How to Make Magic Lanterns

Easy magic lanterns

Easy magic lanterns – you can take a set of plain glass tumblers and turn them into stunning magic lanterns. They’ll sparkle and shine for evening meals during warm summer nights in a tranquil garden. Even if you prefer to eat indoors, you can light the lanterns in the evenings and arrange them along the edge of the patio or along an outside window sill, purely for decoration.

The lanterns have been adorned with bright paper flowers, quickly cut from paper and stuck by their centers on to the outside of each glass, while inside there is a simple nightlight candle. Once the flower heads have been cut out, give them life either by layering flowers together or by curling the petals; running them between your thumb and scissor blades one by one. The stamens are cutout separately and stuck in the center of each flower head.

Materials

Plain glass tumblers 9cm (3 ½ in) tall

Nightlight candles

PVA adhesive

Tracing paper

Sharp-pointed scissors

Craft knife and cutting board

Artist’s paint brush

Canford cover paper in yellow, brown, cerise and white

Daisy Nightlight

Trace a daisy pattern similar to the picture and cut fifteen from white paper. Trace off the stamen and cut five from yellow paper. Cut out all centres. Snip stamen to within 3mm (1/8 in) of hole. Stick inner edge of five daisies evenly round tumbler. Stick a petal shape on top of each, gently rotating them so they do not lie directly over the previous set. Repeat to stick the last five shapes on top. Each daisy should then have three layers. Stick on stamen centers.

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Sunflower Nightlight

Trace off the sunflower similar to the picture and cut three from yellow paper make a dotted line and use as the inner circle. Trace and cut six centers from brown paper. Use a craft knife to cut the straight sections from the flower centers. Curl the petals slightly to the front. Stick the centers to the tumbler, evenly spacing them to allow room for petals. Stick the remaining centers at right angles over the top of the previous centers. Stick a petal shape over each flower centre.

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Clemantis Nightlight

Carefully trace off the petal shape similar to the picture  and cut out four using the cerise paper. Trace off the stamen shape and cut out four in yellow paper. Use the craft knife to cut out the white gaps in each petal. Slightly curl the center of each petal to the front. Curl each stamen to the front. Apply adhesive to the middle of each petal shape and stick to the tumbler, spacing them evenly around the glass. Stick each stamen over the center of each flower.

Reference: The Country Look—Decor & Crafts