easter Archives -

Cute Easter Bunny Puppet Craft

The kids had such a great time making this craft at the Jersey City Spring Festival with me last week, I wanted to share this ‘how to’ so you can make these puppets at home with your children in preparation for Easter on April 16. If you do make them at home, this week, tag @jcfamilies on social media so we can take a look at your great creations!

Materials you will need:

– Popsicle sticks

– Card stock paper in light colors (I purchase mine from Michael’s craft stores in the city)

– Scissors

– Markers

– Clear Tape

– Stickers

Step 1 Cut out bunny shapes (and eggs if you’d like) out of card stock paper. Older kids will enjoy doing this part themselves. Younger children will need an adult’s help or you can even purchase pre-cut shapes at your local craft store or online.

Step 2 Attach a Popsicle stick to the back of each bunny shape with a piece of clear tape.

Step 3 Decorate the bunnies using markers. This is the best part for children – as they can really showcase their creativity! Have them add clothing to the bunny, funny facial expressions or even glasses!

Step 4 Add some festive stickers as a finishing touch. This part is especially fun for toddlers.

As you can see from these examples, children add their own wonderful spin on this craft. Aside from being used for imaginary play, these puppets can be added to plants for decoration, or as a centerpiece for Easter breakfast.

4 Easy Easter Decorating Ideas

Hi Moms! I had fun putting together ideas for St. Patrick’s Day and wanted to share some ideas for Easter that I’m using in my home right now. Check them out and please do let me know if you try any of them!

1 Easter Egg Centerpiece

To make this bright and fun centerpiece, I cleaned an old glass fish bowl in the dishwasher and filled it with fun plastic eggs. You can buy a glass bowl such as this from the dollar store for under $2 and plastic eggs for under $3. A large glass vase works wonderful as well. So, for under $5, you have a beautiful centerpiece for your dining table!

2 Egg Cups

I purchased these adorable egg cups from Smith and Chang General Goods in Jersey City for only $2.50 a piece. They look great all March and can be used Easter morning to present colored eggs. The egg candle here is an antique from my mother’s collection… so cute!

3 Potted Grass

This cute little chick from Buzzy, Inc. comes with grass seeds and soil and is under $2 at Target. It’s a great way to teach kids about planting and responsibility, as they will have to water it all Easter season. Target also has a wide array of affordable and sweet Easter decor.

4 Egg Tree

This tiny egg tree is great decor for Spring. All you need to do is take a delicate but sturdy branch from outside and place it in a vase with pebbles at the bottom. Decorate the tree with miniature ornaments which can be found at a party store or make your own!

Ashley Lucas is a local illustrator and crafts designer based in Jersey City, NJ. She is the author and illustrator of various children’s books and has contributed to such popular sites as eHow, ModernMom and her own crafts library Cupcakes + Owls on Blogger. Her specialties in include holiday crafting and making art ‘cute’ for young children! Ashley teaches weekly crafting classes with JCFamilies.

Last Minute Easter Inspiration

Easter is this Sunday, March 31st and I’ve whipped up some easy last minute ideas for your home! I hope you’ve enjoyed my other decorating and craft ideas this month… with the weather still so cold this holiday is a great way to welcome Spring and think about warmer weather!

1 Make an Egg Wreath

One of my favorite projects for every holiday, is using a regular paper plate from the dollar store and cutting out the middle to make a wreath shape. This part is a little tricky, so I always prepare it ahead of time before the kids dig in! To make this adorable decoration, simply cut egg shapes out of any sort of paper you have at home, and let you children decorate them with markers and stickers. Glue eggs onto the wreath and let dry for an hour or so. Hang it up!

2 Bunnies in the Window

I hope my neighbors are enjoying all the cute bunnies hanging out in the corners of my windows this March 😉 One of the easiest projects I’ve done this year; cut about 12 bunnies out of white paper or buy pre-cut rabbit shapes from the dollar store. Have the kids draw different faces on each one and apply to your windows with Plasti–tac. They will stay on your windows happily for weeks and come off very easily. A much better way to apply to windows than tape!

3 Peel and Stick Easter Stickers

I bought a pack of these stickers at the craft store for literally less than $2 and have been using them non-stop for cards, gift tags, art projects, and I even used some for the Egg Wreath above. They are great for young children and can be added to the outside of plastic eggs during egg hunts as well!

4 Last Minute Easter Basket

This basket is a little treat I have planned for my mother this Easter who is visiting for the holiday. She is an artist like me and always loves receiving new art supplies so I found some awesome new colored pencils from Crayola. Instead of just candy this year, fill your child’s basket with art supplies, books and handmade goodies. Insider Tip: Shop Rite on Marin Blvd. has an awesome selection of almost everything you can imagine from great art supplies to tiny Easter books for the kids 😉

Ashley Lucas is a local illustrator and crafts designer based in Jersey City, NJ. She is the author and illustrator of various children’s books and has contributed to such popular sites as eHow and ModernMom. Her specialties in include holiday crafting and making art ‘cute’ for young children! Ashley currently teaches weekly crafting classes with JCFamilies.