Not wanting to go door-to-door this year for Halloween? No problem. Easily transform plastic Easter eggs into Halloween creatures full of treats. Use stickers, washi tape, google eyes, permanent markers, or paint to cast a spell on the eggs for Halloween. Once decorated, fill the eggs and hide them about the house. Have a flashlight search in the dark for an added bit of fun. You’re no longer the evil witch for having them stay home, but the queen of Halloween!
A few months ago I asked my husband if he thought Halloween would look different this year. He basically thought I was insane for worrying about it at the beginning of summer. To be fair, stores have their decorations out way too early and that got me thinking ahead. Fortunately for my boys, they are too old to trick-or-treat so they stay home and help themselves to our candy bowl. But I couldn’t help wonder about the littles in the neighborhood.
If I had little ones these days, what would I do with them to make Halloween special and fun if the traditional trick-or-treating was off the table? My boys loved having Easter egg hunts all year round and heaven knows the collection of plastic eggs seemed to multiply like rabbits. Why not whittle down the plethora of plastic Easter eggs by redecorating them for Halloween? Why not, indeed.
Decorating the eggs into Halloween creatures is fun the entire family can have in the weeks leading up to Halloween. Keep it simple with using stickers or washi tape, try out your pen skills with a permanent marker, or break out the craft paints and work a masterpiece. Anything goes as long as you and your family are having fun and making memories.
Supply List
- Plastic eggs of varying colors and sizes
- Halloween themed stickers or washi tape
- scissors
- Google eyes of varying sizes
- Tacky glue
- Permanent markers
- Acrylic craft paint in various colors
- Artist’s brushes
- Rust-oleum Spray Lacquer
- Scrap of Cardboard
- Paper towel
- Cup of water to rinse brushes
Instructions
Option 1:
Keep it virtually mess free with stickers or washi tape. This was my least favorite decorative method because the tape would easily wrinkle on the round egg surface. With that said, I could totally see embracing this method of decoration with children who lack fine motor skills or have shorter attention spans. (Or if you are a parent that just doesn’t need another big mess to clean up.)
Option 2:
Grab the Tacky Glue and add on google eyes of varying sizes. Monsters have all sorts of wild features, so add one eye or five, it’s up to you. Use a permanent marker to add a mouth. Or try your skills with craft paint to add some color to the mouth, teeth, or features. Once the paint dries, you can gently trace it with the marker to get better detail or definition.
Option 3:
Pull out the permanent markers and draw straight onto the plastic egg. Use any colors you like. Look at the color of the egg to find inspiration on your design.
If you completely mess up, just use some rubbing alcohol and a cotton swab to clean off the permanent marker. Have fun, get creative! It would look pretty cool to have a repeating pattern all over the egg, too.
Option 4:
Feeling artsy? Drag out your craft paints and brushes. A small, thin brush works best for details and a wider brush works well to cover a larger area. Remember to mix craft paints to customize colors and to try odd color combinations on your monsters because they never follow rules. Use a permanent marker to add fine line details or to outline features. There is no right or wrong way to get creative. Feel free to use these designs for inspiration!
Are you trying to paint dots or eyes? Make it easier by using the handle end of your paint brush or the eraser end of a pencil to make uniform dots with paint. See the upper right corner of the next photo for an example of this method.
Finishing Touch
When you are finished decorating your Halloween themed eggs, use spray lacquer from Rust-oleum to set the permanent marker or paint to help prevent scratches.
To do this, lay out a piece of cardboard, old towel, or a tarp in a well ventilated area (like outside). Separate the egg halves and place them on the cardboard. Vigorously shake the can of lacquer for at least one minute after you hear the rattle. Lightly spray the eggs. If you are too close to the plastic eggs, the bursts from the can will push the eggs around on the board. Spray in even strokes from about 10-12 inches away. Also, if you spray too much lacquer in one place it could make your permanent marker run. Found that out the hard way. My guess is the solvents in the aerosol can that help give the lacquer a smooth finish messes with permanence of the marker.
Let lacquer dry for at least 30 minutes before moving them. It takes 24 hours for the lacquer to completely set. This step is optional. If it doesn’t matter to you that the egg designs get scratched, then skip this step. I just happened to have this lacquer on hand from when I tried it out on a piece of furniture (wasn’t smooth enough finish for me so the can went in with my spray paint collection).
The Joy of the Hunt
Now the former Easter eggs have been decorated in your Halloween theme of choice and covered with lacquer for protection. The eggs can be filled with candies, spider rings, vampire teeth, glow bracelets, any thing that will fit inside. On Halloween, fill the eggs and hide them all around the house. I think it would be extra fun to play Halloween music and turn the lights off during the hunt. Use flashlights to hunt for the eggs in the dark. It is just another level of spooky for the evening.
Add a lit glow bracelet to each egg and they will glow in the dark. Lots of fun to be had by all.
I will suggest that there is enough planning that each child has an equal number of eggs to hunt. Just speaking from experience from one who used to have to count out the number and color of everyone’s M&M’s to eliminate any reasons for a meltdown. Man, my husband can be such a baby about his candy. Just kidding! That was when the boys were little. Fortunately they have gotten passed that stage in life.
Halloween is so fun! Even when celebrated differently than what is tradition. Who says you can’t make up your own traditions? Go trick-or-treating to different bedrooms in the house, have a virtual costume party, make some fun Halloween themed foods for dinner or to go with a Halloween movie, or organize a Halloween witch hunt in the neighborhood with pictures of witches displayed in everyone’s windows. No matter how you celebrate, the crafts, games and memories help to make a house a home.💙
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