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Scratch and Glitter Eggs

Mar 16, 201325,892 views
Pre Schooler
easter egg decorating idea for kids Save
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Easter Egg Ideas : Scratch and glitter eggs Save
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scratch eggs easter decoration Save

by TurkeyMom in Pre Schooler

Ages3–8 yrs
Prep40 min
Activity45 min
Leveleasy
MessHigh
Works for1:1 · Small group · Class

Color eggs all over with bright crayons, paint them black, sprinkle on glitter, then scratch designs with a toothpick to reveal the colors underneath. An open-ended scratch-art twist on Easter egg decorating.

⚠️ Safety first

  • Raw eggs can carry salmonella. Wash hands after handling eggs, and have an adult do any blowing out of the contents.
  • Decorated eggs are not food. Hard-boiled eggs coated in paint and glitter should not be eaten, and they don't keep for long.
  • Toothpicks are sharp. Supervise scratching closely and keep toothpicks away from faces.
  • Keep glitter away from eyes and mouths.
  • Eggs are fragile. Work over a tray or covered table in case one cracks.

Before the kids arrive

  • Take the eggs out of the refrigerator so they reach room temperature, or hard-boil them and let them cool to room temperature.
  • Mix black paint with a few drops of dish soap.
  • Cover the table, since black paint and glitter get everywhere.

Steps

  1. Color the eggshell with bright crayons. Use lots of colors and press lightly.

  2. Go over the egg and cover up every bit of white with color.

  3. Paint the whole egg with the black paint and soap mixture.

  4. Sprinkle glitter all over the wet black paint.

  5. Set the egg on a bottle cap and let it dry for about 10 minutes.

  6. Scratch lines and designs into the black with a toothpick to reveal the colors underneath.

  7. Show off your finished eggs in a basket.

Tips

  • Start with eggs at room temperature. Eggs straight out of the refrigerator will not take crayons well.from the author
  • Remind kids to press lightly. We are coloring on eggs!from the author
  • Make sure all the white is covered with color for fun-looking scratch art eggs. You might have to go over the eggs yourself once the child is done.from the author
  • It's a 'do your own thing' kind of open-ended art project, our favorite kind. I tried not to give any pattern suggestions.from the author
  • Drying time thankfully took only around 10 minutes.from the author
  • We went super overboard with the glitter on one. Don't they look like space eggs? Very futuristic!from the author
  • You can decorate the eggs first and then blow the contents out using a turkey baster. Red Ted Art has a video showing how to blow eggs.from the author
  • Hard-boiled eggs work, but you can't keep them for long. I just threw a couple of mine out.from the author

Make it your own

  • Pile on extra glitter for sparkly 'space eggs'.
  • Skip the scratching and leave some eggs plain black with glitter.
  • Decorate raw eggs, then have an adult blow out the contents so the eggs keep.

Questions readers asked

What do you use to scratch the eggs?

Toothpicks.

Can the eggs be hard-boiled?

Yes. Hard-boil them first and let them reach room temperature before using the crayons. They won't keep for a long time.

What's the ratio of paint to dish soap?

The post only says a few drops of dish soap mixed into the black paint. No exact ratio is given.

The story behind it

By TurkeyMom · March 2013
easter egg decorations with crayons
We started off with eggs at room temperature, since eggs straight out of the refrigerator will not take crayons well. My preschooler colored the eggshell with bright crayons, pressing lightly.
1 / 9

Scratch and Glitter Eggs: the original post

Have you started decorating your eggs already? Decorating appeals to many girls and mine are no exception. Nature girl she is, after collecting bugs and creating a terrarium, she had to decorate it with curtains! Yes, a soda bottle terrarium with pink sheers. Of course Easter egg decorations will positively excite her. Today’s post is about decorating Easter eggs using the homemade scratch art technique. We started off with eggs at room temperature since eggs straight out of the refrigerator did will not take crayons well. My preschooler started coloring the eggshell with some bright colored crayons. I reminded her to use multiple colors and to press lightly ( not too much- we are coloring on eggs) Once the child is done coloring the eggs, you might have to go over and cover up all the white with some color. Make sure all the white is covered up with colors to have a fun looking scratch art eggs.

easter egg decorations with crayons

Our finished crayon eggs.

colored crayons easter eggs

Then she painted over with black acrylic paint mixed with a few drops of dish soap. Tempera paint will work as well.

easter crayons eggs The black eggs by themselves look cool right? So much black screamed glitter and that’s exactly what we did. We drenched the black eggs with some glitter and let them dry.

