DIY A Stunning Floral Arrangement With An Egg Carton And A Mason Jar

To most people, an empty egg carton is an item ready to be tossed in the recycling bin. But, to the crafty artist, it's a blank canvas begging to be turned into something beautiful. It turns out that breakfast leftovers hatch all kinds of creativity. Using a few basic supplies and acrylic paint, you can transform an egg carton into adorable DIY flower decor that can add a pop of color to your home. To complete this project, you'll separate the trays, use scissors and paint to bring the flowers to life, and attach them to stems made out of rolled paper. When your floral arrangement is ready to be displayed, use a mason jar as the vessel and upgrade it however you desire to match your interior design style.

A video tutorial by the YouTube channel Craft Messenger shows the basic steps to creating this charming upcycled bouquet. This DIY is more play than work, making it the perfect rainy day craft to do with the kids or a fun activity to try with friends. It requires only a sprinkle of crafting skill, and if you don't love the way your flower turns out on the first try, you have just under a dozen more opportunities to perfect your artwork. For this craft, you will need a standard cardboard egg carton, green colored paper, scissors, hot glue, and acrylic paint for the petals. Once you've gathered your materials, start creating your gorgeous arrangement.

To begin, use your scissors to remove the individual egg trays from the carton and turn them into flower petals by cutting slits and rounding the edges of each petal. It may be helpful to draw the petals onto the cardboard with a pen before cutting them out. Next, cut your green paper in half, roll it tightly into a thin cylinder to form the stem, and seal it with glue. Cut the edges of your makeshift stem at one end and fold them down, then attach your petal to these folds with hot glue. Bend the stems slightly to give them a more authentic appearance. Now, you can get to the fun part of painting the petals to your liking. Achieve a realistic look by painting a gradient that softly fades from dark at the edges to light in the center, with a contrasting color in the very middle. Repeat the process until you have a dozen flowers.

While the paint dries (which could take up to an hour), you can prepare the vase. A simple mason jar wrapped with jute twine is a perfect vessel if you prefer a minimalist style, and you can find jute at most craft stores or on Amazon. Or, you can create a gorgeous personalized flower vase by painting your mason jar and giving it a makeshift picture frame. Another option is to repurpose an egg carton to create a stylish vase if you have an extra one to spare. Who knew egg cartons could have so much artistic potential?