Easy Japanese Paper Lantern Craft

If your studying about Japanese culture, this Japanese Paper Lantern craft is a great activity to do with your kids and is much easier than it looks.

Materials:

• cardboard
• ruler
• a box cutter or sharp knife
• scissors
• a pencil for marking
• two sets of disposable wooden chopsticks(4 sticks) or small dowel rods
• crayons
• long Japanese Shoji paper, wax paper, or other long strip of white paper
• a tea light or candle

Directions:

Base and top

1. Cut two 6 inch/15 cm squares from cardboard.
2. On one square, measure and cut out a smaller square about 1 /2 inches/4 cm in from the edge for the top hole. The hole should be about 3 1/4 inches or 8 1/2cm.

Paper

1. Cut a long strip of white paper about 6 inches/15 cm wide and 20 inches/50 cm long
2. Roughly mark the paper into 4 1/2 inch/12 cm panels. There will be 4 panels to the lantern. remember to leave a little extra on the ends.
3. Use crayons to draw a design on each panel. Choose whatever theme you wish.

Assembly

1. On the cardboard base and top, mark 4 holes, 1 inch/3cm from each corner. 
2. Use a sharp pencil to start the holes.
3. Break apart the chopsticks. There will be a skinny end and slightly fatter end. 
4. Push the thin end of each chopstick through the base piece al the way till just before the bottom.
5. Push the top piece with the large hole on the top to make the frame. 
6. Wrap the decorated paper around the chopstick frame and glue the ends together.
7. Alternatively, you could wrap and glue the paper first, remove the paper loop, decorate and put it back on. 
8. Put a small candle inside and light your lantern.

You can use the Recycled cooking oil candle idea, too.