Looking at this photo, you’d probably never guess this lantern is constructed from manila folders and wooden skewers. With those inexpensive supplies, you can make your own version for ambient, Japanese-style lighting in your home.
Dollar Store Crafts offers a detailed tutorial from Jeanette Strole Parks showing how to turn manila folders into a lighting fixture. The folders are very opaque and golden-toned when lit, and Parks advises you should look for folders without obvious printed logos. Besides the folders and wooden skewers (or chopsticks), you’ll also need decorative textured paper, like rice paper or coloured tissue paper, and some basic craft tools.
The skewers are used to make a grid to support your hanging lightbulb fixture. If you’re wondering about the potential fire hazard, light kits with a plastic housing or basket around them will keep the bulb from touching the paper. The way the folders are put together ensures that the lightbulb doesn’t come within a couple of inches on either side. You can use compact fluorescent bulbs that are cooler too.
It’s amazing the stuff you can make in a few hours with just a few dollars worth of supplies or things you have lying around already.
$1 Japanese Lantern Tutorial [Dollar Store Crafts]
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.