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$5 DIY Egg Carton Lamp

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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?

$5 DIY Egg Carton Lamp {A Pretty Life}
You can find the full challenge in the April Issue of AllYou Magazine.

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?  😉

$5 DIY Egg Carton Lamp {A Pretty Life}

Here is what the lamp looks like with the lights turned off.  Fun right?!

$5 DIY Egg Carton Lamp {A Pretty Life}

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:

  1. Cut out the individual cups from the egg cartons, and trim them to look like flowers.
  2. Lay the cups out on a plastic sheet and spray paint both the outside and the inside of the cups.  Let dry completely.
  3. 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.
  4. 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.
  5. 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.
  6. 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!

Have an inspired day!
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Hi I'm Jo-Anna Rooney, the creator, director, baker, maker and home decorator here at A Pretty Life in the Suburbs! I'm sharing a simple home life through fresh and easy recipes and uncomplicated home tips and home decor.

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49 Comments

  4. 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.

    Reply

  8. 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!

    Reply

  9. 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.

    Reply

  13. 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

    Reply

  15. 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!

    Reply

  20. 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.

    Reply

  23. 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….

    Reply

    1. 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

      Reply

  25. 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.

    Reply