Make a Lantern
Even though light bulbs are used worldwide, there’s something so evocative about lanterns that they’re still revered, particularly for festive occasions.
The act of lighting a lantern can be compared to lighting a candle for someone—as an act of honor and remembrance, or as in Ghost Month, a means of guiding the spirits while they’re visiting this world.
Lanterns are key symbols in Asian culture, and are used to decorate nearly every festival and party, but their time to shine is The Lantern Festival held at the end of New Year’s, originally celebrated as a tribute to Buddha. Today it continues to herald the end of New Year’s observance and serves as an opportunity to revel and remember. Lanterns big and small, goofy and exquisite, are exhibited and lit during this festival.
For your next festival, try your hand at creating your own lanterns. Hang them from the ceiling around a room or at doorways. If you’re really industrious, you can make many small ones and attach them to a string of lights (ones that stay cool to the touch) to illuminate them.
What you need for this project:
- 8-1/2” x 11” sheet of heavy paper (red is a popular color; white helps the design show up better)
- colored pens
- scissors
- tape
- string for hanging
1. Decorate one side of the sheet of paper. Landscapes, Chinese characters, and flowers are popular lantern themes, as is the animal whose year you’re celebrating: The Year of the Ram, right now. The lantern will hang vertically, so keep this in mind as you decorate.
2. Fold the paper in half lengthwise, so it forms a long, narrow rectangle.
3. Starting about 1 inch from one end of the rectangle, make a cut from the folded side across the paper to within 1 inch of the edge. Repeat at regular intervals (1/2 to 1 inch apart) all the way down the paper.
4. Carefully unfold the paper and—with the design facing outward—roll into a tube, taping the edges together at the top and bottom.
5. Cut a strip of paper 6 inches long and 1/2 inch wide. Tape the strip across one end of the lantern to make a handle. Run a string through the handles to hang.
Variations on the theme:
Fasten tassels or a row of short pieces of string to the inside bottom of the lantern for extra sass.
Glue wrapping paper to heavier stock paper before you cut out your lantern, for a more sophisticated design.
Decorate a second piece of paper that’s a different color from your lantern, roll it into a long, narrow tube, and fasten inside the lantern.
To find a recipe that complements your Chinese Zodiac sign, click here.
