use the hot liquid wax to coat the inside of your vase to water-proof the cavity..

This worked for me, but if you find that the flame keeps going out towards the bottom, use a knife to cut out the remnants of the wax, and coat the inside with PVA to waterproof instead...

Sand back any rough edges on the top of your vase...

...and there you have it: A concrete vase, perfect for displaying a single flower...make more than one and group together, or you can always just stick a candle in it instead...

 

Not only is it a unique and unusual item of home décor....that you have made yourself, but you have also re-used a throwaway item, a humble plastic bottle, to make something that will last a lifetime!!

So next time your recycling bin is full of empty plastic bottles, pick up a bag of concrete (about £5) and make some vases or candlesticks, before taking all that plastic to the dump!

xxx

June