How to Make a Homemade Easter Basket

Bleach Bottle Bunnies and Paper Mache Eggs

Store-bought Easter baskets are typically cheap in quality and high in price, and this is why many people choose a homemade Easter basket over the store-bought kind. Homemade Easter baskets are far better than anything you'll find already filled in the store. Instead of going with an overpriced ready-filled Easter basket this year, consider the following ideas for homemade Easter baskets. Store-bought baskets can't compare, and homemade Easter baskets can't be beat!

Paper Mache Easter Egg

If you want to try your hand at creating a homemade Easter basket that looks like a giant Easter egg, consider making a paper mache egg using newspaper, a balloon, and simple paper mache paste. The finished Easter egg basket can be decorated with paints and filled with shredded pastel colored paper, wrapped candy, and small toys.

Begin by mixing simple paper mache paste using one part flour and five parts water, and bring it to a boil. While the paste is heating, cut newsprint into strips about one-inch wide and six-inches long. Stir the paste often to keep it from sticking to the pan and burning.

Once the paper mache paste has cooled enough to handle, blow up a balloon into the shape of an egg, and begin dipping the paper strips and covering the balloon. After the balloon is completely covered, allow the paper mache to dry completely. Once it's dry, pop the balloon with a pin, and cut a large hole in one end and remove the balloon. Save the piece so it can be painted and replaced once the homemade paper mache egg is filled.

Paint the outside of the egg and the section from the end with latex paints of your choice. Allow the paint to dry completely, and fill it with Easter grass, candy, and toys. Using a little clear drying craft glue, replace the end, and allow the glue to dry. The recipient can either smash the egg to get to the contents or remove the end.

Homemade Bunny Basket