Welcome back, welcome back! After a brief break for work and travel and end-of-terming I’m back, and spring is definitely in the air. Our tulip bulbs have pushed through frozen soil, buds are budding and birds are on the wing; it all looks very promising. To celebrate and add a festive air to Easter, I made these fun table crackers, using vibrant printed giftwrap in three different designs. There’s a very simple way to make these and a more complicated, sophisticated way; in both cases you can still stuff them with chocolate eggs, tiny toys and a cracker snap (of course!) and have the same amount of fun. Read on…
First, choose some decorative paper for the outside of the cracker. You could even paint your own if you have the time and inclination; I used wrap from here and here (whenever I see gorgeous sheet wrap I tend to buy it, then think of the project later…)
You’ll also need cracker snaps if you’re using them, and toilet rolls to help the crackers to hold their shape. Plus of course some lovely things to stuff them with; I chose stickers, mini eggs and a couple of irresistible furry friends (who fitted in – just – once I smoothed down their ears 
);
For the simple cracker project:
- Roll a toilet roll up in your gift wrap to see how much you need, and then cut a piece 1 inch wider and four inches longer than the tube.
- Place the toilet roll on the reverse of the flat paper so that you have exactly 2 inches of paper either end, and then secure the paper around the tube using double-sided sticky tape
- Insert a cracker snap and gifts into the wrapped tube
- Feel for where the toilet roll ends are and tie a piece of baker’s twine or ribbon at this point, tightening steadily to draw the paper in and form your cracker ends. Use a finger to recreate the ‘bell’ shape of the cylinder once you’ve done this, plumping them out again. This works really well with thin papers like tissue or crepe paper.
For the more complex crackers (you’ll need a craft knife and a printer to download the template):
- Download and print a cracker template like this one or this one, and use it to draw the template for each cracker, then cut out the pieces as shown. Whilst it looks fiddly, it actually doesn’t take long, and gives you beautiful concertina ends that fall naturally into the cracker shape you want; it’s definitely worth the effort if your family/friends have been particularly loving towards you lately. If not, go for the simple design above.
- Wrap the cracker paper around your toilet roll (you might need to trim the roll depending on your template), and seal with double-sided tape as above, before filling the cracker and tying each end with ribbon.
For even more Easter table magic and style, use the leftover pieces of gift wrap to make napkin rings; simply cut toilet rolls in half and then tape or glue the wrap around them to make complementary accessories for your crackers. Here are mine;
p.s. for other seasonal inspiration;
- Last year’s Easter hare and carrot cake
- One of my favourite ever projects; The Odd Egg
- Cress egg-heads and simple tomato tarts
- Fun customised chocolate egg decorating with kids
- A subtle, nature-inspired spring tablescape
…and many more; just search ‘Easter’ in the box at the top of this page and you’ll find 5yrs of projects big and small. But start with the crackers; they’re great fun.
Have a wonderful weekend!
