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When I think of summer, I think of red, white, and blue. You know, because of all the bunting, flags, and decorations people put up for Memorial Day and the Fourth of July. It makes it feel like summer. The fun thing is kids can help with the celebrations by creating their own Patriotic Craft.
As I mentioned, when I think of summer, I think of patriotic celebrations. There are parades, festivals, fireworks, and kids running around with sparklers. You can find suggestions for red, white, and blue desserts, home decor, and fun crafts.
So, what patriotic craft can kids make?
How about some paper lanterns.
It is a simple craft that is quite pretty when finished. Let me share how to make this lantern which is a perfect way to decorate your house this summer.
{RELATED: Fourth of July Coloring Pages at My Teaching Library}
Patriotic Craft for Kids: Paper Lanterns
Let’s get started. You only need a few items, and you are ready to begin.
Materials:
- Tissue paper
- Balloon
- Mod Podge (or paper mache?)
- Ribbon, pipe cleaners, yarn, etc.
- Bowl (optional)
- Paintbrush (optional)
How to Make Patriotic Paper Lanterns
First, you will need to blow up a balloon. The balloon is your form. This is how you will get the shape of your lantern.
2. Next, get out your tissue paper and start cutting it into strips. Because of the size of my balloon, I cut the tissue paper into 1-inch strips (approximately). It doesn’t need to be exact.
I cut up about six strips of each color.
3. Now, it is time to start making the lantern. You will need to get out your mod podge. I used a homemade version of mod podge (Click here for a recipe by Lulastic and Hippyshake). I think paper mache would work, too. However, the tissue paper is so thin it may rip while trying to dip it in the solution and wipe off the excess.
When you start putting the tissue paper strips on, your balloon will wobble. To deal with this, you can place the balloon in a bowl (not bigger than the balloon) that will hold it upright for you.
Container to hold the balloon.
4. Once the balloon is all set and you have your glue solution, you can wrap a red strip at the top.
A balloon is round, but the tissue paper is not. I placed a piece of tissue paper on the balloon, painted it with the glue solution (I used a paintbrush), and lightly folded and overlapped the strip as I went around the curves.
I continued wrapping the red around the balloon and into another row until I had about three rows. After, I went back and did one more layer since the paper tears easily.
5. After all the red is on the balloon, repeat the same steps with the white and blue strips of tissue paper. You don’t need to cover the whole balloon. Figure out how big you want your completed lantern to be and adjust accordingly.
6. Now is the boring part. You need to wait for everything to dry. Mine took a few hours. However, I didn’t get back to it until the next day. The drying time will vary depending on how wet your lantern is and the weather conditions.
7. Finally, your patriotic craft is almost done! Once the lantern is dry, it is time to pop the balloon.
DO NOT PANIC!
I say this because I did. : )
I cut a small slit at the top of the balloon and at the bottom. When I did this, the balloon began to shrink along with the lantern.
I repeat, DO NOT PANIC!
As the balloon deflated, it slowly came away from the lantern. I was then able to reshape the lantern. It DID NOT ruin it.
Here is the pretty patriotic lantern.
8. The final step is to add the yarn, ribbon, or pipe cleaners, so you can hang them up. I used a hole punch to make the holes and threaded the ribbon through them.
Now, you have your very own patriotic craft to celebrate the holidays!
Quick Tips:
- You don’t need to use new tissue paper. We often save tissue paper in gift bags and reuse it for projects. This is what I did for this project.
- You could experiment with streamers. Sometimes we have streamers from parties. This might work in place of the tissue paper, though I haven’t tried it.
- When applying the mod podge solution, gently brush it onto the tissue paper. The tissue paper is thin.
- If you try to use paper mache, you might try brushing it on instead of dipping it.
- If your tissue paper rips, don’t panic. You can cover it with more paper.
- Allow plenty of time to dry before deflating the balloon.
- It is probably not a good idea to hang this lantern outside. It is thin and may tear in the breeze.
Other Suggestions to Make This Patriotic Craft Even Better
- You could add glitter to your mod podge to add a little sparkle.
- Add streamers on the bottom of the lantern.
- Cut out different shapes in tissue paper and mod podge them on after the stips of colors are complete.
- Use it as a table decoration. You could place a battery-operated candle inside.
- Hang a chain of these lanterns in front of a large window in the house.
I hope this fun and super simple patriotic craft brings some cheer to your home. Have fun crafting and enjoy your lanterns!
Need more summertime crafts? You might like:
