I Love to Create: Altered Chinese Paper Lanterns

I’m delighted to join the ranks of crafty bloggers for I Love to Create. Here’s my first installment in my bi-weekly Kid/Teen Craft blogs. All of these projects are “Mom Crafted, Kid Approved.”

We’ve been redecorating my daughter’s room and she wanted to get some Chinese style lanterns to hang from her ceiling. We found these for 3 for $5.00 at Five Below. They have a built in battery operated light! We wanted to give them a little pizzazz, so we punched out circles of patterned tissue paper and adhered them with Aleene’s Fast Grab Tacky Glue. Then we added some Tulip glitter and ric-rac trim accents. We love how these turned out and they were so easy and fun to make! Avalon did a more streamlined version that looks fabulous!

You can find the larger lanterns online and do a series of these in different sizes and shapes...I’m seriously thinking about putting some in my studio. Try using different sizes and shapes of punches and adding some Tulip flat back crystals to give them even more sparkle!

Altered Chinese Paper Lanterns
I Love to Create
Margot Potter

Paper Chinese style lantern
Patterned tissue paper
Ric-rac trim
Aleene’s Fast Grab Tacky Glue
Tulip GlitterDimensional Fabric Paint in Crystal Sparkles
Scissors
Fiskars 1” and 1.5” paper punches
Card stock sheets
Bubble wrap

1. Stuff your lantern carefully with bubble wrap to give it structure.

2. I chose tissue paper for the polka dot accents because it’s thin enough to easily adhere to the surface of the textured lantern, thicker paper doesn’t work as well because it’s too stiff to be molded to the base.

3. Fold the tissue paper over heavy card stock and insert into punch. Smooth any wrinkles with your fingers. Punch shape. (Designer tip: The card stock gives you some structure so the tissue paper will cut more easily, without that base the tissue will tear.) Cut 5 large and 5 small circles.

4. Spread a thin layer of Aleene’s Fast Grab Tacky Glue on the back of your tissue paper circles using your finger tip. (I chose this glue because it’s not too runny, adheres quickly and it didn’t saturate the tissue paper, this is a better choice for this specific project than decoupage medium.)

5. Apply the tissue paper circle to the desired spot on your lantern, carefully working from top to bottom gently smoothing the tissue on to the lantern. Take your time and be patient!

6. Continue adhering circles working around your lantern. Allow them to dry.
7. Spread a layer of Tulip glitter on some ric-rac trim.


8. Adhere small segments of pre-cut trim to the front of the larger tissue paper circles. Allow to dry.


9. Use your finger to spread a thin layer of Tulip glitter on the surface of each of the small circles. Allow to dry.

Avalon and her Altered Chinese Paper Lantern!