Our Favourite Easter Crafts & Treats

Once a year we're allowed to indulge in the serious cute factor of bunnies and chicks, as well as a basket full of chocolate!

With Easter falling at the end of April this year, we thought we'd give you a few weeks to get into the spirit of things while the kids are out of school and you need a few activities to fill the days.

Whether you've got a sweet tooth or a craft streak, these activities are sure to entertain kids of all ages - as well as the adults helping them. At the end, you'll be able to enjoy the fruits of your labour by displaying the final product or letting everyone have an afternoon treat!

We scoured the web to find clever ideas and inventive recipes, but we'd love to hear your ideas too! Email us a link to your easter activities at [email protected] - or take a picture of the end result, and we'll share them with our online communities.

Easter crafts for kids

Depending on your interest in Easter, the symbols you use to depict it may vary, but - taking the Hallmark Holiday approach - you may feel like the world has been overtaken by furry bunnies and cute chicks!

We've sifted through lots of interesting Easter craft ideas for kids, and decided that our favourites this year include:

Coffee filter easter eggs

Simple, yet spectacular, these eggs can be hung in the window for everyone to see. Check out how the Active Toddler Blog documents the process.

Egg carton chicks

What came first, the chicken or the egg? In this case, it's the egg!

These adorable baby chicks use mostly recycled materials and are the perfect addition to an Easter table, or to send to the office.

Lanterns

Papier-mâché is nothing new, but these egg shaped lanterns add a colourful splash to any household - the simple technique and added mess factor will make this a hit with children of all ages.

Easter chocolate

The likelihood of avoiding chocolate over the next few weeks is slim and will require a lot of willpower - unless, of course, you don't like chocolate... Then you're safe!

But with all that chocolate on hand there has to be a few creative ways of presenting it, or creating with it. These recipes are sinfully delicious.

Spring nests

Simple, but a great way to look really impressive in the kitchen when sharing with family and friends... You could easily make a Chocolate Bird Nest on a spoon for Easter!

Stuffed chocolate eggs

Most of the eggs we get from the shop these days are hollow, but if you really want to knock the socks off your guests, use this as a base and stuff the shell with other delicious treats. From mountains of chocolate to cakes and fruit, you can't go wrong!

Make your own faux eggs

Take all the little eggs and bars of chocolate you have around the house and give them a fresh start!

These chocolate eggs go right back to the source and, if you play it right, you'll have the kids thinking chickens lay chocolate eggs.

Easter baking with kids

If you've had enough chocolate, then these treats are for you. From colourful cakes to creative biscuits you'll know you're on to a winner!

Easter baskets

By far our favourite treat this year, these perfect little baskets are delightful, and almost too cute to eat. You can choose to use chocolate eggs but if you're done with chocolate, jelly beans work just as well.

Desiccated coconut chicks

If you feel like you've overdone chocolate, we suggest moving on to these vanilla cupcakes coated liberally in desiccated coconut and decorated to look like sweet little chicks! It's easy decorating for little ones, and fun to eat for everyone.

Hot cross buns

Not for the casual baker, these will take time - don't think you can throw them together at the last minute!

From Heston Blumenthal to Nigella Lawson, there lots of variations on these Easter treats, so we challenge you to find the ones your family likes and start a new tradition - making your own.