Traditional hand-painted Easter eggs

Simple but stunning, here's how to create one:

• make a hole at the top and bottom of a large, free range egg
• carefully blow out the contents
• allow the eggshell to dry
• gently decorate it with brightly coloured paints or felt-tips
• add some glitter or recycled ribbons – whatever you can ‘lay’ your hands on.

Alternatively, you can hard boil the eggs. To save time painting them, add some food colouring to the water. Add the extra decorations when they have cooled down.

There are many places to purchase the materials to make your own gifts.  Look in our business directory or try the shopping section.  Remember to let them know you found their details from the Basingstoke-Now website.

Papier mache fun

Most people love receiving chocolate eggs, but they are usually over-packaged in plastic and cardboard. Cardboard can easily be recycled, but here’s a fun way to re-use the plastic shell as a mould and create endless eggs to give away.

Recipe for recycled Easter eggs:

• cover the plastic packaging shell from a shop-bought Easter egg in petroleum jelly
• rip up bits of old newspapers and soak them in a paste and water solution
• apply a layer of paper over the egg mould and leave until almost dry
• add another six layers in the same way – you may prefer to use white or coloured paper for the final layer
• leave the mould to dry out completely for a day or two
• carefully pull the mould away from the papier mâché egg and decorate it with paint etc
• place a little bundle of organic chocolates wrapped in scrap material inside the egg
• present it with a pretty ribbon that can be reused.

Help others

Finally, if you are worried about your waistline, why not give a gift that with help to nourish children in the developing world?

World Vision's alternative gift catalogue includes chickens, whose eggs will provide protein and income for families in Honduras, and spring lambs that will benefit communities in Senegal.