Gourd Lantern Tutorial
Just in time for autumn,* MAKE has a tutorial for making some lovely harvesty lanterns out of dried gourds.
The example uses a drill, but if you’re afraid of power tools you can use those little pumpkin-carving jigsaws instead. In addition to making patterns of holes you might also be able to cut larger designs in the gourd, although you’d want to take care not to crack the brittle walls. Since the gourds are lit by miniature fairy lights or LED lamps, you can also embellish them with paint or glue-on ornaments that wouldn’t be appropriate for anything lit by a candle.
The gourds are easy to grow and come in a wide variety of shapes, so if you’ve got a little yard space you can plant some for future craft projects.
I love how elegant these look, particularly with several massed together. They’d make a lovely and inexpensive centerpiece for a dinner party or even for the tables at a wedding reception.
*I’m sorry, Southern Hemisphere readers; you know I love you, but autumn starts now, not six months from now.
Posted in Bad Things, Terror in the Aisle | 3 Comments »
September 21st, 2010 at 8:14 am
I hate you and your autumn weather. Spring is rubbish.
When I rule the world the seasons will alternate only between autumn and winter with a brief summer-y period every second year to indulge those who enjoy the day star.
No more of this balefully staring at photographs of pumpkin fields while it’s all sunny and hot outside for me.
September 22nd, 2010 at 8:54 am
LOVE the lanterns! We somehow got a wild gourd vine under the porch, so we went & dried the best ones and were just looking for something great to do with them. Fabulous timing ;)
And BWAHAHAHA @ Holly *snork*
September 22nd, 2010 at 6:26 pm
Holly: I nominate you as Monarch of the World, because I live for Fall & Winter.
I keep a small light that’s plugged into our inexplicable light switch (it powers a plugin on the other side of the room) so that we don’t kill ourselves or the cats in the middle of the night (or the middle of the day but the blackout curtains are closed because we’re playing video games or hate the sun). These would be the perfect little mood lights for a fall theme (I light candles in winter when I think I can get away with it). Thanks for the idea!