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Brandi Milloy - DIY Hanging Foliage Lanterns

Brandi Milloy is back and shedding some light on our Fall nights.
DIY Hanging Foliage Lanterns
How-To:
Decor
Seasonal Event:
Fall

MATERIALS:

  • Balloons
  • Transparent paper
  • Marker
  • Mod podge
  • Paintbrush
  • Bowl
  • Pressed leaves and flowers
  • Scissors or needle
  • Crafting wire
  • Wire snips
  • Jute twine
  • Tealights, battery operated

INSTRUCTIONS:

  1. Blow the balloon up to desired size of lantern and secure with a knot.
  2. Draw a line across balloon a few inches down from the knot, this will be the top edge of the opening of your lantern. Make sure it’s big enough to fit your hand into.
  3. Rip up your transparent paper into about 2” x 2” pieces.
  4. Mix up some mod podge and water, about 1:1 ratio in a bowl.
  5. Starting with the bottom of the balloon, paint glue mixture onto the balloon in small patches and layer pieces of paper on, painting more glue between each piece.
  6. Add pieces of paper until you reach the line you drew. Stop there and allow to dry. PRO TIP: if you have left over mixture, cover with cling wrap and use later. The mixture will keep for a few days.
  7. Add another layer of paper squares all over the existing paper-mache.
  8. Now it’s time to add the pressed foliage. Place the piece and paint over with glue.
  9. Adhere a thin layer paper squares over the foliage to secure in place. Not too much, so that the foliage is still visible. Allow to dry.
  10. Pop the balloon with scissors or a needle and remove it completely. If some pieces get stuck, you may have to scrape a bit.
  11. Now create the rings from which your lantern will hang, cut two pieces of wire using the cutters. Stick a piece through the top edge about 1” down and twist the ends together. Repeat on the opposite side of the top edge with the other piece of wire. PRO TIP: if you can’t push the wire through the paper easily, use a needle or pin to punch a hole first.
  12. Now that your lantern has rings you can add the twine to hang it from, cut it to the desired length for hanging, and tie each end to one of the rings.
  13. Place the tealight, hang and enjoy!

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