Lockdown Day 14 – Speckled Eggs
With Easter weekend looming our Christian families will be gearing up to celebrate Easter with their loved ones. Easter Eggs are a traditional Easter decoration. Our ‘speckled eggs’ will be fun to make even if you are not celebrating Easter!
* SPECKLED LOCKDOWN EGGS *
You have two options for these eggs.
*Option 1: Use hard-boiled eggs that can be eaten once decorated. These should be boiled in advance and left to cool before decorating.
*Option 2: Use blown-out eggs for a long-lasting decoration. Blowing out the egg from the egg-shell by making a small hole on each end with a sterilized nail is fairly tricky, but a good way of getting the parents involved in the process! There are YouTube videos that can guide you should you wish to try this, and you have the added benefit of using the eggs to make a yummy cake or custard!
PREPARATION
You will need:
- Eggs (blown or hard-boiled eggs)
- Newspaper
- The cardboard egg tray in which the eggs were purchased
- Paint (as many colours as you have) – this should be non-toxic, fairly thin paint
- Paintbrushes (ideally one for each colour paint)
- Old toothbrush (ideally one for each colour paint)
- Jug of water (in which to wet brushes if needed)
- A cloth to wipe spills and messes
SPECKLING…
1. Ask the child to lay out the newspaper on the table/ work area.
2. Bring the materials listed above to the work area and lay them out. The cooled eggs should be in the egg tray.
3. Explain to the child that these eggs will be part of Easter Sunday’s breakfast and that s/he will be decorating them for the table to make it festive and special.
4. Invite the child to paint each egg fully, placing it sideways on each aperture of the egg tray so that it can dry.
5. While the eggs are drying, the child could be encouraged to wash the paintbrushes as s/he will now be finished with those.
6. When the eggs are dry, pick one up in your non-dominant hand.
7. With your dominant hand, pick up a toothbrush and dip it into a paint colour different from the colour of the egg you are holding. This will provide a contrast and the speckle will stand out more effectively.
8. Run your thumb across the bristles of the toothbrush aiming it at the egg to show the child how splatter the egg.
9. Cover the egg with splatter, and again rest it sideways on the egg tray to dry.
10. Voila! Your speckled eggs are ready to add some splendour and dazzle to your Easter breakfast table!
11. If you have blown out the eggs, carefully thread some string through the holes in the top and bottom of the egg and tie these to a branch to create an ‘Easter Egg Tree’ for the table!
NB: Boiled eggs will last for up to a week in the fridge
Enjoy!