Easter Decorating on a Budget

I decided to do a little decorating for Easter, something we have never done before but the budget for supplies would have to come out of my Easter budget which is usually used only for all the yummy food, the Chocolates, the Hot Cross Buns, dinner on Good Friday and a big family Breakfast on Saturday or Sunday depending on when everyone is available. Being a shift working family sometimes it may be a Famil lunch or dinner instead, we just roll with what works.

I already had 2 tiered cupcake stands that would be perfect, I got them on clearance after Easter about 4 years ago for a High Tea Fundraiser my daughter was hosting for Starlight Foundation.
I wanted a Banner, and some suitable plates, cups & table cloth.  However I had 2 problems budget and there was very little Easter stock when I was trying to shop for supplies that suited decorating available in my town.  It was either travel to another town or make do.

I could not find a Banner I loved so it was time to DIY so I bought this Pastel Burlap Banner from the Reject Shop when I bought a Bright Pink table cloth, Teal cups and Light Pink Serviettes.  To tie in the Bright Pink and Teal I grabbed some Bright Pink and Teal gems from Big W, due to what supplies I could get the decision was now made that except for my cupcake stands I was going with a Bright and Pastel Pink and Teal/Aqua theme.
Total budget spent including the cups, table cloth and banner supplies was $11.

I then shopped my stash for anything that might work for this Banner.  I thought those 2 cute pink rafia flowers would make cute bunny tails.








My work on the Banner had to wait until I had all the prepwork on the food for Easter Breakfast done and all the organising of the house to accomodate our guests done.  We had visitors stop by also so by the time I started working on the Banner it was getting dark and I had to wait until the next morning to take photos, hence the poor lighting of my supplies.

I grabbed out my 6x6 Magnolia Lane paper pad and selected 4 sheets that I decided to tear for layers.  I also had this small piece of acetate I recieved in a RAK a couple of years ago and had not had a use for until now and a gorgeous little wood veneer bunny I recieved in a RAK in Feb.
I worked on each flag individually but tried to line up the letters and tried to make sure that I alternated the main flower's colour.

I used some old Creative Memories Monogram alphas in White for my lettering as they were the only ones I had that were big enough for the Banner.

I also grabbed out 2 sheets of flower stickers from my haul of stickers I got in clearance bundles at Lincraft.

I was short a E so I used a F and cut a piece of a K to make a second E.

I managed to get it 80% done in a very short amount of time before having to leave for a special Good Friday Dinner at my in laws.
I didn't get a chance to finish it before our Easter Breakfast but I love it.
I will finish it for next year with a cute bunny on each end that has a raffia flower for a tail, I think.  I also want to add ribbons between each flag.

Now to share with you the delicious French Toast Casserole I made for Easter Breakfast, I discovered it via Easter Mums.
This is fantastic tasting but also really convenient.  I prepared it the day before and left it in the fridge until a hour before guests were due, then I preheated my oven, made the crumbled, and baked it for 55 minutes.
It was a huge hit.
I didn't have the right sized baking dish so I divided it between 2 dishes.

Due to life events cooking needed to be quick and simple.
The boys loved making chocoloate eggs, noodle nests and decorating milk arrowroot biscuits.

The biscuits on the right in the bottom tier are from Aldi.

The nests were a huge hit with adults and kids.












I placed a fabric table cloth folded thick in the middle for all the hot dishes to go on.
I used every white plate I have, and a white plastic plate for a toddler attending.
I later added a Cadbury Bunny to the place settings.

I am so glad I bought those cupcake stands on clearance 4 years ago, they will be getting a lot more use now.
I am looking forward to building my Easter Decorating Supplies next year as this really did make things more fun.