Ostara craft ideas

Some Ostara themed crafts to keep the little witchlets occupied this weekend (and the big witchlets too!):




Thread Eggs


Decorate a tree with these happy eggs in no time.

What You Need:
Small oval balloons
Scissors
Embroidery floss or sewing thread
Liquid starch or fabric stiffener

Instructions:
1. Inflate small oval balloons and tie the necks tightly.
2. Soak 12- to 24-inch lengths of embroidery floss or regular sewing thread (use one colour or a variety of colours) in liquid starch or fabric stiffener. Soak each piece of floss separately and pull the wet thread between your thumb and forefinger to remove excess liquid.
3. Wrap the wet threads around the balloon one at a time. The thread will stick to the balloon without any additional glue or fastener. Cover the balloon by criss crossing the threads any way you choose. Use less thread for an open, lacy egg, or wrap additional thread for an egg that looks more solid.
4. Tie a piece of dry thread around the neck of the thread-wrapped balloon and hang it until the thread is dry and hard to the touch. Burst the balloon with a pin and pull the balloon out of the top of the Thread Egg. Place Thread Eggs in a basket or bowl, or attach loops of floss so you can hang several on a tree branch to create an egg tree.



Homemade Easter Egg Dyes

You can use your favorite egg-dying tricks here as well: Like crayons for a batik effect or rubber bands for a tie-dye effect. If you like a glossy egg, you can rub the dyed eggs with vegetable oil when they are dry.

Red
Red onion skins, use a lot (boil with eggs)
Pomegranate juice

Orange
Yellow onion skins (boil with eggs)

Yellow
Lemon or orange peel (boil with eggs)
Carrot tops (boil with eggs)
Celery seed (boil with eggs)
Ground cumin (boil with eggs)
Ground turmeric (boil with eggs)

Yellow Brown
Dill seeds (boil with eggs)

Brown
Strong coffee
Instant coffee
Black walnut shells (boil with eggs)

Yellow Green
Bright green apple peels (boil with eggs)

Green
Spinach leaves (boil with eggs)


Blue
Canned blueberries and their juice
Red cabbage leaves (boil with eggs)
Purple grape juice

Violet Blue
Violet blossoms
Red onion skins, less amount than you need to make red (boil with eggs)

Lavender
Diluted purple grape juice
Violet blossoms plus squeeze of lemon (boil with eggs)

Pink
Beets, fresh or canned
Cranberries or cranberry juice
Raspberries
Red grape juice


Crystal Ostara Eggs



You'll need:
1 C. all-purpose flour
½ C. salt
¼ C. clean sand
1 C. used coffee grounds
¾ C. warm water
Crystals or gemstones
Non-stick cooking spray
Acrylic paints in your favorite colors


Blend flour, salt, sand and coffee grounds together. Gradually add the water, and knead until you've got a thick, gritty dough. Spray a crystal lightly with non-stick cooking spray, and place it in the center of a small scoop of dough. Shape the dough around the crystal to form an egg shape. Bake the eggs at 350 for about 15 minutes, and allow to cool. Once they've cooled, they should be nice and hard, like a rock. Paint the eggs, and allow paint to dry.


Hide the eggs on Ostara, and let your kids crack them open to reveal the hidden crystals!


Ostara Tree



A fun project to do at Ostara is make and decorate a tree for the Sabbat. It doesn't have to be huge or fancy, but it's nice to have one sitting indoors to remind you of the changing seasons.


You'll need:
Several lightweight branches
Some florist's foam
A flowerpot
Acrylic paints
Spanish moss
Small spring decorations


First, paint the pot with spring designs -- flowers, butterflies, ladybugs, eggs, etc. If you have kids, this is a lot of fun. If you don't mind them getting a bit messy, let them use thumbprints to make designs. Allow the paint to dry.  Cut a chunk of florist's foam to fit into the pot and then insert the branches into the foam so that it forms a tree shape. Hang the decorations -- eggs, ribbons, flowers, etc. -- on the branches. Use salt dough and cookie cutters to make ornaments to hang, if you like.  Use the Spanish moss to cover the florist's foam in the top of the pot. Place your tree on your altar during ritual, or use it as a tabletop decoration.


Note: Try to use branches that have already fallen on the ground, rather than taking them from a live tree. If you must cut from a living tree or bush, make sure you do so in a way that will allow for new growth on the plant. If you have forsythia bushes, they may be blooming right now - their branches are perfect for this project!


Have fun!


Tansy
x




Sources:
paganwiccan.about.com
care2.com