How to... make a (very quick & easy) Lantern - Red Ted Art

I am sometimes guilty of being too enthusiastic about crafts and making things, that can take a little more time to make. Not everyone has the time, nor the inclination. So here have a VERY quick and easy lantern for busy mum and dads (and aunties and uncles and carers). It will take 10-15min max and will look great!

I made this one last year in time “St Martins Day” – a lantern walk traditional to Germany, Austria and many other European countries! All children in Germany make all sorts of different lanterns in school and then on the 11 November come together at dusk and go for a walk with their lanterns and sing lantern songs. Here is modern version of one of my favourite Laterne Laterne, Sonne, Mond und Sterne – Red Ted and I listened to it over and over again (much to The Englishman’s boredom):

I love how this gives us an opportunity to introduce Germanic customs for our bilingual family and yet it still “fits” with British tradition – change the designs on the lantern and you have a fab decoration for Halloween!

So, only final product photos I am afraid, but this is what you do:

Materials: a paper lamp shade (I bought a cheap set of three in Argos, but you can get them in places like IKEA too), black paper, scissors, glue & and a lantern stick. We bought our “light stick” from Germany, from place like this. But maybe have a hunt around the internet for one? (**check my comments below for some alternative ideas, e.g. electronic tea lights or small torches**)

1) Choose a lantern shape – if you can find smaller ones, great, but the “big” ones look fab too.

2) Cut out simple shapes: we did stars, rockets, moon, cat. For Halloween, you can do a pumpkin, witch, cat etc. I haven’t had a chance to do some stencils for you, but Single Mummy has some cute In The Nightgarden ones here and a cat & jack o’lantern one here – go and take a look and make this craft super duper easy and effective!

3) Glue on

4) DONE!