Whether your kiddos are planning a Mother's Day celebration, breakfast in bed for dad, or want to show their teachers some appreciation, these homemade upcycled egg carton flowers are the perfect gift.

Not only do they last longer than fresh flowers, but since they can be made with 100% recycled Nellie's Free Range Egg cartons, they're as kind to the planet as they are pretty! Each upcycled egg carton flower can be customized depending on the recipient's favorite color, and kids can express their creativity by adding glitter, stickers, and other decorations to make each bouquet all the more special. So before you jump into this project, ask your little ones what special touches they think the recipients will love the most and gather all the supplies you need to make a beautiful, long-lasting flower bouquet to brighten someone's day.

DIY upcycled egg carton flower bouquet

Since you'll only be using the "cup" part of the egg carton for these flowers, any size Nellie's Free Range Egg carton will work for this craft. You'll also need paint to give each upcycled egg carton flower some color, plus fine glitter and pom poms if you'd like to add even more pizazz to your bouquet. To give each flower a stem, grab some pipe cleaners in varying shades of green. For the final touch, kids can cut leaves out of green construction paper. Here's the full list of supplies and instructions to help you get started:

Supplies:

• Nellie's Free Range Egg cartons
• Scissors
• Glue
• Paint brushes
• Acrylic paint in colors of your choice
• Fine glitter
• Mini pom poms
• Pipe cleaners in varying shades of green
• Green construction paper

Directions:

• Cut out the egg "cups" from each carton, trimming the cut edges as needed.
• Cut the corners from top to bottom, leaving the center of each cup intact.
• Use scissors to round the tops of each cut section to create flower petals. Repeat with more egg cups to create as many flowers as you'd like.
• Cover your work surface with newspaper or cardboard and start painting your flowers by squeezing some paint into the center of the egg cup and using a paint brush to coat.
• While the paint is still wet, add glitter to your flowers if desired. Let dry completely.
• Once dry, poke a hole at the base of each flower.
• Insert a piper cleaner through the hole and glue a mini pom pom in the center where the pipe cleaner pokes through.
• Using colored construction paper, cut out leaf shapes and glue two leaves to the stem of each flower.
• Create a pretty bouquet by tying all your flowers together with a ribbon.

Did you create your own egg carton flower bouquet? Tag your photos with #nelliesfreerange so we can see! Or click here to see our other fun afternoon activites you can enjoy with the kids. And don't forget to check out Twinkle Twinkle Little Party for more inspiration.