Hatch an eye-catching centerpiece for your Easter table using colorful marshmallow Peeps.
Materials
- Several packages of pink, blue and yellow Peeps (we used chicks)
- Acrylic craft paint, green and blue
- Clear acrylic sealer (optional)
- Flat paintbrush
- ½- x 18-in. wooden dowel rod
- 4- to 5-in.-tall terra cotta pot
- 5-in.-wide white Styrofoam ball
- Small piece of floral foam to fit pot
- Metal floral pins
- Permanent glue
- Green paper grass
- ½-in.-wide patterned ribbon
Instructions
- Paint the dowel rod green and the pot’s exterior blue. Use as many coats as needed for full coverage, allowing to dry fully between coats. Apply sealer to rod and pot if desired and let dry.
- Glue floral foam in bottom of pot. Put a small amount of glue on end of rod and insert, centered, in foam.
- Fill pot top with green paper grass. Tie a bow around rod slightly above grass.
- Use rod to poke a hole, 1½ to 2 in. deep, in the Styrofoam ball. Beginning at the hole, draw a line around ball’s center.
- Leaving hole open, use floral pins to attach a row of pink Peeps, sides touching, along the drawn line. (We pinned through the tails to hide pins.) Next, attach a row of blue Peeps, followed by rows of yellow and pink, ending with a blue one in the center. Repeat rows on ball’s opposite side.
- Put a small amount of glue on the top of the rod. Insert rod into hole in Styrofoam ball; let glue dry.
Editor’s Note: If you want your topiary to be edible, use toothpicks instead of the pins, and assemble shortly before serving to be sure Peeps are fresh.
The Peeps Topiary Easter Craft was inspired by one created by “The Hungry Mouse” blogger Jessie Cross. Learn more about Jessie here.
Peeps Topiary Easter Craft photography by Country Woman.
I made this yesterday for my Easter celebration. There are a few things that I would add to the directions. First I think it would be easier to use stale peeps, the marshmallow was so soft that the toothpicks just ripped out of the peeps on the sides and the bottom. I had a bunch fall out and wouldn’t stay in but now that they have hardened they are staying in there. Also the base needs to be a bit bigger and it needs to be weighed down. Those peeps get very heavy! I also cut the dowel down because it was so top heavy to create better stability. I also had trouble keeping the Easter grass glued down in the pot, to help I ended up taking foil wrapped chocolate eggs and sticking toothpicks in them and then putting the toothpicks into the floral foam. It makes it look extra cute and holds down that Easter grass. It turned out looking great and would have been a cinch to make if I hadn’t had to figure out all the aforementioned items on my own.
Thanks for the chocolate egg idea. That was a hit!
We had fun doing this. I didn’t have time to let the Peeps sit out and get ‘stale’ so I think it helped to try and angle the toothpicks. The floral pins would have worked even better but I was unable to find them at my nearby store. I used about 65-70 Peeps on the project (and some for the kids). About 37 Pink, 20 blue, & 10 yellow would work but I used some green as well. My two sides were different due to my not knowing how many of each color. It still looked very cute. I used floral ‘marbles’ for weight in the pot and topped it off with chocolate eggs. Very pleased with the result!