How to make an Egg Carton Rose

I got the idea for these egg carton roses when I saw something similar in a beautiful craft display at our local library. Their version was a little more intricate, but it got me thinking about the huge pile of egg cartons in our recycling stash. I’m on a bit of a rose roll after making paper plate roses for Bee’s upcoming Wiggles Party… Maybe they could go together with these egg carton roses to be both party craft and party decorations??

So I set about to make some, and was surprised at how quick and easy they were. Besides the drying times, I reckon I could make half a dozen of these roses in under ten minutes.

To make some, you’ll need:

• an egg carton (or egg box if you’re British)
• paint and paint brush (optional)
• craft glue or PVA glue
• scissors

Start by painting an egg carton, on all sides, and let it dry. This step is super fun for both toddlers and preschoolers to do, especially as the results don’t need to be perfect. In fact, lots of little paint gaps will just add character to your rose. (Or, if you’d prefer plain roses, you could leave this step out altogether.)

Then cut out each individual, umm, egg cup? (What do you call the little space the egg sits in? Wikipedia calls it a dimple, which seems more quaint than accurate to me…). Cutting these out is a bit tricky for little hands, and probably needs a grown up. There’ll be two pointy corners that are higher than the rest – trim these down to size.

Then make four cuts at the lowest point on each side of the egg cups, so that they can be spread out roughly flat and look like they have four petals, and cut the lid of the egg carton horizontally into roughly one inch strips. My preschooler JJ (4 years old) was able to help with this, with some assistance. The hardest bit is that she had to cut through thick cardboard, which requires greater hand strength than cutting through paper. She could do it if I held the cardboard, so that she could use both hands to squeeze the scissors, but it would probably be better suited to a slightly older age group.

The next step is to glue two of these cut egg cups on top of one another, so that the petals underneath show through the gaps of the petals on top. Then roll up one of the horizontal strips and glue it onto the middle of the flower. Set the flower aside to dry.

And repeat!

We’ve made these three so far. (The bottom one was the one that JJ helped with).

Rosey fun! I think Dorothy the Dinosaur would be proud. 🙂

I might make some more and use them as party decorations. I’m thinking about also have a stack of painted and plain egg cartons available in case any of the kids (and likely a few grown ups) are feeling a bit crafty….

xx Danya