Wacky Wednesday: Egg Carton Crafts!

Wacky Wednesday:

Egg Carton Crafts!

• Easter Countdown Craft: Egg carton, glue, tissue paper, trinkets or treats

1. Begin by cutting off a carton's top and side flaps and trimming the center dividers so that they're level with outside edge.
2. Lay the carton facedown on a piece of tissue paper.  Trace it, then cut along the traced line.  Turn the carton right side up again and place a wrapped treat, trinket, or a fun note in each cup.
3. Apply glue around each cup and all around the edges.  Lay the cut tissue-paper  piece over the glue and press it to secure it.
4. For extra wow factor (and to prevent peeking!), cut circles from tissue paper in contrasting colors and affix one circle over each cup with a glue stick.
5. For a picture: Go to Family Fun Website

• Bunny Basket: 2 plastic-foam egg cartons, scissors, glue, pom poms, construction paper, ribbon, black paint

1. Cut the bottoms from two plastic-foam egg cartons.  Cut one in half the long way so you have a row of six cups.  Glue this row, upside down, over half of the other carton bottom, leaving the other half open for your basket.
2. Decorate the row of egg shapes with pom-pom noses and paper whiskers, eyes, and heart shapes for feet.  Make ears from paper and glue one pair to the back of each bunny head.
3. On every other bunny, glue a bow of ribbon.  Cut little hats from a cardboard egg carton's peaks.  Paint them black and glue each to a circle of black paper.  Glue the hats to the remaining bunny heads.  

• Two-Cup Basket: Cardboard egg carton, pipe cleaners, paint

1. Cut a two-cup section from a cardboard egg carton and trim the top edges.  
2. Paint the basket.
3. Poke two small holes on opposite sides of the basket.
4. Twist two 8-inch pieces of pipe cleaner together to form a handle.  Push the ends of the handle into the holes, and twist the ends around the rest of the handle to secure.

• One-Cup Mini Baskets: Cardboard egg carton, paint, construction paper, decorations (sequins, glitter, ribbon)

1. Cut individual cups from a cardboard egg carton and trim the top edges.  
2. Paint the cups.
3. Cut 5-inch strips from construction paper and glue to the inside of the cups for handles.
4. Decorate the cups however you'd like.  You can use sequins and paper cutouts, glitter or ribbon.

• Four-Cup Basket: Plastic-foam egg carton, pipe cleaners

1. Cut a square, four-cup section from a plastic-foam egg carton.
2. Poke two small holes on opposite sides of the basket.
3. Twist two pipe cleaners together to from a handle.  Attach the handle in the same manner as for the Two-Cup Basket.
4. Make a decoration for the handle by cutting petal shapes into two egg cups.  
5. Glue the two cups together, alternating the petals, to make a flower.  Poke two holes in the center of the flower.  Push a small piece of pipe cleaner through the holes, and use it to secure the flower to the handle.

• Egg Carton Characters: egg carton, glue, scissors, yarn, pom-poms, pipe cleaners, paint or markers

1. Cut the lid from the carton; save it to use later.
2. Cut out 12 cups from the egg carton. (You may not need all of them.)
3. Decide on the characters(people, animals, a character from a book.)
4. Design the characters.  Children can stack cups (to make the body) and add bits of carton, material scraps, yarn, pom-poms (noses and tails), pipe cleaners (arms, legs, tails,ears, hair, etc.  to decorate their characters.
5. Use paint or makers to add features.
6. Set all characters on the lid to dry.
7. On each of the 12 days leading up to a holiday, let your child tear open one cup's cover to find a small surprise hiding inside.

• Grow A Grassapillar: Potting soil, grass seed, bowl, spoon, egg carton, permanent marker, plate

1. Begin by mixing 3/4 cup of potting soil and 2 tablespoons of grass seed in a bowl.  Add water to moisten the mixture, then set it aside.
2. Cut away a three-cup section of an egg carton, then trim the section along the longer edges so that your grassapillar will look the same from both sides.  
3. With a permanent marker, draw a face on one end.
4. Gently spoon the seed mixture into the cups.  
5. Set your creation on a dish in a brightly lit spot and keep the soil moist.
6. The grass should sprout in about a week.  
7. For a picture go to Family Fun Website

• Give Action Guys A Ride: 2 cardboard cartons, gray and red paint, scissors, glue dots

1. Start with two cardboard cartons.  
2. On the first one, cut flaps to serve as hatches.  (The inside can be used to carry smaller figurines or equipment), then paint it gray.
3. Use the other carton for parts: snip off the tips of the interior dividers, paint them red to make thrusters and running lights, and attache them to the transport body with glue dots.
4. Place your guys inside and on top, and they're ready to defend the world.
5. For picture go to Family Fun Website

• Egg Carton Recycling: Cardboard egg cartons, water, large buckets

1. Allow egg cartons to stand in water for several days.  When the cardboard is soft remove from the water and drain.
2. Ask your child to tear the egg cartons apart and squeeze the water out of the pieces.
3. Layer the material over inverted plastic bowls.
4. Let dry on newspapers.
5. Add powdered paint to the mixture or paint the material after it has dried.
6. Remove the recycled cardboard from the plastic bowls and use as plant pots or use for decorations. 

• Matching Game: Egg carton, construction paper, glue, scissors

1. Cut the egg carton to make 12 individual cups. 
2. Paint all one color.  Let dry.
3. Glue round pieces of construction paper inside the cups.  You need 2 of each color.
4. Then mix up the cups and place them upside down. 
5. Then have your child turn over 2 cups and see if they found 2 matching colors.  If they didn't they turn them back over and try again and until they find all the matches.
6. You can also put pictures inside the cups, numbers, alphabet, words, etc.

• Great-Shape Necklace: Plastic-foam egg carton, markers, drinking straws, string or yarn, plastic needle

1. Cut shapes from the lid of the egg carton and color them with markers.
2. Cut out small pieces of the drinking straws.
3. Cut a piece of string or yarn long enough to fit over your head.  Thread one end of the string onto the needle.
4. String a shape and then a section of straw onto the string, leaving an inch of string at the bottom.  Continue stringing the shapes and straws until you almost have reached the end of the string .  Tie the two ends of the string together.  

• Egg-Carton Greetings: Egg Carton, paper, ink pads

1. Cut off parts of the egg carton that have unusual shapes or patterns to use as stamps.
2. Cut a piece of paper to the size you'd like and fold it in half.
3. Press your egg carton parts onto ink pads.  Then press them on the front of the card to create a design.  Let your creativity shine!  

Some ideas were found in the following books:

• Look What You Can Make With Dozens of Household Items! by Boyds Mills Press
• Disney Family Fun Magazine; March 2010    www.FamilyFun.com
• The Giant Encyclopedia of Circle Time and Group Activities  by Gryphon House

Wacky Wednesday: Egg Carton Crafts!