DIY Mermaid Lantern Jar - Red Ted Art - Make crafting with kids easy & fun

Ooh I am SO excited about today’s guest post by Adventure in a Box.. if you are not familiar with Adventure in a Box, it is high time you legged it over to this gorgeous website and check out all their fantastic and rather magical DIYs.. for me Adventure in a Box is synonymous with magical DIY lanterns – whether it is Fairy Lanterns or Halloween Lanterns – they are all stunning and magical and simply fabulous.

And today.. as our excitement about magical Mermaid DIYs continues, I get to share with you, these oh so precious DIY Mermaid Lantern Jars!! Take the MAGIC under the sea with this beautiful DIY Mermaid Room Decor.. a DIY Craft that is good enough to sell at summer fairs!! Over to Adventure in a Box…

DIY Mermaid Lantern Jars. How to turn Mason Jars into magical Mermaid Mason Jars. Beautiful DIY Mermaid Room Decor! Includes free template #mermaids #printables #masonjars #fairyjars #lanterns #diy — First shared in May 2018

DIY Mermaid Lanterns Jars

Upcycle mason jars and turn them into a set of lanterns with magical silhouettes of mermaids and fish set against the luminescent background of the sea. Great for atmospheric décor, whether for a backyard patio or a sea-themed celebration!

Materials for Making Mermaid Jar Lanterns

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jars – we like to make a collection of Mermaid Jars to really give it that magical effect. 3 jars is a great number
spray paint – in under the sea colours – a nice turquoise is great
plain paper
white glue like Elmer’s or Weldbond
printed mermaid template (click on the big red printables button)
cold white LED candles (e.g. US/ UK)

How to make a Mermaid in a Jar

Step 1: Mermaid Jar Preparation

First, prepare the jars. For a set of three, I recommend a standard half-pint mason jar, a small jam jar and a big pickle jar. Before applying paint, wash them thoroughly. If possible, finish washing with a bit of alcohol – it degreases the glass and removes any sticker residue or codes printed directly on the glass.

Step 2: Spray Painting your Mermaid Jars

Spray paint the outsides of the jar. Either Krylon or Rust-Oleum spray paint would work. You can try different shades of blue or green that these brands offer. I used Meadow Green Gloss, and I think that Seaside Gloss would also look beautiful.

Be careful to leave the jars translucent by spraying a very thin layer – not at all the way you would usually apply spray paint – more like a layer of deliberate over-spray. Once the paint is dry, drop a candle inside one of the jars and see how the light comes through. If the light isn’t coming through, the layer of paint is too thick, and you need to try again with a different jar.

Let the paint dry thoroughly, according to the instructions on the can. Usually, the jars are ready in half an hour.

Step 3: Creating Your Mermaid Designs

Now, there are several ways of putting the design onto the jars. Here I’m going to describe how to cut and glue the designs onto the jars, which is my favourite way. But you can also draw the designs onto the jar with markers or paint them with a mix of acrylic and glue paint.

If you plan to make the designs with paper cutouts, you can do so by printing the designs on the standard printer paper, but if you happen to have black paper that you can print on, that will work even better. Then you don’t have to be as careful in following the design when cutting, and there are no unseemly white edges around the designs when they are cut.

Use standard scissors for cutting big pieces out, and small manicure scissors for intricate parts. A craft knife is excellent for making cuts inside of the design, like mermaid scales. Here you can watch a video tutorial of the cutting process I made for a different set of lanterns.

Have a Cricut Machine or a Silhouette Cameo? It would work great! You need to import the design into your library – it will only take a minute. Here is my tutorial for how to do it with a Cricut Machine, and here is the tutorial for Silhouette Cameo.

After you got the silhouettes, glue them onto the jars with white glue that dries clear, like Elmer’s or Weldbond.

Step 4: Add Candles and make your Mermaid Lanterns GLOW!

For these marine lanterns, cold white LED candles will give just the right atmosphere. Since the jar is translucent, the light of the candle comes through at the bottom of the jar and creates a magical gradient effect.