Stir-Up Sunday

[kettledrum]

It is my turn (again!) to do flowers in church. Next Sunday we have our monthly children's service, mainly for very young children. I know that all the ingredients for a Christmas pudding are going to be stirred up, & then taken away to be cooked during the remainder of the service, & (one that we prepared earlier!) will appear ready to be eaten at the end.

Just a thought .... Instead of flowers I wondered about doing a funky arrangement - in a mixing bowl - of wooden spoons, & the ingredients needed to make a Christmas pudding. I have stalks of wheat, & can thread sultanas, raisins, glacé cherries etc onto thread & suspend them from holly/twigs. I can also get small single-portion packs of butter.

But .... Where can I buy 'eggs'? I have telephoned several craft shops locally, & if they have them at all they seem to be highly decorated, whereas I'd like something natural looking. I don't think I can face blowing about a dozen real eggs myself.

I live between Oxford & Stratford-upon-Avon & am prepared to travel. Does anyone have any suggestions.

[Prudie]

Would it be too wasteful to use real hard boiled eggs in their shells? Seems the simplest solution (unless it had to last of course!)

[Famous5]

Why not use hard boiled eggs to show they are in the cake. You won't be using the stalks of wheat in the mix either

[AB Editor]

Hi Kettledrum,

Next homewares sell "eggs" - plastic, hollow egg looking things of various colours in little bags. Quite expensive but you get a few in the bag.

Looks next to the plastic fruit!

[Prudie]

^ how on earth do you know that? :-)

[kettledrum]

Thanks for the suggestion of hard-boiled eggs. I thought they might be a bit too heavy to dangle from the greenery, & also difficult to attach. But if I can't find any light ones, made of polystyrene or ping-pong ball material or whatever .....

[EcclesCake]

I googled polystyrene eggs and lots of things popped up such as

http://www.craftsuperstore.co.uk/Childrens_Crafts/Embellishments1/Craft_Planet-CPT827906.html?utm_source=Google&utm_medium=Shopping&utm_campaign=Craft+SuperStore+Polystyrene+Egg+(6pcs)+Assorted&gclid=CLe2qcCb4roCFUrJtAodOwcA8Q

[mccfluff]

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/like/181193295260?lpid=83&device=c&adtype=pla&crdt=0&ff3=1&ff11=ICEP3.0.0&ff12=67&ff13=80&;ff14=83

any good to you?

[mccfluff]

im wondering who will be the first to get love eggs in their google search

[mccfluff]

fun with plastic eggs......

http://theimaginationtree.com/2012/03/fun-with-plastic-eggs.html

see what you've started! :-)

[kettledrum]

Thank you all for your suggestions. I've ordered polystyrene eggs as suggested by EcclesCake, but if they don't arrive or are unsuitable, I can still go to Ab Editor's Next Homewares.
Isn't this a wonderful site? Answers for everything!

[lyall]

How about

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_10?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=craft%20eggs&sprefix=craft+eggs%2Caps%2C244&rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3Acraft%20eggs

If you don’t fancy blowing eggs yourself why not ask some older kids at the church to do them, my friends Beaver group did a load to decorate for Halloween and thoroughly enjoyed themselves.

[rockyracoon]

You could blow a couple of eggs so that just the shell remains.

[rockyracoon]

Snap lyall, we had an Easter competition every year at primary school where we had to blow eggs and decorate them :)

[zebo]

Can you get those little chocolate eggs, we hang them from a willow at Easter but I think they're all year round? Cover with a bit of yellow or white paper and hang them by threading using a strong needle. You'll need to "sew" into the chocolate to get it to hold.

[Ann]

Hi Kettledrum. Wonder if you know of the "Scripture or Bible Cake" recipe? I used it in a children's talk at our church some years ago and the children loved looking up the bible verses to find the ingredient (winner of each got a chocolate!) I know yours isn't a talk just a "flower" arrangement but it might be a good idea to put the verses on bits of card and either hang them from the tree or prop them up alonside, the older children could help the little ones find them.

http://www.dltk-kids.com/recipes/old_scripture_cake.htm