Easter - 4/8 - The Idea Room

Chocolate Covered Marshmallow Peeps

I actually have a St. Patrick’s Day craft coming. I wanted to share it with you today and just had to take some pictures of it but the weather was not cooperating. Too dark and dreary for a good photo. So I will share it with you later this week. But in the meantime I would like to share with you a fun edible easter craft…Chocolate Covered Marshmallow Peeps!

Now…I am NOT a fan of Marshmallow Peeps. But everyone else in my immediate family is. So I thought it would be fun to spruce them up and make them into something that is extra fun to gift and eat.

Simply take some Marshmallow Peeps and stick a sucker stick into the bottom of it. Dip them into melted white chocolate or Vanilla Candi-Quik. Lay them down on wax or parchment paper. Add some mini chocolate chips for eyes and a jelly bean for the bunny’s nose. Let dry.

Super simple and easy! These would be a fun gift for friends, neighbors, class mates, and family members for Easter.

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March 8, 2011 · Filed under: Christmas Gifts, Easter, Food Crafts, Teacher Gifts, Treats Tagged with

DIY Stuffed Animal Easter Baskets

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Easter is quickly approaching and will be here before we know it. At our house we set out our Easter Baskets with a plate of carrots for the Easter Bunny to snack on during his visit. He then hides the baskets full of small goodies for each child to find the following morning.

Each child has their own basket. This year I thought it would be fun to repurpose some old stuffed animals and make them into Easter Baskets. We had this duck laying around just adding to our playroom clutter. I gave him a little makeover. You can too by following these simple directions.

You will need:

Medium to Large stuffed animal with a large belly
1/4 yard fabric (more or less depending on the size of the animal)
1/4 yard Fusible Interfacing (I used heavier weight)
needle and thread
bias tape (optional–I used a strip of fabric)

Take some scissors and cut a line up the middle of the animal’s belly. Remove the stuffing from the middle, but leave the stuffing in the head, arms and legs. Then cut a nice, round opening for the basket.

Then take your pattern, which can be downloaded here, and cut out 6-8 pieces (depending on the size of your animal) along with 1 circle from your fabric. You will also need to cut the same amount of pieces of the fusible interfacing using the same pattern pieces.

Iron the fusible interfacing onto the wrong side of each piece of cut fabric. Then sew all the pieces together on your sewing machine using a 5/8 inch seam allowance with the right sides of the fabric together.

**Be sure to sew the pieces so that the smaller ends of the sides are facing the same direction.

When all the sides are sewn together (but before you sew it into a circle), place the material inside the hole in the belly and see if you need to add any more side pieces. I needed 8 sides to make a basket that fit into the hole. If you need less than 8, you may need to re-size the bottom circle pattern to fit correctly.

Once you have the correct size, sew the two ends together to form a circle. Now take you circle and pin it to the bottom of the sides to make the bottom of your basket. Sew (5/8 inch) seam around the bottom. Turn right side out and place into the hole. If it is too tall, you can cut it down to size but make sure to sew along the top again to reinforce your seams. If it is not deep enough, add some of the stuffing you removed into the bottom of the hole until it fits well.

Take a needle and thread and sew around the top of the basket attaching it to the stuffed animal. You can use your machine if you can fit it in there. My stuffed animal was too bulky for that.

Now, take some bias tape or a strip of material to sew around the top edge of the basket.
**I took a strip of the same fabric measuring 26 inches by 1.75 inches. Iron the strip and then iron the right and left edges so that they are folded inward on each side 1/4 inch. Then fold together lengthwise so that the edges are inside and the right side of the material is on the outside with no frayed ends showing. Iron flat.

Take your strip (or bias tape) and sew it onto the top edge of the basket placing the fold directly on the top. I did this by hand as well.

Next, is the handle. You can make the handle as long as you would like. I cut a strip of material measuring 4 inches by 16.5 inches. I also cut a strip of fusible interfacing that measured the same 16.5 inches in length but only 1 inch wide. Iron this strip the same way you would for making the “bias tape” above. Wrap your fabric around the interfacing so that the seams overlap on the bottom side of the handle. Iron together. Sew a seam down the entire length of the handle to secure the fabric.

