tutorial :: autumn leaf lantern

In this beautiful season we have been enjoying leaves by collecting handfuls and ironing them between wax paper.  This inspired me to think about creating some candle lantern decorations for our Thanksgiving table.  I wasn't sure about using real leaves to make the lanterns; I've seen photos of how others have done it, but these things never seem to work as well for me, so I decided to try making lanterns with paper leaves...

Like this.

MATERIALS & SUPPLIES

-- a glass jar (or jars)

-- Mod Podge or diluted white craft glue

-- a wide paint brush

-- scissors, a pencil & a small bit of cardstock

-- Kite paper, also called Window Stars paper,

    which can be purchased here or here. Plain

    tissue paper will work as well.  Note: for this 

    project you will need autumn colors plus white 

    paper for covering the jars.

  

STEP 1 :: Find leaves which you like and, using a pencil, trace around the leaves on a small scrap of card stock.  This will be your template for cutting our your paper leaves.

STEP 2 :: Fold your Kite/Window Star paper (or tissue paper) into thirds or fourths and use your template to trace leaf shapes onto your folded paper.

STEP 3 :: Carefully cut out your leaves along the pencil lines you made from tracing your templates.

STEP 4 :: Cut pieces of white kite/window star/tissue paper to size for covering the jar.

STEP 5 :: Using a wide paint brush, cover the entire jar with Mod Podge or diluted white glue and then wrap the white window star/tissue paper around the jar.  Once the white paper is in place, paint a thin layer of Mod Podge/white glue over it.  The paper will have crinkles, but once the Mod Podge (or glue) dries, it will look very nice (I promise!)

STEP 6 :: While the Mod Podge (or glue) is still wet, place your paper leaves all over the jar.  If the top layer of Mod Podge (or glue) dries too quickly, add more Mod Podge (or glue) and keep sticking on your leaves until you happy with your design.

To help the leaves stick to the jar (and so the whole thing has a nice, shiny finish) go over the paper leaves once again, with another layer of Mod Podge (or glue).

STEP 7 :: Place your decorated jar someplace safe and allow it to dry for several hours.

 STEP 8 :: Light a candle in your jar and enjoy the beautiful glow of autumn leaves.

starlight & candles

A year ago I wrote a post about placing candles on our supper table to bring a sense of quiet and peace.  The candles helped for a while, but after a few months, my younger son graduated from sitting in a chair where he was seat-belted to sitting on a regular chair at the supper table.  Open flames and a curious, head-strong, free-ranging toddler? Not a good mix. This spelled the end of our supper time candle ritual.

Recently, however, the thought crossed my mind that flames contained within glass jars might work, and so I decided to enlist the little one, himself, to create decorative candle-jars for our table.  Usually I prefer open-ended art activities for my little one -- big sheets of paper and a box of crayons or paints, play-dough, stringing beads, etc... This goal-oriented activity felt ambitious, but I proceeded anyhow, and was pleasantly surprised.  My little one was able to follow instructions and proceed step-by-step. He was pleased to participate in the creation of something meaningful & beautiful, and the tiny glitter stars we placed on our candle holders twinkled nearly as bright as his eyes...

In case you would like to make a starlight candle lantern, too, I have written out the (very simple) instructions below.

MATERIALS
Clean glass jar(s)

Paint brush

Waxed Kite Paper or tissue paper cut or torn into rectangles and squares, between 3 cm-6 cm in size

Mod Podge (I placed a small amount in a cup for less mess and easy access)

Small star shapes -- either glitter-confetti or cut from opaque paper

note: if you cannot get Mod Podge, I think PVA or standard white craft glue, diluted with a small amount of water, would work as a substitute.

 Step 1: Paint some Mod Podge on a section of the glass jar.

Step 2: Place a piece or two of the wax or tissue paper on the area to which the Mod Podge has been applied.

Step 3: Paint a layer of Mod Podge over the bits paper.

Continue painting Mod Podge over sections of the jar, applying small pieces of paper, and then covering each section of paper with another layer of Mod Podge.

Step 4: While the Mod Podge is still wet, apply tiny stars, one by one, scattered over the surface.

Step 5: Cover each star with a dab of Mod Podge.

It might look like a mess...

But when the Mod Podge dries, it will be beautiful!  I can't wait to see what these jars look like on our table tonight with candles lit inside.  Instead of sparkling stars, we will have silhouettes of tiny stars against a glowing night sky.  Twinkle, twinkle...

A Guest Post at Twig & Toadstool

Starting today at Twig & Toadstool there will be a weekly Monday link-up party called All Spunk... No Junk. Along with the weekly link-up party, there will a featured guest-blogger, and guess who the guest blogger is this week?  Likely you've already figured that one out... it's me!!

