The Mabnol : How to Decorate Outdoors for Easter

If you’re the type that gets excited for Easter, or if you have young kids and want to turn the outdoors of your home into an Easter themed wonderland, you may be wondering how to best decorate. You can create an Easter scene in your yard by doing things like decorating trees with eggs and setting up Easter themed lawn ornaments. If you’re a do-it-yourself type, make crafts like Easter door hangers and Peep decorations. You can even turn common household decorations, like wreaths and lanterns, into Easter decorations.

EditSteps

EditCreating an Easter Scene in Your Yard

Decorate trees with eggs. Use a tool, like a knife or awl, to poke a small hole in the ends of plastic eggs. Feed fishing line through the holes in these eggs to string the eggs up and create hanging tree ornaments. Tie the end of the fishing line to a branch to hang the ornament.^[1]
- Tie a simple knot at the bottom end of your hanging tree ornaments to prevent the eggs from falling off the line. Be sure the knot is thick enough to prevent eggs from falling.
- Hang several of these ornaments from trees throughout your yard. Avoid areas thick with branches; when the wind blows, your ornaments might get tangled.
- If you live in a windy area, you might want to keep your hanging tree ornaments roughly the length of your forearm. Otherwise, the wind might whip the ornaments around dangerously.
Place durable baskets around your yard. Wicker baskets will break down when exposed to the elements, so avoid using these. Use brightly colored plastic baskets around your yard and in exposed areas. These will hold up to the elements best.
- You can often find baskets like these at dollar stores, general retailers, thrift stores, and craft stores.
- The baskets don’t have to be plastic, but they should be made of a weather resistant material.
Set up Easter lawn ornaments. Around Easter time, inflatable Easter themed lawn ornaments are sold at most home centers and general retailers. You may be able to find cheaper priced versions of these at yard/garage sales and at thrift stores. Easter themed cutouts, like one of a large rabbit carrying a basket, can add a whimsical feeling to your Easter scene.
- If store-bought decorations are outside your budget, draw a bunny shape on a piece of wood. Cut the shape out with a saw. Spray paint it black, and you have a homemade rabbit silhouette.^[2]
- Paint egg shaped rocks like Easter eggs. Use bright pastel colors. Arrange egg-rocks in groups or scatter them around your yard. ^[3]
Add carrot cutouts to your walls. On a large piece of sturdy paper, like card stock, use a pencil to draw the top part of a carrot. Use markers or paint to color the top, leafy part of the carrot bright green. There should only be a small orange part of the carrot visible.^[4]
- Use a fastener, like tape or a tack, to attach your carrot to a wall on the outside of your home so that the carrot is close to the ground. This will make it look like the carrot is growing out of the ground.

EditCrafting Easter Decorations

Make an Easter door hanger. Draw an Easter themed shape on a sturdy piece of card stock or cardboard. Some ideas include rabbits, eggs, baby chicks/Peeps, and so on. These should be roughly the size of your open hand. Cut these out from the paper/cardboard, then:
- Decorate the cutout. Cover it in bright Easter colors with markers or paint. Add glitter, sequins, and faux gems. These accents look especially nice on egg cutouts.
- Use a hole punch or a pair of scissors to create a hole in the top of the cutout. Tie a loop onto this hole with ribbon. The loop should be large enough for a doorknob.
- Hang your Easter door hangers on the handles of doors into your home. To protect them from the being ruined by weather, you may want to laminate them.
Create Easter garlands with plastic eggs. Similar to the tree hanging egg decorations, use a sharp tool, like a knife, awl, or pair of scissors, to make holes in both ends of plastic Easter eggs. Thread fishing line through these holes to string the line with eggs. Tie off both ends of the line.^[5]
- Drape your garlands from wall hangers, nails, door jambs, and so on. Add a large ribbon tied in a bow to the garland to add flare.
- Some plastic eggs are made with holes in them and won’t require you to poke holes the ends of the egg. Look for these at the dollar store.
- A simpler garland can be made by stringing paper cutouts of eggs on a line of twine or string and hanging this much as you would the plastic egg garland.^[6]
Upcycle a rubber boot into a makeshift Easter basket. Old boots that children have grown out of often have cute patterns on them, making them ideal for this craft. Clean the boots and let them air dry somewhere not in direct sunlight. Fill the boot with colorful shredded paper, nestle some plastic eggs in it, and your “basket” is done.
- Bright and colorful accents are a great addition to these boot-baskets. Stick pinwheels into the boot, toy rabbits, and more.
- Place these boot-baskets at entrances to your home, where they will be somewhat protected from the elements. The shredded paper will break down when exposed to moisture.^[7]
Craft a Peep decoration. Gather a 12 x 36 in (30 x 91 cm) piece of Styrofoam, a wooden dowel, Peep colored spray paint (like bright yellow or pink), spray glitter, brown paint, a paint brush, a utility knife, a drop cloth, and a pencil. Draw the outline of a Peep on the Styrofoam, then:
- Use your utility knife to cut away the pieces of Styrofoam that aren’t part of the design. When you finish cutting, soften the outer edges of the Peep by rubbing a piece of excess foam against the Peep’s edges, wearing away the foam until it’s more Peep shaped.
- Lay down a drop cloth in a well ventilated area and set the Peep cutout on the cloth. Spray paint the Peep entirely. Allow this to dry according to the label instructions.
- Use a paintbrush to apply two dots of brown paint for the eyes of the Peep and a dot of brown paint for the nose as well. Spray on glitter afterwards.
- Stick a dowel into the bottom of the Peep. You can insert the dowel in the ground for a lawn ornament, add the Peep to a vase, basket, or pot, and so on.^[8]

EditTransforming Normal Decorations into Easter Decorations

Fill an empty lantern with Easter items. Lanterns are common household decorations. Fill lanterns with things like plastic eggs, rabbits, Peeps, shredded green paper, and so on. Depending on how well enclosed the lantern is, you may even be able to showcase a stuffed animal safely inside the lantern.^[9]
- Clean your lanterns thoroughly with soap and water to remove any dirt of soot from them. This way, the items you load into lanterns won’t get dirty and can be reused again.
Fashion a regular wreath into one for Easter. If you don’t already have a normal wreath, you can buy one from a craft store or make one of your own. Use a knife or awl to poke a small hole in a single end of many plastic Easter eggs. Then:
- Feed a small length of fishing line through the hole. Tie off the end of the line on the inside of the egg so it doesn’t pull through.
- Tie the other end of the line to your wreath. Add as many eggs as you please in this fashion. Include other Easter accents, like pastel colored ribbons tied in bows.
- Hang your new Easter wreath outside your house and enjoy.^[10]
Turn a normal basket into a festive Easter basket. Decorative baskets often come with gift items and certain products. You may have some in storage, but if you don’t, you can buy baskets from a thrift store or a craft store. To transform these into festive Easter baskets:
- Use spray paint to coat the baskets in an Easter color. Pastel colors, for example, are generally associated with Easter and are a great choice.
- Fill your baskets with shredded green paper to add a bright, natural splash of color.
- Add Easter themed items, like plastic eggs, plastic rabbits, Peep decorations, and so on.
- Tie a large bow on top of the basket and add accents to it as you see fit.