Turn a cardboard egg carton into colourful “vintage” style ornaments with some paint and a little creativity.
Don’t you love it when you can create something awesome using minimal supplies and materials you already have around the house?
These egg carton ornaments require only egg cartons and paint, but the end result of this simple craft is beautiful.
The idea for these “vintage” ornaments came to me last week after publishing our egg carton Christmas bell craft for toddlers and preschoolers.
We had some leftover egg carton sections, and I thought it would be fun for the older kids to make something a little more advanced out of them.
I decided on “vintage” style ornaments because my older Hooligans really enjoyed making these cardboard vintage ornaments a couple of years ago.
Those ornaments were 2-dimensional because they were made with flat pieces of cardboard. Although they turned out great, today’s ornaments are 3-dimensional so they look more authentic and very much like real vintage ornaments.
My gang loves an open-ended art activity where they can go crazy with colour and design. If your kids are like the Hooligans, they’ll love this craft because with these ornaments, the busier they look, the better.
I’ll show you how we made them, so your kids can start planning their designs.
Supplies:
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- cardboard egg carton
- scissors
- glue gun
- acryli craft paint
- paintbrushes
- craft varnish
- thin cord or metallic thread for hanging
- pony beads (I wish I’d used metallic ones)
Instructions:
Time needed: 1 hour
How to make Painted Egg Carton Ornaments
- Cut egg carton into sections
Examine your egg carton before using it. You’ll see that there are cups (where the eggs sit), and spikes in between the cups. Some egg carton have very subtle spikes, so you may just be using the cups.
Cut your egg carton up into pairs of cups and spikes.
- Trim and match
Trim any uneven edges and match up your cups and spikes in pairs.
- Glue pairs together
With a glue gun, glue pairs of cups and spikes together.
- Paint egg carton ornaments
Paint your ornaments in a variety of colours and patterns. This is where you can really have some fun so go wild using lots of colours and patterns on the sides of your ornaments.
The cardboard egg cartons will become damp and soft as you paint them, so make sure they’re completely dry before moving on to the next step.
TIP: A hairdryer will speed up the drying process. - Varnish
Brush a coat of clear craft varnish over your ornaments to enhance the colour and add a nice sheen.
- Add a bead and hanging thread
Glue a pony bead to the top of each ornament and thread with fine cord or metallic string.
Your gorgeous egg carton ornaments are ready to hang on your tree. Enjoy!
You may also like our:
- Painted Plastic Egg Christmas Ornaments
- Egg Carton Christmas Bells
- Cardboard “Vintage” Christmas Ornament Craft
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Jackie is a mom, wife, home daycare provider, and the creative spirit behind Happy Hooligans. She specializes in kids’ crafts and activities, easy recipes, and parenting. She began blogging in 2011, and today, Happy Hooligans inspires more than 2 million parents, caregivers and Early Years Professionals all over the globe.
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