01.11.2021 Christin Müller 21883

DIY: Fantastic lanterns for St. Martin's Day

Lanterns, lanterns, sun, moon and stars: Halloween is barely over and the St. Martin's horse is already hoofing it. And millions of children are looking forward to presenting their self-made lanterns. In these craft instructions, we will show you how to conjure up a very simple and individual lantern together with your child. All you need is a juice or milk carton, some paint and a few craft materials. Have fun making your own.

Lantern for St. Martin made from Tetrapak: what you need!

• An empty tetra pack carton
• White primer
• Water-resistant paint (e.g. acrylic), glitter pen
• Sharpie
• Thick cardboard
• Colored transparent film
• Brush
• Scissors
• Carpet knife
• Craft wire or ready-made hangers
• Craft glue

And you're ready to go!

Draw a large opening on the cardboard, e.g. a mouth with teeth. Now carefully cut out the opening with the box cutter. Also cut off the top lid of the box completely. You can now rinse and clean the box.

Now brush the cardboard with a white primer, preferably twice, so that the writing no longer shows through. Then paint the cardboard with one or more colors of your choice. Remember to keep the teeth white.

Now stick a piece of the colored transparent film behind the opening. I have cut out two openings and therefore need two pieces of foil. This allows the light to shine through even better later.

Now draw eyes on the cardboard, cut them out and stick them onto the cardboard. You can also add a few accents with a glitter pen.

Now make a few small holes in the side of the box and pull a wire through to hold the lantern pole. Use pliers to help if the wire is difficult to bend.

Tadaaaa! Our little lantern parade is finished.

Lantern festival: making bats and unicorns

By the way, I used a small cardboard box for the bat and glued on wings as well as eyes.

The unicorn's glittering golden horn is made from newspaper. I rolled a piece of newspaper into a horn shape and stuck it on. Then I "worked" it with craft glue and masking tape so that it was nice and firm. I then primed it and painted it yellow. A gold glitter pen added the necessary glamor. I also painted a quiff and a tail on craft card, cut them out and glued them on.

You may also be interested in these articles:

In 30 minutes: The DIY Advent calendar

The 5-minute finger puppets to make yourself

Maternity protection, child benefit & co.: The pme parent advice service 

Our parent counselors support parents in all matters from pregnancy to the child's adulthood. Personal and confidential: we are there for you online, by phone or on site.

You can find more information about our parent counseling service here.