Materials
- Various sizes of Lanterns (I had 12 lanterns on my 9’ tree. Hallmark has a lot of cute options!)
- Keepsake ornaments- Flat bottomed ornaments work best
- LED battery powered light string
- Bottle brush trees
- Snow batting
- Plastic faux snow
- Sheet Styrofoam - (Buy or reuse some that comes in some shipping boxes!)
- Chunky white glitter
- Small hot glue gun and glue sticks
- Green floral wire
- Wire cutters
- Scissors
- Long nose pliers or tweezers
- Popsicle stick
Instructions:
1. Select your lantern and decide where you want it on your tree. Make an opening for it in the tree and decide what you will anchor it to later.
2. Select your ornament or ornaments. Tip: Flat bottom ornaments work best.
3. Select your light string. Decide how you want to put your lights into your lantern. I sit the battery pack on the bottom, so I can get to it to change batteries or remove them at the end of the season. I like to string the lights up into the top of the lantern and I use hot glue to do that. Unless the top is made of pierced metal design and I can wrap the lights into that. You can also keep the lights under the snow batting, and they will show through the snow. Sometimes on small lanterns there is no room for added lights, so I just let it be lit by the tree lights.
4. Now cut a piece of Styrofoam to fit on top of the battery pack. Hold it up to their lantern to try to measure. I use small pieces beside the battery pack to glue to, so I can still remove the battery pack. Glue Styrofoam into place.
5. Now cut a piece of snow batting. Use the lantern as a pattern, sit the lantern on top of a layer of batting and cut around the lantern. This will ensure that the piece is big enough to cover the Styrofoam and the battery pack.
6. Place your snow batting into your lantern and get it where you want it. Then hot glue it to the Styrofoam. Use your popsicle stick to tuck the batting in around the Styrofoam.
7. Now the fun part! Pick which bottle brush trees you want to use and try to plan your scene. You can place your ornament in and see what you want to put around it! I wanted my lantern to look like the truck was driving through a forest. So I place a line of them across the back.
8. Pull your ornament back out and place your trees where you want them, if you want this to me a permanent display you can hot glue them into place. If not just poke them through the batting and foam.
9. Now you can place your ornament back in the lantern where you want it. You can even add more trees if you want!
10. Then I like to sprinkle the scene with the faux snow and a little bit of glitter for that magical touch!
11. Now that your lantern is complete, we can place it into your tree! Tip: Be sure as you are adding lanterns to your tree, you put them on all sides, not just on one side or you might have your tree tip over on you! Use your green floral wire and wire cutters to attach your lantern to your tree.
12. Now turn on your lights and see what a magical winter wonderland you have created!!
