Friday, March 29, 2013

CFC #96 - Easter, But Not a Card

 

Has to be Easter, but not a card, for the CAS-ual Fridays challenge this week ... OK, let's make some Easter eggs with stamp supplies! 


There's a great prize package from Timeless Twine waiting for the winner!



Here's the first project. My husband's dear Grandma Griglione was a huge crafter, and in the 1970's made a ton of egg dioramas. Most were for Easter, but there were some Christmas ones too. When she passed away and we started dividing her estate, the one thing everyone wanted was her eggs. They held so many memories, and you could see a piece of Grandma G in each one of them. So the cousins all got together, and with the eggs in the middle of the table, took turns picking our favorites to display at home. Now as a crafter, I could not think of a better legacy when I pass, where my descendants would treasure and respect the things I made so much that they would prefer those over other material possessions. 

I wanted to honor Grandma Elaine Griglione with an egg diorama of my own. It's nothing like hers, but it uses my stamp supplies.


I cut right into the egg, yolk and all. 


 Then colored the shell, added trim around the opening, backed it with a shimmery wrapping paper, added some curly strips of paper, and fussy cut my only bunny image, from Papertrey's Tiny Treats Valentine's set.


 The sentiment that goes with that image is stamped on the top.

 
 I also made the stand from stringing seed beads on some fine gauge wire (I think 28) and winding it to make 3 rows. It's hot glued to the bottom.

For the rest of my projects, I made Easter eggs using my stamp supplies. Since I was going to be spending some time on these and wanted to keep them for future years, they needed to be blown out. Now nothing gives me a headache more than blowing out Easter eggs. So, since it's Spring Break and the kids are home, I enlisted my son and his friend Connor to do the dirty work. They loved it!!


Here's Logan punching a hole in the top with a needle. Repeat on the bottom side, and stick the needle inside several times to break up the yolk so it's easier to blow out.


 Then blow! The ooey-gooey stuff coming out was quite a hit. They wanted to keep going after we ran out of eggs. And, surprisingly, did a wonderful job!

For the coloring, I used Hero Arts Neon Inks because they have such great coverage.


These eggs all use masks. From left to right:
  1. Sponge ink over a circle graph mask;
  2. Sponge ink through a hole punched in printer paper;
  3. Sponge ink around rubber bands on the egg.

These eggs all use stamps. From left to right:
  1.  Stamp a tiny dot background stamp in pink, blue, purple;
  2. Stamp a bunny on a brown egg, color with chalk and marker, stamp sentiment;
  3. Stamp the Lawn Fawn border builder for a feathery look;
  4. Stamp a grid pattern.
 

These eggs are all ombre using the Hero Arts Neon inks (linking to Moxie Fab's ombre challenge). I should also mention that burlap strands make great nests/holders for the eggs. You just wrap the strings in a circle and they stay like that!
 

Thanks so much for looking!
-Kelly

PS. For those reading this post Thursday night, I'm at the Green Day concert now with my friends!! It's the kick-off show for their 2013 US tour in Chicago! Yay for Billie Joe getting rehab and rescheduling the tour dates : ) SO EXCITED, I can hardly stand it. LOVE THEM!! Who else can release 3 full-length albums at the same time?!


Then, we're taking advantage of Mom staying overnight to watch the kids and will go to the gambling boat afterwards. Will be a long, fun night : )

37 comments:

  1. Happy Easter--your eggs are just wonderful, and a great collectors item and legacy. It looks like the boys had as much fun as you did.

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  2. So cool! Love your creativity! I am thoroughly inspired by your stamping, inking and masking on eggs! Who knew?

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  3. This is such a fun post! Love the Easter eggs - great ideas wonderfully executed! And I love that you got the boys to do the egg blowing! Hope the concert is wonderful and that you are having a GREAT time! Enjoy and Happy Easter!!

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  4. Blown. Away. First, such a touching tribute to your grandmother, secondly what a way to do it! *Beautiful* designs, involving your kids in it too, the cuteness factor... just all out awesome!!

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  5. Love your little diorama! I wish I had your helpers to blow out mine:)lol

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  6. These look gorgeous! Love them! What did you do with all the eggs innards? And hope you had a great time at the concert!

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    1. Scrambled eggs, of course! One batch we had to throw away because there were too many shells from failed attempts. The next batch sat out too long. But batches #3 and #4 were very tasty! We have some left over for french toast tomorrow : )

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  7. Holy moly, woman! There are no limits to your creativity are there? I love the diorama (never would have thought of that) and all the amazing ways you decorated those eggs! I love the burlap - it looks like nests (although the beads are awesome too). We may have just found what we'll do today...(although I think I only have brown eggs in the house!)

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  8. Yowza! Your eggs are wonderful!

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  9. These are amazing! Absolutely fantastic!!!

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  10. OHMYGOODNESS these a fabulous, and the kids look like they had a ball, you did your Grandma proud, the cut out egg is gorgeous, and the colors are scrumptious. Hope you had a freaken great time at the concert, and do have a wonderful holiday weekend..

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  11. The eggs are beautiful what a fun project! The boys looks like they are enjoying themselves too! Love your display and pictures ! I agree having something that your husbands grandmother made is a true treasure. Enjoy the concert!

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  12. Looks like the kiddos were having a GOOD time! Your eggs turned out beautifully! Enjoy you night out ;)

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  13. Are you kidding? My jaw dropped when I saw the picture on the CFC blog. I knew you had made the dioramma egg (crazy details there), but I hadn't realized you had decorated all the eggs in the background, too. We use plastic eggs at my house....I want to come and live at your house!

