Blue Lantern Free Tutorial

I felt very bad because some of the children have brought the blue packaging board for packing fruits but I did not have time to teach them how to create lanterns with them.



So, here is the pictorial tutorial for an easier to create design.



You will need:

1) 1 piece blue packaging for packing fruits
2) Scissors
3) Stapler
4) A piece of raffia string or 2 plastic strips cut off plastic bag
5) A stick to hold lantern
6) 1 egg carton

Do not cut the packaging in half. Look at the circled indentations and find the centre point to cut through width wise. After cutting through, you will see that one of the sides will be longer than the other.



From the edge, cut out to follow the shape of the indentations as shown.



You can cut the shape rounded or pointed but be consistent.



Do the same for the other piece.



Place the packaging, smooth sides facing upwards, one indented edge overlapping the other.



Staple the sides together.



Pull the other ends together to form a circle, one indented side overlapping the other in the similar fashion as instructed above and staple them together.



Cut a strip of egg carton long enough to form the base of the lantern. Place it to sit across the base and staple the edge of the egg carton to the edge of the packaging where both sides touched.



To form the candle holder, cut out a strip from the egg carton and cut in half again to form 2 strips with 3 cups protrusions. Cut a slit in the 2nd protrusion of both the strips. Push the base of the candle into the slit to ensure that it will sit tight into these slits.



Overlap the strips to form a cross.



Staple to hold both strips in place at both sides where one cup sits on the other.



This is how it should look with the candle pushed into the slit.



Place it to sit across the base, cup on cup, before lighting candle.

Cut a slit in the centre of the packaging large enough to push a raffia string in to tie up. The string should be long enough to form a handle for the lantern. If plastic bag strips are used, see pictures below on how to string it in.





Do the same for the other side then tie both ends of the plastic strips together to form a loop. Ensure that there is a balance when the lantern is held up.



In this design the slits are cut right in the front facing centre.



Be creative. You can cut holes at the top where the protrusions are on both sides, to form eyes. Cut out slits in the centre protrusion at the bottom to form teeth.

Hidden lesson? Discovered in 3Rs!

I was asked if I will be talking about the basics of 3Rs, that is, "Reduce, Re-Use and Recycle", when I teach the children how to create lanterns out of egg cartons.

It then dawned on me that the lanterns will not be used just to enlighten their forthcoming mid-autumn festive night walk-about. As I teach them to create, I will take this opportunity to impress upon them that I enjoy working with my imagination to "create something out of nothing". To be able to do the same, all they have to do is develop a habit of looking at the things they have around them with 3Rs in mind and with the knowledge they have already acquired, see how they could make use of them.

With this impressed upon their young minds, I hope that when they start blaming their parents or others for the things they lack, they will remember this lantern making lesson and figure out other ways to attain what they want.

So, did they create anything usable? See for yourself.








A very handy piece for decorating lanterns?



Want to see more pictures? Check out the comments posted on the blog of one of the mothers who have participated with her children.

Look out for my free tutorials in the next posting.

A woven romantic night.

Want to take your love one for a romantic night out but can't afford it at the moment? Bring your sweetheart home for a home cook candle light dinner then. But before you switch off the lights, make sure that you have a lamp ready.



Like to make your own? Go to your fruit suppliers at the market and ask them nicely for a box and at least 2 plastic bags in different colours.



Can't get hold of these big plastic bags? Newspapers work just as well.



Want a clearer view?







Be adventuress. Play with colours.



What are you supposed to do with the box you have collected?



Cut out its bottom and create the weaving tool. The lamp picture posted here was created with the smaller weaving kit.



Oops! Burnt the dishes? Cover up the taste with this love token.

Weaving techniques and what you can use to make small weaving tools can be read off the following link:

Stick to your budget? OK, no problem.

Stick to your budget? OK, no problem.

Members of the Art and Craft Society in UTAR would like to learn how to make their own handcrafted jewellery. The pliers and the beading materials they would need to buy are way beyond their budget. So, how can I help them?

Let's see if I can teach them to hand weave with this improvised gadget.



So, do they need to buy some stringing material? Not if they can still remember how to cut out some strips out of plastic bags.



Will this be easy for them to pick up? Just check out the instructions posted on the following websites:

How to Make a Corker from All Free Crafts

Lost art of Knitting Nancy

Keep adding another strip of plastic at the end of each woven strip...



... till you get the length you want either for a bracelet or a necklace.



Once you are good at that, you can try weaving with smaller loops.



Here is another spool knitting technique posted on CraftyPod. Ready to work with bead? See for yourself. Now try doing that with wire.

What else can they create with this spool weaving technique? Find out in my next posting.

Exploring to keep a promise

I promised one of the mothers of De'Kidz Band that I will create more "Recycled Musical Ware" for them to play with so I have been on a look out for ideas.

I picked up a plastic packing material for apples at the fruit stalls and discovered that they make great sounds if you rubbed them with your wet finger tips. I also love the sound of running my spoon over glass bottles, especially in spots where there are indentations.

Today, I discovered Annie Brunson who has a degree in Music and Theater from Bretton Hall. She has taught piano, oboe, and middle school band. She believes that a child's involvement with music is a huge bolster to their self-worth, their confidence and their creative spirit.

To encourage you to do it, she teaches you how to create homemade musical instruments with everyday items. So, check out these free video clips showing you her "how tos":

Click here for more on "Making Music With Children : Homemade Instruments With Everyday Items"

Creation of De'Kidz Band

Just to test drive how much knockings the Recycled Musical Wares (RMW) I have created can withstand, I brought them over one Saturday morning for the tiny tots, at Sungai Long Buddhist Society Playgroup centre, to play with. The parents and their children enjoyed it so much that one of the mothers is already talking about starting De'Kidz Band.

Is this mother pulling a fast one on us? Let us go to her blog to check that out. Wow, the De'Kidz Band is on YouTube! No kidding.

Recycled Musical Wares In Action

Could the noise we can create with the recycled musical wares (RMW) blend in with the real things being played by members of the Tugu Drum Circle?

We were there, at Tugu Peringatan off Jalan Parlimen, on 8th July to check that out. How did we do? Let the pictures do the talking.

Here are some of the regular members of the Tugu Drum Circle.



Shaker, Plastic Bumpers and Wooden Clappers in action. Strangers to one another till we started to go with the beat.


A little on a high note with the tin pan drums but having fun creating music is Darly's only objective.


How did I get to know this family from Bahrain? I allowed them to experiment with my RMW and we played towards a universal language.


Here is a new fan to RMW.


Looks like she is going to be a regular at Tugu Drum Circle.



If you think you are not into playing musical instrument, real or otherwise, you can still have fun with a circle of drummers as long as you can move with the beat. I heard that some belly dancers with their finger cymbals have done their hips tilting moves with the drummers.

Need some help and tips persuading your friends to start or join a circle? Let me show you some ways:

Our local drummers in the news. Hey, Teri from Bandar Sungai Long is in the spotlight.



What musical instruments do you need to start?

Check out the RMW used in this university.

How can it be conducted?

Benefits of a drumming group.

How to dance with the beat.

More junk at work.

No instrument, no RMW? Just put your hands together.

Raise fund with it!