An Easter Gift Guide.
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, or just don’t follow us on Facebook or Instagram you might not have noticed that we’ve kindly popped an EASTER GIFT EDIT over on the website. Since we sadly wont be able to welcome you through the doors until April 12th, we thought it might be nice to pick a selection of some of our favourite items that would be perfect for giving as a non-edible gift of the Easter variety.
Easter falls on April 4th this year. Did you know that each year it’s date changes? Easter is always observed on the first Sunday following the full moon that occurs on or just after the spring equinox: AKA the astronomical first day of spring in the Northern Hemisphere. And here’s a fun fact: Over a 500-year spell (from 1600 to 2099), it just so happens that Easter will have most often been marked on either 31st of March or April 16th. I know what you’re thinking….so where do Crème Eggs come into it?!
Eggs have always been recognised as a symbol of fertility and rebirth but naturally over time Easter traditions have evolved, although some have been around for centuries. The oldest egg-shaped tradition is to use dyed and painted chicken eggs to mark Easter or sometimes carved wooden eggs. Over time many came to substitute those eggs with foil-wrapped chocolate eggs or plastic egg cases filled with other confectionary.
As for the Easter Bunny, it turns out that he too has been around for longer that you might think and comes from a little bit more of a historical background than a Monday morning meeting at Cadbury HQ. To Christians, Easter is a celebration of the resurrection of Christ. Whilst there is most certainly no mention of this floppy-eared, cotton-tailed creature in the Bible, it’s rumoured that the Easter Bunny first ‘arrived’ in America in the 1700’s. The tradition arrived with German immigrants who settled and shared their tradition of an egg-laying hare called ‘Osterhase’ or ‘Oschter Haws.’ Their children made nests for this creature to lay its coloured eggs.
If you think that’s a little strange then you haven’t heard the half of it! Here are just a few other ways Easter is marked differently across the globe. Proof that it isn’t all about religion, or chocolate…or even both!
In FINLAND children dress up like witches and go begging in the street for chocolate eggs with made-up faces and scarves tied on their heads. They carry willow twigs decorated with feathers. In some parts they burn bonfires over Easter to ward off the witches who fly around during this time.
In HAUX, a small town in FRANCE a giant omelette is served up each Easter. And when I say giant, I mean huge! It uses 15,000 eggs and feeds up to 1,000 people!!!
In the UNITED STATES eggs hunts and egg rolling are popular and in fact so is The White House Easter Egg Roll which is an annual event held on Easter Monday.
In NORWAY it is custom to read crime novels over Easter. Just when you thought it couldn’t get more ridiculous! The tradition is rumoured to have started in 1923 when a publisher cleverly promoted its new crime novel on the front pages of all Norwegian newspapers. The novel got so much attention that people didn’t realise it was in fact a publicity stunt!
I think we’ll stick to the odd few mini eggs with a cuppa…
Here are just a few of our Easter gift picks….
1) Some seeds! If you’re lucky enough to have a garden, patio, balcony or even a windowsill our new collection of wildlife-friendly, sustainable seed bombs, bamboo planters and kitchen herb box are a great longer-lasting treat. Not only do they give the local wildlife a bit of a treat too but they look beautiful also.
2) If you like to go all out and deck the halls at Easter just as much as you do at Christmas (who are we to judge?! It’s been one hell of a year) then we’ve more than got you covered. Our Daffodils in Glass Jar decoration, hanging Easter Rabbit or felted Easter Lamb decoration are perfect for squirreling around and about the house ready for an Easter egg hunt. You can even give your breakfast table an Easter-y twist with one of our beautiful ceramic bunny ear egg cups and bunny napkins!
3) Because we know how much the little people in your life love to snuggle up with a soft toy, why not let them squeeze our fluffy Jellycat Rolbie Sheep or Bashful Cream Bunny…?! A perfect keepsake to hang onto after Easter! And another lovely postable treat for those of you not living close to those you love over this chocolate-y holiday.
4) If you love Emma Bridgewater as much as us then you wont need an excuse to add another mug to your ever-expanding collection! Why not stick to our Easter-y theme anyway and treat you or someone you love to our Chick or Duckling mug?!
5) And last but not least the chocolate! Whilst we don’t sell the stuff we more than condone any excuse to indulge in a treat or two! Why not support local and pick up a treat from Castle Chocolates here in Carlisle and round the corner from our lovely shop. You can also pick up an Easter-y treat or two from Food Glorious Food on Crosby Street here in Carlisle. AND we are also particularly partial to anything that North Chocolates over in the North East conjures up!
So there you have it, whether you deck the halls with boughs of….blossom? Or just rejoice in the return of the Malteser bunnies at the tills when you do your weekly food shop; it’s a chance to celebrate regardless and after the year and a bit we’ve had, we fancy going all out!