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  14. Your boys are sooo cute, and that eggs, I don't know were to begin...
    WOW!

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  15. When you read this, you'll be so exhaustipated, but happy! I'm sure you had a blast, Kelly!!

    Now these eggs? So beautiful. Truly a treasure and so heartwarming that you are carrying on Grandma G's legacy. She would be beaming from ear-to-ear, as are the rest of us as we scroll through your Happy Eggy Wonderland!

    (And good job boys! Extra jelly beans for them, please!) Have a wonderful Easter! Mwah! Darnell

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  16. what fun eggs! love the diorama one - my father was an artist and he made this kind of egg using recycled Christmas cards that had tiny images on them - he would cut out the images and place them inside the egg on a dollop of Plaster of Paris - for a couple of years this was the project my sister and I would do in December! Your pretty egg brings back those memories! I have to try cutting the opening with scissors - my father would trace the circle and then use an exacto knife and go around and around and around scoring it until it broke through!

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  17. Wow, these are some incredibly beautiful egg shell art work! I didn't think they were real eggs at first. The inking and stamping is done so well! I probably would have broken more than not. The diorama one is just gorgeous; everything from the vibrant colors, beautiful trim and the cute bunny sitting on those curly grass-how creative!! Hearing your story makes me want to see what your husband's Grandma had made :)
    I had made some egg shell art back in elementary school, but I never tried needle or scissors, I would just crack a small hole and get the contents out. Will do your way next time I give this a try.

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  18. Wowza!! Totally amazing and such a neat family history story too!

    I'm dying to know what you did with all those raw eggs!

    Hope you had a great time last night! I'm thinking we need to do an inspiration challenge with that Green Day photo!

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  19. *eek*.. oh my goodness.. this is AMAZING!!!!!
    Sylvia xx

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  20. I think Grandma Griglione would be very proud of your diorama! It's adorable! And your ombre eggs are eggs-cellent! A very Happy Easter to you and your family! Hope you enjoyed Green Day, too!

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  21. I've just had a handslap to the forehead moment - we celebrate Greek Easter, so I only need to die my eggs red and (unless there is a really good Greek market around) it is almost impossible to find the red dye - it never occurred to me to use my inks! Our eggs have to be hard boiled (for the egg cracking competition LOL) - I'll have to explore whether the ink will seep through the shell . . .

    These are gorgeous Kelly - love the color & patterns you achieved and the little beaded stand for your diorama is adorable!

    Sounds like your Easter weekend is off to a terrific start!

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  22. So incredibly beautiful. I love the patterns that you achieved on the eggs and the graduated colours-stunning! Looks like the boys had a lot of fun with the eggs and I am sure that there will have been many memories made!

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  23. Clunk ... that was the jaw hitting the floor, Kelly, complete creative genius! LOVE all your gorgeous coloured eggs and what a sweet tribute to Grandma G ... a delight! Hope you enjoyed the wild night out! Anita :)

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  24. Your eggs are truly eggs-iting! Love them all! I tried my stamps on eggs last year, but my results were not as good :( Love the pics of the kids - I can see how much fun they had. I guess you had omelettes for dinner....Happy Easter to you!

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  25. BEAUTIFUL eggs Kelly~and beautiful legacy!

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  26. Wow Kelly! fantastic job again. Love your diorama, but I'm still oohing and awwwing for the others. TFS and have fun!

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  27. I love your stamped eggers - the "feathery" one done with the border stamp is my fave.

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  28. These eggs are fabulous. The colors you chose are just what eggs should be dressed in for Easter.

    Your stamped images really caught my eye though, because I tried to do that, and my stamps just slid all over the shell. On or off an acrylic block, I could not control their movement. Sooooo...How'd you do it? I'm 'dying' to know the secret.

    If you ever get caught having to do the egg-blow-out yourself, a 'cheep' ear syringe (from the drug store) is a girl's ears best friend. I even fill it with water to squirt in the end holes, to wash all the innards out. Martha Stewart (the maven of all I'm not) even sold a kit for this, if spending twice as much appeals to you.

    Thanks for sharing and have a memorable Easter. I'll try to send good weather your way.

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  29. Wow, these are all gorgeous! The open egg with the bunny on it is amazing, though! Seriously!

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  30. Well I'm sure you had a fabulous time Kelly! and I 've enjoyed this post tremendously.
    I'm with you on blowing the eggs, it makes me sick just thinking about it!
    Unfortunately i did not get around decorating any eggs this year so I enjoy your beauties even more!

    Happy Easter my Friend!

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  31. What a super post - one I think your Grandma would love. Lovely Easter Eggs and beautiful colours. Great egg work, & well done to your little helpers - hope you all like scrambled eggs! Jx

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  32. LOVE your egg-cellent post! Those dyed eggs are gorgeous! Your boy Logan and his friend are just too cute! I am envious that you got to see Green Day! I love that band! For an old lady like me to like a band? This band's got to have a TON of talent :)

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  33. Hey Kelly! Thanks for linking this up to the Ombre Challenge in the Moxie Fab World! I'm so glad you joined in on all the fun! :)

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  34. Яйця вийшли НАДЗВИЧАЙНІ!!!! Найбільш мені сподобалася ідея з Великодневим кроликом в середині яйця!!! Це даже класно! Спасибі за ідею!!!:)

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  35. Okay, I'm totally late on this comment, lol! But I love those eggs! Such fun to create things you can bring out every year:)

    I'm like you with the blowing out of the eggs! That and blowing up balloons. Not in my skill set;)

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I absolutely love reading comments. Thanks so much for stopping by and taking the time to leave one! - Kelly