All that is left now is to attach the handle to the inside of the basket with a needle and thread!

The whole process took me just over an hour during nap time one day! I love how it turned out and my girls did too! Unfortunately I only have one…Guess I need to head on over to the thrift store and find me two more suitable stuffed animals!

**Download pattern here.

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February 23, 2011 · Filed under: Crafts, Easter, Re-Purposed Items, Sewing, Tutorials Tagged with

Last Minute Easter Treats & Ideas

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**Next week my kids are out of school for Spring Break. I will be off playing with them and so therefore I plan on taking a short blogging break. I will not be answering emails or sending out items purchased from the Idea Room Store. (Everyone who has ordered as of right now…your orders have been sent). I do have a couple of posts scheduled next week, including a guest post and another giveaway so be sure to check back in…you won’t want to miss them. I will also sneak online to announce the MikaRose and Kid Giddy giveaway winners! But before I sign off, here are some last minute Easter ideas.

Rice Chex Krispy Bunny Pops

Ingredients:
1 stick butter
1 package (10 oz.) miniature marshmallows*
6 cups Rice Chex

Directions:
1. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium low heat.
2. Add the marshmallows and stir frequently until they have melted.
3. Add the Rice Chex and stir until all of the Chex are throughly coated.
4. Spread the Rice Chex mixture into a greased 9 x 13 casserole dish.

Before they have cooled completely, take a cookie cutter and cut out some Easter Bunny shapes (the cookie cutter is made by Wilton’s). Stick a sucker stick up into the bottom of the bunny’s head and let them cool completely.

Then take some almond bark or white meltable candy coating (or white chocolate chips) and melt it in the microwave. Spread the chocolate onto the bunny head. Then add two chocolate chips for the eyes and a pink Peanut M&M for the nose. To make the ears I just sprinkled a pink decorating sugar in the shape of the inner ear.

Make some cupcakes and decorate them to look like a robin’s nest with some bright blue robin eggs. Simply frost the cupcake with white frosting and then dip it into some toasted coconut. Top with 3 blue Peanut M&M’s.

Or…make some bunny cupcakes. Use some melted white chocolate and spread it out onto wax paper into the shape of a rabbit ear. Before it hardens, slide some toothpicks into the bottom of the ears. Then add some pink frosting or some more pink sugar to make the inner ear.

Then simply let the ears dry. When they have dried, carefully remove them from the wax paper and stick the toothpick end into the top of the white frosted cupcake that has already been dipped into some shredded coconut. Add some eyes and a nose and you are all set.

Make some Jumbo Marshmallow bunnies on a stick. Take a large marshmallow and stick a sucker stick in it. Take another marshmallow and cut it into thirds with some kitchen scissors. These will be your ears (eat the other one :). Add some pink sugar to the sticky inside of the marshmallow and pinch both ends to make an ear shape. Melt the bottom of one marshmallow with a match (carefully). Quickly attach it to the top of the marshmallow on the stick. Add some eyes and you are set. So simple, but so cute!

Oh…and two last little idea. Have you ever eaten Resurrection Rolls for your Easter Breakfast? These are so simple but so yummy (I do not have a picture). Simply take some roll dough (homemade or frozen dough that has been thawed). On Saturday night, let the children wrap a piece of bread dough around a large marshmallow. Put them on a cookie sheet in the oven and tape it shut (signifying sealing the empty tomb) and leave them there overnight. The next morning take them out and preheat the oven. Bake the rolls, and when they are done let the children open them. The marshmallow will be gone! The little “tombs” will be empty and hollow. Enjoy the rolls with breakfast; they will have a sweet taste to them.

The rolls are similar to some Ressurection Easter Story cookies that I posted about last year. We do this every year and the kids LOVE it! I love it because it is a great reminder as to the real reason we celebrate Easter. You can find the recipe and story here.

I hope you all have a great Easter!