So, please stop by Twig & Toadstool to have a peek at the tutorial for my Fields of Butterflies Picture Lantern (and don't forget to share what you've been doing this week by linking up...)

Cheers!

Halloween Craft: Lanterns!

When the calendar turns to October, I love pulling out Halloween decorations and making new ones.  One of my favorite crafts this year has been making lanterns out of glass jars, so...

 Out came the kite paper, some black origami paper and a few jars.

I started by painting a thin layer of Mod-Podge on each jar, then covered the jars with a base-layer of kite-paper.

To apply silhouettes, I painted on a bit of Mod-Podge, placed the cut-out shapes over the wet Mod-Podge, then painted a bit more over the pumpkins & bats (it will look like a mess, but beautiful when it dries!)  For an easy tutorial on how to make the eye-ball lantern you can visit the Family Fun website here...

I also made this ghosty lantern... a nice companion for Gus, don't you think? (and a big thank you to Chris of Mamaroots for this gorgeous wooden toy version of Gus!)

 

 Boo!

P.S.  What are you dressing up as for Halloween this year?

Hope is the Thing With Feathers

The other day I was browsing through a craft store and spotted a little dove-shaped craft punch (in case you go looking for one, it's produced as part of the Martha Stewart Craft line.)  I decided to splurge because I knew exactly what I wanted to do with it...

 I broke out the Mod-Podge and went rummaging around under the kitchen sink for some empty jam jars...

 Then I painted the sides of the jars with Mod-Podge and covered them with paper (I used German Kite Paper for the white lantern and gift-wrap tissue paper for the light blue one...)

 The doves are punched from thin card-stock and the hearts are cut from kite paper.

To apply the doves & hearts, I painted a small area with Mod-Podge and, while it was still wet, I placed the doves & hearts on top. Then, just to make sure everything was stuck in place, I went over the doves & hearts again with more Mod-Podge.  It looked like a disaster when it was wet, but after the Mod-Podge had dried... perfect...

 Doesn't it look lovely with a candle inside?

Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul,
And sings the tune without the words,
And never stops at all,

And sweetest in the gale is heard;
And sore must be the storm
That could abash the little bird
That kept so many warm. 

I've heard it in the chillest land,
And on the strangest sea;
Yet, never, in extremity,
It asked a crumb of me. 

 

-- Emily Dickinson

A Bluebird Picture Lantern (and a Bluebird Story for You)

When I was about 5 or 6 my mother took me to a screening of the 1940 movie The Bluebird starring Shirley Temple, based on the 1908 play by Maurice Maeterlinck. The story is about a brother & sister, Tyltyl and Mytyl, who are sent out by the fairy Berylune into various magical realms to search for the Bluebird of Happiness. Returning home empty-handed, the children see that the bird has been in a cage in their home the whole time. When Tyltyl gives the bird as a gift to a neighbor's sick child, the bird flies away. The moral is that, ultimately, happiness can be found within oneself.

There are two scenes from this movie which have stayed in my mind all these years later... The first magical realm the children visit is a cottage where their deceased grandparents live. The children have a nice visit with their grandparents, however as they prepare to leave, there is sadness. The grandparents reassure the children that, although they no longer reside in the world of the living, as long as the children hold them in their memories, they will still be awakened to life.

The second scene I loved showed Tyltyl and Mytyl visiting a misty realm where children are waiting to be born. In this realm they are guided by a personification of LIGHT and meet a child who will be born as a new baby into their family.

I hope you find the Bluebird of Happiness in your home and within yourself... always...

Flower Lanterns for Spring

Until a few weeks ago my winter garden was looking dreary & drowsy under somber skies. Then who should emerge from their wintertide dreams but the jonquils... They rubbed the sleep from their eyes to make their pretty faces shine. Now, they seem to laugh at the antics of the squirrels and mock the Sun who is still hiding his face under blankets of gray.

Inspired by my friends the jonquils, I have made some picture-lanterns. I love this project because it is so gratifyingly easy. In December, my seven year old created an elegant lantern striped with circles of green, blue & brown with hardly a word from me (he just got busy, and when I looked up from my own work, he was nearly done!) I also made an ocean-themed picture lantern which you can see here.

To create your own picture lanterns, all you need are some recycled jars, mod-podge and German kite paper. To start off, I like to cover my jars with white kite paper or tissue paper. This creates a uniform background for the pictures you will create and candles will have a softer glow when lit inside.

To cover your jars, brush a thin layer of mod-podge all over the glass and then lay the paper on top of it. If any areas do not stick well, you can also go over the top of your paper with a bit more mod-podge. The paper will wrinkle as you wrap it around the jars (as you can see in my photos) but I personally like a bit of texture anyhow.

