The Easter Tree

I think Easter Egg trees are really cute, full of sparkly pastel colored eggs hanging on a whimsical tree. This year I wanted to make one of my own, but I wanted it to portray the real reason we Celebrate. Not bunnies and baskets full of chocolate overload, but LIFE. Jesus' Life. And the reason why He lived, died, and rose again!!!! Easter is a season to remember what Jesus did for us and to Celebrate the fact that He lives again! So I wanted my Easter tree to take me through Jesus' journey to the cross. Here is what I did:

I cut down the top of a branch from the wooded trail nearby, one that remotely resembled a tree. I spray painted the tips of the branches with some cream spray paint to give it a little bit of a softer look. Then I stabilized it in a small mason jar full of rocks.

Next, I bought 12 eggs.

I used brown, but any kind will do.

To drain the eggs I poked holes through the top and the bottom of each egg using a safety pin. I poked around a little more inside each egg to insure that the yolk was broken. Then I blew out the inside of the eggs into the sink. Once empty I rinsed them each out with water and set them back in the carton to dry overnight.

I decided to paint the eggs to give them that Easter egg look. For the colors, I mixed together all sorts pastels: blue, yellow, green, purple, pink, and then added some gold and silver. After going through this process with about 16 eggs, I was finally left with 10 beautifully colored intact eggs to hang on the tree.
I used twine and a small needle to create a hanger for each egg by making a loop at the top of the egg and a larger knot at the bottom to hold it in place.

Now I had to portray the Easter story through the eggs, so I decided to write (with a sharpie) one word on each egg that described that section of the story followed by the corresponding bible verse that depicts the whole story. 

ANNOINTED (Matthew 26:6-13)

BETRAYED (Matthew 26:14-16)

HOMECOMING (Matthew 21:1-11)

THE LAST SUPPER (Matthew 26:26-29)

ARRESTED (Luke 22:39-46, 54)

MOCKED (John 19:1-7)

THE CROSS (John 19:16-17)

CRUCIFIED* (John 19:18)

PIERCED (John 19:33-35)

BURIED (Matthew 27:57-60)

RISEN* (Mark 16:1-3)

BELIEVE (John 20:1-8)

*I chose a golden cross to represent CRUCIFIED instead of using an egg. And for RISEN I put the egg up in a little nest I created at the top of the tree with shrubbery stacked on top of each other and glued together.

The sharpie writing ended up being too bold on top of these delicately colored eggs so I took a can of silver spray paint and lightly misted the finished eggs to give them a lighter look. 

And here it is.....

I love this tree and everything that it means. So as this Easter season approaches we will give thanks for Jesus' journey to the cross where He gave His life for us, and remember that death CANNOT defeat our God. He Still Lives.

"He saw and he believed."

John 20:8b