Crepe Paper Carrots

My family does holidays in a big way - big family, big food spread, a big gathering. When things in your life are often big (like family and holiday dinners), it's nice to remember the details. This year, I got inspired by Martha Stewart's Crepe Paper Carrots and decided to make a basketful to share with the many bunnies in my family.

As usual, I took a bit of creative freedom and read the comments & suggestions added by people since there wasn't much to the directions I found. Then I came up with my own way of working with what I have and found. (As much love as I have for Martha and her website, some of her projects include little or no usable instructions and you have to figure things out on your own, this was no exception.) Mine don't look exactly like Martha's, but I'm not worried. I'm sure they will be appreciated just as they are.

I started with a selection of candy, small toys, and temporary Easter tattoos (most of which I picked up at a local dollar store) for the filling. (Suckers, licorice, pixie sticks, some gummy bunny teeth, bubbles, little horns, frogs, etc.)

To help give a base shape (and with an unneeded concern for running out of crepe paper),  I started with cut squares of white tissue paper that I folded in half diagonal, to make a triangle. Using a long toy or piece of candy I started the basic shape in the white tissue paper, wrapping it up in a cone (or carrot-like) shape, using dots of hot glue to secure the end. (I love my mini hot glue gun!)


Using green tissue paper I cut the leaves for the top. (I folded the paper, cutting them into strands that resembled grass, then cut the sections apart.) I secured the leaf tops to the top of the basic white cone with a dot or two or hot glue. (This was done at the top of the white tissue paper or along the side of a plastic wrapper on the top.)

Starting from the bottom, I began wrapping the crepe paper upward, tucking more candy, toys, or temporary tattoos as I went, helping to keep the shape with the bottom more narrow and the top wider. I secured the crepe paper around the top (adding dots of hot glue as needed, but remember not to overdo it), then wrapped downward. Wrapping each carrot upward once and downward once, I was able to give each carrots a center wrap tissue paper with two layers of colored crepe paper, tucking in little presents as I went. Using another dot of hot glue, I secure the tissue paper along the bottom or side, tucking as needed.

The carrots are nicely arranged in a basket (at least for now), sitting on some green netting I had on hand.

The rolls of crepe paper I got went a lot further than I thought they would. I ended up getting about 35 carrots from about 1 1/2 rolls of crepe paper and about 2 sheets of green tissue paper (for the leaves). The white tissue paper was something I already had on hand and was cut in wide strips from another project.

These are going to make great favors for our family Easter this year, adding something special to the tables.

I have this weird desire to come up with other vegetables full of little present and made of crepe paper and/or tissue paper for a garden themed party.