$5 DIY Egg Carton Lamp
Remember that one time I made a lamp out of egg cartons? No? Well I did…as crazy as it sounds I did. I made a lamp out of egg cartons. And why would I do this you ask? Well I was challenged by AllYou Magazine, as part of their ‘Take This, Make That‘ challenge, to repurpose egg cartons into something fun and useful for the home, and to do it all for a total cost of $5 or less. Sounds simple right?
Ummmmm…well I decided I needed to go hard or go home with this project, so I did something totally crazy and made a lamp. And I may have muttered a few flowery words while I tried to figure out what I was doing, but after it was done, I was so happy with this project! So much so in fact, that I currently have it sitting in my living room and I do use it. It’s actually quite pretty in real life…who knew? 😉
Here is what the lamp looks like with the lights turned off. Fun right?!
And here it is with the lights turned on. I love this lamp!
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So how did I make this you ask? Well, here’s a really quick and simple tutorial for you…don’t be scared…it’s actually very easy to make!
Materials for your Egg Carton Lamp:
- About 9 cardboard egg cartons (the 12 dozen sized)
- Spray paint
- Chicken wire (10 x 20 inches)
- 1 string of 100 LED lights (See tips)
- Floral wire
- Scissors
- Craft knife
How To Make an Egg Carton Lamp:
- Cut out the individual cups from the egg cartons, and trim them to look like flowers.
- Lay the cups out on a plastic sheet and spray paint both the outside and the inside of the cups. Let dry completely.
- Push a lightbulb through each hole in the chicken wire. Use little pieces of the floral wire to tie the lights to the chicken wire.
- Once the lights have all been poked through and attached, form the chicken wire into a cylinder, and tie together with the wire. Stand the cylinder up like a table lamp.
- Using a craft knife, cut an X on the bottom of each egg cup, then push the egg cups on to each of the light bulbs.
- Plug in and enjoy!
Tips for Making an Egg Carton Lamp:
- Use LED lights because they don’t get hot, and you don’t want to start a fire with your lamp! But like with anything, be careful and pay attention to your lamp so that it doesn’t become a fire hazard! So far, my lamp has been great with the LED lights, as they tend to stay cool.
- I used spray paint in the colour aqua, but you can use any colour you like! Have fun!
- This light would look fun on a table or hung from the ceiling.
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There, now I can say I made a lamp out of egg cartons! Never thought I’d ever say that, hee hee!
Oh my goodness! So creative! I would never have guessed from the photos that it was made with an egg carton — bravo!
Thanks Tia! this was a fun project!
I am going to make this for my youngest daughter’s room! We redecorated it for her birthday last month. Just yesterday I was thinking how it needed something in one corner. This would be perfect hanging there! Thanks for the idea.
You are so welcome! Have fun with it!
Looooove it! It’s so creative – and also, how exciting is it to be in print!?!?!? Great work, Jo-Anna!
Thank you Tara! 🙂
It’s very pretty. I’m glad to see you’ve gone back (a bit) to DIY. Although I love your recipies, I like the crafty stuff as well.
Thanks Leslie! I do love the crafts too and would like to get back to them a bit more…
The flowers look so pretty! Smart idea!
Thank you!!
This is a great idea.it would be lovely on the patio in summer lit with solar lights.
Solar lights are a great idea!
Great idea!!!! Think it would look great at Christmas!!! I can picture red or gold
Thanks! What a great idea for the holidays!
Yes, everyone had 9 12 dozen sized egg cartons and chicken wire lying around the house! But I love the lamp! Doesn’t look crafty!
Very true! I guess I just meant more that the materials for this project are not complicated and easy to find!
You should make a video while making the lamp or at least show all of the items you used so we get the right stuff.
did you use Styrofoam or the cardboard egg carton?
Hi Diane! I used cardboard egg cartons.
I’m visiting from Hometalk and am floored by how pretty an egg carton lamp could look! I’ll be sure to return for more of your brand of inspiration! =D
Thank you so much Yvonne! I really enjoyed sharing this project!
Superb idea!
Thank you Clare!
What a wonderful project. Teal is my favorite color. I’m going to give this a try. Putting your tutorial in the ‘to do’ pile. Much thanks.
Sheila
Thank you Sheila! This was a fun project to share!
This is one of the most adorable thing I’ve seen.
Thank you so much Kenyatta!
I wanted to ask, is it safe? I mean, what kind of lightbolbs did you use so that heat won’t cause any problem? Cause I’ve heard stories (no personal experience though) that it could catch on fire.. Don’t mean to degrade your work, it truly looks gorgeous! I’m just a little insecure with lightbolbs. . . Another question.. Are you familiar with paints that are heat resistant? Cause it would be cool to have it in other colors less than grey or blue. Thank you very much! Great work!
That is a good question Violet! I only have experience with my lamp, but I used LED lights so it never seems to get warm, even after being left on all day…
That is very fun! I think this would be so cute in a dorm room!
Thank you Michelle!
Hi!
I love this lamp! Very creative! My daughter would love one for her room in hot pink. We will have to add it to our project “to-do” list. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you Kristi!!
Amazing!!! This is a fantastic light.
Thank you Carmody!
This is sooo cool..wow! You are one creative girl 🙂
Thank you Delia!
This is so beautiful and such a unique idea! I just wanted to let you know that I am linking to this post at Simply Creative Living on May 13th if you don’t mind.
Thanks Alyssa! I don’t mind at all! 🙂
This is crazy cute and so creative! I love how it turned out:) who would have know?! Wow!
So very cute! I love flowers, and can’t wait to make one. If goes well, will make more. Thank-You
Thank you Kelly!
Really cute! I thought I’d try this and take it one step further and put actual silk flowers inside the egg cup flowers to embelish further…maybe even incorporate some hanging crystals around the bottom? and some coming out of the flowers…like they have in the wedding supply section of the craft store….
Oh that sounds amazing! Have fun!
Do you think I’ll mess it up if I paint the eggs cartons before cut them??
Hi Angelica! I thought about doing that as well, but I worried about the paint possible crumbling as I cut them out. That and the edges would need to be painted after, so I just decided to paint them all after I cut them.
Jo-Anna
This is absolutely stunning. I am working on “egg carton” projects at the moment and I actually started following you here and on FB because I was so inspired by this lamp.
Thank you Vicki! It is one of my favourite projects!
Hi Jo Anna
The egg carton lamps looks gorgeous. Where can I find Christmas lights now? I would need about 6 or7 strings.
Thanks,
LuAnn