Either before you put your base-layer of paper on your jars (or after the mod-podge has dried) you will want to measure the height of your jars and also around the middle. Then trim some plain white pieces of printer paper or newsprint to the measurements from the jars. This will allow you to know how much space you have for your picture-collage and help with the design...

Then you can start cutting and arranging...

Once you are satisfied with your design, brush a thin layer of mod-podge over half of the jar, arrange your bits of paper and then proceed with the rest of the jar. Note: After I have placed my colored bits of paper on the jar, I usually brush them over again quickly with some mod-podge to help them stick and lie flat.

If you wish, after your design is set on the jar and the mod-podge has dried, you can go over it all once again with a thin layer of mod-podge. This will seal things up nicely.

The Vernal Equinox will be here in less than a week... wishing you endless flowers to welcome Spring with joy!

Festival of Light

Wednesday, December 1st was the first night of Hanukkah this year.

On Wednesday afternoon, Little Mr. and I settled in for a fun project to bring in the light -- We made candle lanterns from recycled jam jars, kite paper & Mod Podge.

Then something ironic happened. On this first eve of Hanukkah we had a power outage which resulted in a black out... Luckily we had our new, pretty candle holders all lined up and ready to brighten our night.

One little problem, however... The power outage hit just as I was getting ready to fire up the stove to make vegetable soup and potato latkes for supper. So, off we went to a new little taqueria we'd been wanting to try. Our dinner for the first night of Hanukkah? Enchiladas, quesadillas and a tamale.

Wishing you light, laughter, love & adventure this holiday season!

Southern Hemisphere Seasonal Exchange

No, I have not moved to the southern hemisphere, but this swap over at Rhythm and Rhyme has had me thinking about summer.

Southern hemisphere seasons are opposite northern hemisphere seasons so the the crafted items in this swap are connected to the theme of summer. At first I wasn't sure that, as a northern hemisphere resident, I could join in the fun, but when I read that the swap was open to everyone, my mind starting spinning with ideas. Around here, we kissed summer good-bye about 2 months ago. Now I'm surrounded by autumn foliage & pumpkins (and looking toward sparkling winter) so it's been an interesting challenge to think about summer-related projects.


I delved into summer by opening my copy of A Child's Seasonal Treasury by Betty Jones. These two finger-play poems sent my imagination dancing with sweet summertime seashore images.

The Golden Boat

This is the boat, the golden boat,
That sails the silver sea.
These are the oars of ivory white,
That lift and dip, that lift and dip.
These are the ten little ferrymen,
To take the oars of ivory white,
That lift and dip, that lift and dip,
That move the boat, the golden boat,
Over the silver sea.


The Sea

Here is the deep blue sea.
Here is the boat and here is me.
And all the fishes down below,
Wriggle their tails and away they go!

I grew up in Los Angeles a few miles from the ocean. Wide, warm, sunny beaches are a big part of my childhood memories.

Now I live in Northern California, 10 miles on a small, winding road from the ocean.

Northern California beaches are a far cry from the beaches of my childhood; Around here we dress in wool caps and pullovers when we head to the shore.

Our beaches are blustery and rocky, teeming with tide pools and wild life. My favorites are the soulful-eyed sea lions, ever present, basking in thin rays of sunlight on rocks nearby.


But, I digress. Returning to the topic of the swap... I'd been thinking for some time about making solstice lanterns from recycled glass jars, Mod Podge and kite paper. Instead, with summertime spinning my imagination, I began dreaming up seashore scenes.

I started by cutting shapes and laying them out on white paper.

Having the company of a curious kitty is always nice, don't you think?

After that, it was just a matter of brushing Mod Podge on my jar & applying the paper cut-outs. After it had all dried I gave it a second, all-over application of Mod Podge.

The little lantern looked like a mess while it was drying, but once everything had dried completely, the result was lovely!

Unfortunately, I didn't take any photos while I was creating this little water sprite... Now that her paint is dry, she has whispered in my ear that she is looking forward to testing the waters in the Coral Sea off the coast of Queensland (that's where she's headed!) She says the water around here is too chilly for her taste and she's longing for warmer climes.

As part of the Southern Hemisphere Seasonal Exchange we may send 5 items total. Not all of them are required to be hand made so I am including a beeswax votive (for the lantern) and two stones from our wild, rocky shores. I hope my exchange partner will enjoy bringing the seashore to her nature table.

Goodbye little water sprite. Safe journeys to you -- I wish you happy swimming in the sparkling Coral Sea, far from our misty shores...