Easter is Here - Sunday 27th March 2016
Competition Time!
We have teamed up with 'Business of Style' Blogger LadyM to give you the chance to win one of our fantastic prizes. As an Easter treat, we are giving away a Seaspray St Lucia Beach Pareo worth £46 to 5 lucky winners.
The pareo is beautifully elegant with a vibrant blue and white leaf print and is extremely versatile. Use as a dress, skirt or scarf!
To enter, click this link and follow the instructions: www.ladympresents.co.uk/boost-your-body-confidence/
10 Fun Facts about the Easter Holidays
- Spring time is associated with rebirth and new life.
- The UKs first chocolate egg was produced in 1873 by Fry's of Bristol.
- The tallest chocolate egg was created in Italy in 2011. It weighed 7200kg and was 10.39 metres tall. This means it was heavier than an elephant and taller than a giraffe!
- The first tallest decorated egg was created in Portugal in 2008. It was almost 15 metres tall and measured 8 metres in diameter.
- The customs of giving eggs to people dates back to the Egyptians, Persians, Gauls, Greeks and Romans as this was known as the symbol for new life.
- The white lily is known as the symbol for resurrection and is the recognised flower of Easter.
- The traditional act of painting eggs using a wax resist (batik) method is called Pysanka.
- 76% of people eat the ears of a chocolate rabbit first!
Vegreville Egg
We discovered this amazing Easter Egg sculpture and wanted to share it with you!
Situated in Vegraville, Canada, this giant Pysanka (Ukrainian style Easter Egg) sculpture was created by Paul Maxum Sembaliuk and constructed in 1975.
- It measures 25.7ft long, 18ft wide and stands 31ft high.
- The pattern contains 524 star patterns, 2,208 equilateral triangles, 3512 visible facets, 6,978 nuts and bolts and 177 internal struts.
- The dedication message written in English, Ukrainian, French and German reads: "This Pysanka (Easter Egg) symbolises the harmony, vitality and culture of the community and is dedicated as a tribute to the One-Hundredth Anniversary of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police who bought peace and security to the largest multi-cultural settlement in all of Canada."
- The colours of bronze, silver and gold symbolises prosperity.
History of Easter
The Easter Holiday is a traditional Christian festival, celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ, three days after his death on Good Friday, and signifies the end of Lent. Lent is a period of 40 days before Easter, beginning on Ash Wednesday, and is typically a period of self-sacrifice and repentance. Easter is one of the oldest recognised holidays and one of the most important dates in the Christian Calendar.
More importantly it signifies a period of new beginnings, spring, celebration, gift giving and if your children are anything like mine... The Easter Bunny, Egg Painting and CHOCOLATE!
'Easter' is said to be named after the Anglo-Saxon goddess of spring and fertility, Oestre or Eastre. She had a passion for new life and her presence could be felt with the days becoming longer and brighter, the blossoming of flowers and the birth of new babies. The hare was seen as Oestre's sacred animal known for its rapid reproduction.
Easter Eggs & the Easter Bunny
It is believed that Easter Eggs are a symbol of new life and the idea that Earth was hatched from an egg form appears in many creation stories. For Christians the egg is a symbol of Jesus Christ's resurrection and signifies his empty tomb when cracked open. Many years ago people gave dyed eggs as gifts made from wood or stone. The first sweet eggs were originally made from sugar or marzipan, but since then chocolate eggs have become a worldwide favourite.
Hares and rabbits have been associated with spring time since ancient times. They generally give birth to a large herd of babies and are recognised symbols of new life and fertility. After a while, Christians changed the symbol of the hare to the Easter Bunny. Traditionally the Easter Bunny decorates and hides the eggs so children can find them on Easter Sunday giving rise to the Easter Egg Hunt.
Celebrate Easter with Vanilla Cupcakes
This original Vanilla Cupcake recipe is one of our favourites and it's a perfect way to celebrate Easter this year. Add your favourite sweets or chocolates on top for a tasty treat! This recipe makes 12 small or 9 large cupcakes.
Ingredients
4oz/110g of Butter/Margarine
4oz/110g of Caster Sugar
4oz/110g of Self-Raising Flour
2 eggs
1 tsp of Vanilla Extract
1-2 tbsp of Milk
Buttercream Icing
5oz/140g of Softened Butter
10oz/280g of Icing Sugar
1-2 tbsp of Milk
1 Piping Bag
Cupcakes
1. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4, then line 12 paper cases in your muffin tin.
2. In a bowl, beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
3. Beat in the eggs, one at a time and add in the vanilla extract.
4. Fold in the flour using a large spoon, adding in a bit of milk each time until you have a smooth, evenly mixed consistency.
5. Spoon the mixture into the cupcake cases until they are half full.
6. Bake in the over for 10 -15 minutes or until they are golden-brown on top. Transfer onto a wire rack to cool.
Buttercream Icing
1. Beat the butter in a large bowl until soft.
2. Add in half the icing sugar and beat until smooth.
3. Add in the other half of icing sugar with one tbsp of milk and mix until the mixture is smooth and creamy. Add more milk if necessary.
4. If you want, you can add a few drops of your favourite food colouring to change the colour!
5. Spoon the icing into a piping bag and pipe the icing onto the cupcakes.
Egg-squisite... Gifts for Easter from our Spring Collection
1. Mens 'Crazy Parrots' Waxx Boxer Short
The Crazy Parrots Mens Boxer Short is a must have this season with it's humorous print and exotic colours. The soft Modal fabric has a 4 way stretch for fantastic comfort and support.
2. Huit 'Absolutely Chic' Strapless Swimsuit
The Absolutely Chic Padded Strapless Swimsuit is created with a beautifully soft textured fabric with white rick-rack trim for a chic, nautical look. Straps are removable so it's perfect for sunbathing!
3. Wacoal 'Embrace Lace' Chemise
The Embrace Lace Chemise is exquisitely crafted with soft mesh fabric and delicate ivory lace. Ideal for nightwear or to compliment a dress. Co-ordinate it with the bra and knickers here: www.knickerlocker.com/Embrace-Lace-Bra
4. Freya Utopia Bra Set
The Utopia Plunge Balcony Bra is created with a fascinating floral print and crisp white lace. Beautiful for this spring season with a low centre plunge and cute orange bows to top it off! Matching thong, brief and short available.
5. Mens Pull-In Beach Boxer Short
The Master Beach Boxer Short is fun and refreshing with a quirky beach print all over. Forget your black, white and grey boxers and indulge yourself in the latest trends from Pull-In.
We hope all of our readers have a great Easter Holiday and don't forget to have a go at our Easter Competition here: LadyM - Easter Competition
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