Recycled Easter Crafts

Today’s comment challenge: What is your favourite part of Easter? What events do you try to hit or traditions do you have? Bonus points for craft and food ideas:) I’ve got a Super Scrapbooking Kit for one random commenter.

There are times, on those days when I have to fight through the gigantic pile of empty egg cartons and toilet paper rolls stacked up waiting for repurposing, that I believe my efforts to reuse instead of trash are going to turn me into one of those women. You know, one who, when I die, people will go into my house for the first time in years only to discover that I passed due to a tragic collapse of cardboard…and it takes them three weeks to dig me out.

Then, the tiny person and I spend an afternoon making egg-carton bunnies and chicks, TP roll lambs and paper plate bonnets and I find myself rather grateful for this neurosis.

Call me the crazy egg lady. I’m good with that – especially now that Easter is just around the corner (next Sunday for all of you who, like me, have lost the concept of time to the concept of childhood) and I can put the remnants of many a breakfast to proper use.

So, here’s a series of Easter crafts that are fun, easy and double as cute additions to the toy/dress up chest once the Easter Bunny has packed up and headed back to the land of chocolate. I’ll do each of them individually as to not confuse directions and supplies for each.

BUNNIES AND CHICKS

My whole theory this year is to take as much plastic out of our Easter baskets as possible. So, when Maureen over at the Puntledge Park StrongStart program tossed me the chick-in-an-egg-carton craft, I had found my winner. As an aside, it’s the ONLY craft our daughter has EVER been interested in doing at StrongStart. So, I figured I was parentally obligated to let her absolute adoration (she can’t get enough of these guys) continue beyond the classroom.

I modified the original craft quite a bit, adding a ribbon to hang them and different colours. Here’s what you need:

* 1 cardboard egg carton cut up into individual egg cups (leave the backs and the sides on so that you have a place to attach ribbon)
* Cotton balls or pompoms in pink, white, yellow or whatever colour sounds fun (enough for two on each creature) plus little ones for the bunny’s nose and tail.
* Ribbon in Spring colours (I used 7 to 10 inches on each side of the cup to tie together. So, it’s a fair bit of ribbon. Thrifting is a great way to score this)
* Google eyes (two per creature)
* A hole punch
* Craft Glue (a hot glue gun works best for attaching the eyes if you are making these for a toddler or preschooler since they are a choking hazard and you want them attached as solidly as possible. DON’T use the glue gun with a toddler or preschooler around.)
* Craft paper for bunny ears and the chick’s beak.
* Scissors

Directions:

1. Cut egg carton up into individual cups.
2. Take the hole punch and punch a hole in the cardboard on either side of cup so that you have two to put ribbon through for hanging.
3. Cut ribbon into 7 to 10-inch strips. Take two strips. Tie one through each hole (I stuck it through the bottom, knotted it and then pulled it tight). Then, tie them together at the top.
4. Take two big cotton balls/pompoms and glue the first one to the bottom of the cup. The second to the top of the first one.
5. Take two google eyes. Glue them on.
6. Grab the craft paper (I used colourful scrapbooking paper for some added colour and design) and cut out a set of ears for the bunny or a diamond to fold over for the chick’s beak. When Gluing the bunny ears on, I recommend also gluing them to the back of the cup if you can for a bit more stability. Glue everything on.
7. Take two small pompoms and glue one on the bunny face for a nose and one on the back of the cup for a tail.

That’s it.

These are so easy. Our daughter instantly befriended her new buddies Wellie and Jellie and ran around all afternoon with them on her arms.

THE TOILET PAPER ROLL LAMB

I love, love, love this silly little lamb discovered over at Kaboose.com.

What more can I say?

There’s nothing cuter than a baby lamb, except for maybe a TP roll baby lamb.

Here’s what you need:

* TP rolls
* A bag of white cotton balls or pompoms
* Craft glue (again, hot glue for the eyes)
* Google eyes (two per lamb)
* Black felt
* black or brown pipe cleaners
* Hole punch
* Scissors

Directions:

1. Take one pipe cleaner. Cut it into even thirds. Then, take the hole punch and punch four holes in one end of the tube, two side-by-side in front and two of the same in back, to make holes for the legs. Take two of the pipe cleaner thirds. Thread one through the front and one through the back to make the legs. (It’s not the sturdiest craft. But, he does stand up if you work it a little)
2. Take the black felt and cut a square that will fit over one end of the tube. Put glue around the edge of that end and stick the felt on. Trim around the edges of the felt to get more of a circle shape or leave it as is for a lamb with a bit of character.
3. Take the TP roll, cottton balls and glue. Then, start gluing the cotton balls all over the roll, making sure to complete a ring around the front where you put the felt to frame his face.
4. Glue the google eyes on.

There you have it. Cute, cuddly lamb.

PAPER PLATE EASTER BONNETS

When I was little, one of my most favourite times of the year was Easter for one reason – my mom would take me out, just the two of us, and I would get to pick out a pair of white patent leather shoes, a new church dress and an Easter bonnet.

The shoes and dress were fine. But, it was that perfect, sweet hat for which I waited all year to wear. Not really into the girlie stuff any other time, that one moment of pure girlie prettiness was golden in my heart.

So, when I stumbled upon directions for paper plate Easter bonnets over at Amazingmoms.com, we were all over it.

While a little tricky to keep on the top of your head (Ken experimented with different ways of cutting into the plate to get it to stay easier with no success), these are totally fun to make and, if nothing else, make for sweet Spring wall decorations.

I will say, this isn’t really a boy craft on the surface. But, with some string, cool stickers, even some paint, there’s a space hat, cowboy hat or egg head in here.

Here’s what you need for the girlie version:

* Paper plates
* Ribbon
* Hole punch
* All kinds of supplies to decorate with. We used beads, stickers and buttons.
* Glue

Directions:

1. Take the plate and punch holes in opposite sides to tie the ribbon through. Cut ribbon into 1-foot strips (or longer if you need or like the flowing look). Take two pieces of ribbon. Tie one through one hole, the other through the opposite one. This way you’ll have two pieces that you can tie together to tighten or loosen for a good fit.
2. Decorate like crazy.
3. Wear and enjoy!

Happy Easter crafting!

Tags: animals, bonnets, crafts, Easter, family, Kai Kids, Kids, Paper, recycled

Category: ARTS & LITERACY, Crafts, The Green Home