Easter ideas for kids with scratch eggs Drying time thankfully took around 10 minutes and we came back to scratch the eggs. Since this was the first time we are attempting homemade scratch art and the fact that we are working eggs, I had to put the camera down. My preschooler was interested in making lines and just about scratching. Also this is supposed to be ” do your own thing” kind of open ended art project ( our favorite kind) I tried not to give any pattern suggestions.

scratch eggs for easter

easter eggs ideas art

scratch easter ideas

She was very excited when her scratches revealed a bright array of colors.

easter eggs decorations ideas for kds

We went super over board with the glitter here. Don’t they look like space eggs? Very futuristic!

scratch eggs easter decoration

The babies in the basket easter egg decorating idea for kids Quick note : You can decorate the eggs first and then “blow” the contents out using a turkey baster. Visit Red Ted Art’s wonderful Google Hangout video where she shows you ” how to blow your eggs”

  • Room temperature eggs
  • Black paint (tempera/acrylic)
  • Dish Soap
  • Crayons
  • Tooth Picks

For more Easter ideas, visit our Easter Category Page.

Thanks for reading

What readers say

💬 13 comments ✍️ 4 answered by the author

Answered by the author

“Can the eggs be hard-boiled?” · Penne

Author Sure. Hard-boil the eggs first and use the crayons once they reach room temperature. You can't keep them for a long time, though. The author threw a couple of hers out.

✨ Readers' twist

Hard-boiled eggs work too

The author confirms you can hard-boil the eggs first, then color them once they reach room temperature. They won't keep long, though.

“You can hard-boil the eggs first and once they reach room temperature use the crayons.”
TurkeyMom, Mar 2013

🛠️ Troubleshooting

Scratch with toothpicks

A reader wondered what to scratch the eggs with, then spotted the answer in the supply list: toothpicks.

“Sorry, just looked above and saw "toothpicks"...”
Jill Swain, Mar 2013

🛠️ Troubleshooting

Paint-to-soap ratio not given

A reader asked how much paint goes with the few drops of dish soap. The post doesn't give a ratio and no answer was posted.

“What's the ratio of paint to dish soap?”
Jasmine, Apr 2014

🎉 Worked for us

Shared as a family tradition

A reader shared the idea with her grown children to make with their own kids, as a family tradition.

“to do with their children...a family tradition!”
Carla, Mar 2013

Tried it?

Reviewed before it appears. No links, and please no children's names.

Read all 13 comments

  1. Jasmine · Apr 2014

    Just found this through Pinterest, what a fun idea! What's the ratio of paint to dish soap? You did mention a few drops of soap, how much paint? Thanks!

  2. Cindy deRosier · Apr 2014

    I'm the Editorial Assistant for Fun Family Crafts and I wanted to let you know that we have featured your egg idea! You can see it here: If you have other kid-friendly craft ideas, we'd love it if you would submit them. If you would like to display a featured button on your site, you can grab one from the right side bar of your post above. Thanks for a creative project idea!

  3. bekah · Apr 2014

    Can you dye the eggs first instead of doing the crayons?

  4. Meritxell · Mar 2014

    They look so great !! For sure that we will try them !!! Thanks for sharing them !!

  5. Carla · Mar 2013

    I was very interested when I saw post on a friends page. I've read how, & decided to share on mine & my children's to do with their children...a family tradition! Thank you for sharing. Be blessed.

  6. Penne · Mar 2013

    Can the eggs be hard-boiled?

  7. TurkeyMomAuthor · Mar 2013 · replying to Penne

    Sure. You can hard-boil the eggs first and once they reach room temperature use the crayons. Ofcourse you can't keep the eggs for a long time. I just threw a couple of mine out.

  8. TurkeyMomAuthor · Mar 2013 · replying to Carla

    Thank you. Hope you all have fun with this activity.

  9. TurkeyMomAuthor · Mar 2013 · replying to Jenna

    Thanks Jenna

  10. TurkeyMomAuthor · Mar 2013 · replying to Jill Swain

    Hope you have fun with the scratch art on eggs. It was a cool activity.

  11. Jenna · Mar 2013

    What an original idea- these are brilliant!

  12. Jill Swain · Mar 2013

    What did you use to scratch the eggs?

  13. Jill Swain · Mar 2013 · replying to Jill Swain

    Sorry, just looked above and saw "toothpicks"... :D

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