Penguin author, Aura Parker, shares her inspired quarantine Easter craft ideas made from toilet paper rolls:
Wonderful, Easter is here! I have been good this year and stayed home, so hopefully the Easter Bunny will deliver lots of chocolate to me. Ha ha! Normally we would be taking a short break for family celebrations, Easter egg hunts and a bit (okay a lot) of gorging on chocolate. But this year is completely different in the wake of, well, everything, the overwhelming everything.
At my house we have been chugging the bandwidth, and that is okay as we all find new ways to be connected in these times of juggling school and work from home. But, I can honestly tell you the simple process of making these craft items made me feel calm. So, if you are like me, distracted by constantly checking the news – which only gets worse by the hour – maybe a little Easter craft would do you good? I dare you to …
I have always loved making things, when I am working on a story, I can get lost in the creative zone for hours. My latest, Goodnight Glow Worms is a reassuring bedtime book for little ones, which will hopefully offer a little light in the darkness.
I have kept it simple, so you don’t have to go out and buy anything, just improvise and use what you have at home. I found a little bit of fabric, a sock and some boggly eyes, but my main ingredient is, you guessed it – our most humble and highly coveted toilet paper rolls! No need for panic buying, thank you very much. Let’s make the most of it and get creative over the Easter weekend.
Bunny Ears
Draw bunny ear shapes on two toilet rolls. Cut them out. Paint them or stick some fabric on. I was able to turn the toilet roll inside out to use the white surface inside. Attach bunny ears to a ribbon using a stapler.
Bunny Phone Holder
Draw bunny shape onto the toilet roll. Keep in mind a shape at the back to cradle the phone. Cut out shape. Paint a cute bunny face. Add boggly eyes or draw some on. Decorate with fabric.
Chicken and Egg
Draw a template of the chicken shape on paper. Trace onto the toilet roll. Cut it out. Decorate with fabric and paint. Add boggly eyes. Cut out the fronds of the nest using a new toilet roll. Add some chocolate eggs.
Goodnight Glow Worm Lantern
Fold a toilet roll, flatten and in half again. Cut strips to make the lantern body. Make a template of the head shape on paper. Trace onto a new toilet roll. Cut out head shape. Paint the Glow Worm face. Add boggly eyes. Attach head to the lantern body. Put some fabric around the neck. Place your phone torch below the Glow Worm lantern to light it up!
Cocoon and Moth
Draw a template of the moth shape. Trace onto the toilet roll. Cut out Moth shape. Add patterns, face and decorate wings. Add boggly eyes. Make a cocoon out of another flattened toilet roll, it should fit your folded up moth.
Easter Bunny Sock Puppet
Cut a toilet roll in half. Draw bunny shaped ears and a nose on the inside white part. Cut them out. Paint the ears. Staple them onto an old sock. Stick on the features and draw the mouth with a pen. Time for a puppet show!
Easter Egg Cup
Cut a piece of paper to fit perfectly around the toilet roll. Fold into five equal segments. Draw a petal shape. Cut it out so you have a template for the flower petals. Trace them on. Cut out petal shape and fold them down. Repeat with another toilet roll to double the amount of petals. Fit one inside the other by cutting the centre one. Place fabric in the centre and fill with Easter eggs.
Want more fun craft projects? Try these:
