Egg Carton Art Projects
Take some old egg cartons, add some paint and other crafty embellishments, and you have the basis for simple crafts for all ages. You can use egg cartons made from cardboard or from foam. Making egg carton crafts with your children or students provides a valuable teaching opportunity, as you can begin your craft time with a discussion about the importance of recycling and reusing discarded items. Encourage the children to use their imaginations to find even more possibilities for the bumpy-shaped cartons.
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Animal Masks
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A single egg cup, cut away from the rest of the carton, can fit over the nose to make an animal snout. Paint the outside of the cup in the desired color: pink for a pig, or white or brown for a cat, dog or rabbit. Add painted nostrils or pom-poms. Use pipe cleaners to make whiskers for a cat or rabbit. Poke a small hole on either side of the cup and tie string or elastic to each side so that the mask can be tied on.
Bugs
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Make caterpillars, ladybugs and spiders out of egg cartons by cutting an egg cup---or a whole section of cups---and embellishing them with paint, pipe cleaners and plastic googly eyes. Cut the bottom half of the carton lengthwise to make a six-cup long caterpillar with pipe cleaner antennae, add four pipe cleaners to each side of a single inverted cup for a spider or paint a black head and red and black body on a single inverted egg cup for a ladybug.
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Game Board
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The 12 cups in the bottom half of an egg carton are just right for making an African board game called mancala. Cut off 3 inches from each end of the flat top of the carton and attach them on either end of the bottom half with tape. Paint and dry, then place four beads, paper clips, dry beans or buttons into each cup to play the game. Or invent your own games using small playing pieces and dice or a spinner.
Bells
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Make tiny egg carton bells as holiday decorations, or make little Liberty bells as part of a historical craft. Separate the egg cups into individual pieces and poke a hole into the bottom of each one. Paint as desired, then thread small jingle bells on string, pull the ends through the hole and tie in a loop. Add glitter and other embellishments, if desired, or paint a crack on one side.
Flowers
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The individual egg cup shapes are just right for making tulips; simply make triangular cuts into the edges of the cups to make pointed petals, or make the petals narrow and curved for a daisy-like flower. Press the bottom of a cut egg cup on a flat surface to make the petals curl outwards. Paint the flowers in bright colors and glue green pipe cleaners to the bases for the stems.
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References
Resources
- Photo Credit lonely egg in carton image by Cindy Haggerty from Fotolia.com
