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Instead of those cheap plastic eggs that are difficult to paint and decorate, why not use real eggs in your spring crafts and decor? Take a step back into an old school crafting hack! Learn how to blow out eggs to use for all kinds of spring crafts. This is an easy DIY activity that is super fun for the whole family, and you may even get scrambled eggs out of it, too.

Blowing Out Fresh Eggs

Back when I was a kid, Easter egg hunts meant running through the yard after real-deal hard boiled eggs. Our fingers tips were stained from grabbing a wet egg from its vinegar color bath.

And though I’m sure those tablets of dye had plenty of chemicals leaking through the porous egg shell onto those boiled delicacies, we still devoured them. Better yet, someone’s mom would make deviled eggs or egg salad out of them. Pink egg salad? Yes, please.

Both in the hunt and the Easter decor, we used real eggs. We were city kids without chickens, so our eggs did come from the store. But plastic eggs weren’t as common place then, and I remember the lost art of blowing out eggs.

What a great throwback to a time of less brightly colored plastic stuffed with candy, and a slower use-what-you-have activity. In fact, this is an excellent activity to do with the kids. I know my kids certainly have lots of air to use, so I’ll be putting them to work!

The steps to cleaning out eggs

This quick tutorial will show you how to clean out eggs to use in a number of ways. You can simply decorate the empty eggs like you would any hard boiled easter egg. Use Mod Podge and tissue paper for a crafty layered covering on your ovals. Or create beautiful Easter tree ornaments you’ll be able to use year after year. (See my post for instructions on How to Make Mod Podge Easter Eggs.)

What you’ll need:

• Fresh Eggs (6 is a good number to start with)
• Thin nail or awl
• Toothpick
• Hammer
• Bowl
• Paper towel and egg carton

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Begin by making sure both your eggs and your nail (or awl) are clean. You’ll be putting your mouth on the egg shell and saving the yolk and white, so you want everything clean.
2. Take your nail (or awl) at the top of the egg, and using the hammer, gently make one quick tap. This should send the point of your nail just barely into the egg. While your nail is still in the egg, rotate it gently to make sure your hole is clear. Gently remove the nail. 
3. Turn the egg upside down, and repeat the gentle tap process. I found that holding the egg in my hand, instead of on a surface, worked better for the second hole. This didn’t put any extra pressure on the end that already had a hole, and it cut down on the egg cracking.
4. Once both holes are in place, use a toothpick to swipe around inside the egg and break the yolk. A whole yolk will not be able to pass through such a small hole.
5. Now place a bowl beneath the egg you’re holding and gently begin blowing through one of the holes. The egg contents will begin falling into the bowl below. If you get hung up, simply use the toothpick to help move the egg yolk or white along. 
6. Once you’ve blown out the egg’s contents, gently run water over and in your egg and blow any excess water out into the sink. Set eggs to dry on paper towel lined egg carton.
7. Once eggs are dry, you can use and decorate them to your heart’s content! And we always scramble up the eggs for breakfast the next morning, as long as we didn’t have any egg shell mishaps!

While blowing out eggs may not seem as necessary these days with all of the plastic options available, it’s still fun to do things the old-fashioned way sometimes. Give yourself (or your kids) a taste of the old school by blowing out eggs one afternoon this week. That will give them something to tell their friends!

Other DIY Crafts

• DIY Tin Can Lanterns
• DIY Vegetable Garden Markers
• Chalkboard Garden Markers (from flatware!)
• Easy DIY Cherry Blossom Branches