Halloween may be full of spooky tricks and things that go bump in the night, but when it's all over, there's something even scarier to face: waste!

As with any holiday, waste is rampant on Halloween. Just think about all those pumpkins and single-use plastics that end up in the trash. Luckily, there's an easy way to be festive and treat the planet with love while still having plenty of Halloween fun. This year, consider transforming your empty 100% recycled Nellie's Free Range Egg cartons into these scarily cute mini jack o' lanterns that you can decorate your home, entryway, or porch with again and again as the years go by. There are no tricks involved; just a little bit of paint, tissue paper, some pipe cleaners, and glue. No magic spells needed, either. Just bring your crafting skills and creativity!

DIY upcycled egg carton jack o' lanterns

You'll need two egg "cups" from empty Nellie's Free Range Egg cartons to make a single jack o' lantern, so before you start, grab enough cartons to make as many jack o' lanterns as you'd like. To string them into a garland, for example, you may need at least two egg cartons. Next, choose your paint colors. Keep it simple by going with orange or mix things up by creating a purple, orange, and green color scheme. It's up to you! Grab the rest of the supplies below, then follow the instructions to assemble your mini jack o' lanterns.

Supplies:

• Nellie's Free Range Egg Cartons
• Purple paint
• Assorted paint brushes, including a thin paint brush for curling pipe cleaners
• Reusable cup or mug for paint
• Black permanent marker
• Green tissue paper or cardstock
• Green pipe cleaners
• Hot glue gun
• Scissors

Directions:

• Cut out each egg cup and trim the edges. You will need 2 cups for each jack o'lantern.
• Using a brush, paint each egg cup. Let dry completely, then apply a second coat if needed.
• Cut 3 pieces of pipe cleaners for each jack o' lantern. Curl 2 of the 3 pieces around a thin brush.
• Cut small leaves out of green tissue paper or cardstock.
• Using hot glue, attach leaves to one of the piper cleaner pieces.
• Poke a hole through the top of one egg cup. Insert all 3 pipe cleaner pieces through the hole and secure them with hot glue so that the tops are sticking out like stems.
• Hot glue the egg cup with pipe cleaners to an empty egg cup to create a round shape. Repeat with all remaining egg cups.
• Use a permanent market to draw your jack o' lantern faces.

Did you create your own egg carton jack o' lanterns? 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.