In our house there’s at least one egg carton emptied every week, so it’s always an easy material to have to hand for art and craft projects with the kids. If you’re stuck for ideas for things to make with your empty egg cartons, here are 15 egg carton crafts the kids will be eager to make – plus, they’re super cute!
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Look at your empty carton – what could it be? A flower petal, fish scales, an adorable bumble bee, a robot… or an egg carton craft of your own creation? With some paint and basic craft supplies, you can turn something incredibly simple into a treasured art project.
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Egg Carton Crafts to Make with Kids
Egg Carton Jellyfish
We love this idea for egg carton jellyfish from The Art Kit Blog using egg cartons, paint and yarn for the jellyfish tentacles, with googly eyes for some character!
Image courtesy of Theartkitblog.com
Spring Chicks
These colourful little egg carton chicks from Typically Simple are perfect for Easter, spring… or just because!
Image courtesy of Typicallysimple.com
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Egg Carton Penguins
Aren’t these egg carton penguins from One Little Project just adorable?
Image courtesy of Onelittleproject.com
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Egg Carton Mermaids
Mermaids are all the rage, so these egg carton mermaids from Die Kleine Botin are sure to be popular. Created by Daniela, this upcycling DIY craft is good for children from about 4 years and up.
Image courtesy of Diekleinebotin.at
Egg Carton Flowers
This is such a sweet idea from I Heart Arts n Crafts to make some pretty flowers – they could even be part of a Mother’s Day craft project.
Image courtesy of Iheartartsncrafts.com
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The Very Hungry Caterpillar
For all you Hungry Caterpillar fans out there, you’ll enjoy this egg carton craft found on Pinterest. You will need:
- Green paint
- Red paint
- A purple pipe cleaner cut in two
- A pair of googly eyes
- A 12-egg carton
Cut the lid off, then cut lengthways down the middle, leaving you with 6 egg cups. Paint the one at the front red and add googly eyes and antennae made from pipe cleaners. Paint the remaining egg cups green.
Image found on Pinterest
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Egg Carton Insects
This fun tutorial from Pink Stripey Socks shows you how to make adorable bumble bees and egg carton ants.
Image courtesy of Pinkstripeysocks.com
Panda Bear
Isn’t this egg carton panda bear from Patch Work Parent adorable? We particularly love the bamboo shoot made from a cocktail stick.
Image courtesy of Patchworkparent.blogspot.com
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Little Ladybirds
These egg carton ladybirds from the Go Green blog are cute and look easy to make. We like that a different colour has been used for each one, and the little pompom faces with googly eyes are so sweet.
Image courtesy of Gogreenwebdirectory
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Egg Carton Crab Craft
Have fun making some egg carton crabs with these step-by-step instructions from The Spruce Crafts. There are lots of other fun craft tutorials on the site if you have a browse too.
Image courtesy of Thesprucecrafts.com
Egg Carton Dinosaurs
If you’ve got a dinosaur fan in the house, these egg carton dinosaurs are the perfect craft to make with them. Mum Crystal shares her how-to steps on her blog, which are easy to follow.
Image courtesy of Ourkidthings.com
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Egg Carton Bee
This adorable egg carton baby bee craft from Buggy and Buddy is a good one for preschoolers and junior infants/kindergarten-aged kids. It’s cute and easy to make, and it gets them thinking about being bee-friendly too!
Image courtesy of buggyandbuddy.com
Egg Carton Whale
We just love this egg carton whale craft from I Heart Crafty Things. It’s such a friendly little whale, and you could make several from one egg carton.
Image courtesy of Iheartcraftythings.com
Egg Carton Alligator
This is a fabulous use of a whole egg carton to make an egg carton alligator. There are step-by-step instructions for this and other fun animal-themed crafts on the Kix Cereal website.
Image courtesy of Kixcereal.com
Egg Carton Snail Craft
Complete your animal line-up with another simple and super cute craft from The Spruce Crafts. These snails can be decorated easily by little ones, who can be as creative as they like with the shell designs.
Image courtesy of Thesprucecrafts.com
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Over to you now – any other suggestions for egg carton crafts for kids? Share them with us in the comments below.
Frequently Asked Questions
What age are egg carton crafts suitable for?
Most of the crafts above suit children from about 3 or 4 years upwards with a little help, and older children can manage most of the cutting and assembling themselves. Simple painting steps work well for toddlers too, with an adult handling any scissor work.
What supplies do I need to get started?
The basics are an empty egg carton, poster or acrylic paint, scissors, glue and whatever extras a particular craft calls for, such as pipe cleaners, googly eyes or pompoms. Most households already have these on hand, which is part of why egg carton crafts are such a handy rainy-day activity.
How do I make the paint stick to the egg carton?
Egg cartons are usually made from moulded pulp or card, so ordinary poster or acrylic paint takes well. A thin base coat left to dry fully before adding details gives the best finish.
Can egg carton crafts be stored or reused?
Once painted pieces are fully dry, they store well in a box or on a shelf. Many of these crafts, like the caterpillar or ladybirds, also make lovely small decorations for a shelf or windowsill.
Where can I find more craft ideas like this?
We regularly add new craft ideas for kids across all ages, from simple painting projects to more involved seasonal makes – browse our craft section for more inspiration any time you need a rainy-day activity.
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Loved these ideas? Bookmark this page so you’ve always got a craft ready to go next time an egg carton lands in the recycling box – or browse our full craft section for more simple, low-cost ideas the kids will love.
