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MIY Summer Green Craft Lanterns
C r e a t i o n s & I n s p i r a t i o n s
"f o r t h e p u r e j o y o f m a k i n g t h i n g s"

Miycreations Project article and photographs
by Madeleine M Langlois, MaddyLane Designs

Frosted Summer Luminettes : “Moonlighting Luminettes”
Looking for a fun way to recycle baby food jars and various jars into creative
ways? Let the summer nights glow with easy to make glass jar luminettes
using frosted glass paint. Patterns are created with paper stickers, painter's
tape, and adorned with decorative wire to illuminate your patio, or deck. A
perfect summer green craft to do with the kids!

Hands-on time: Under 2 hours
Total time: paint dries and becomes frosted once dry , plus 24 hours curing
time, 35 baking in oven to set the paints
Skill: Easy, kid friendly projects, idea for day camps, vacation or the cottage
Cost estimate: Cost of materials to do luminettes under $12.00

Materials & tools:
- Small or medium size baby food jars, or jam jars
- Vinegar and lint free cloth, paper towels
- Painter’s tape in assorted widths, pencil and scissors
- X-acto knife or craft knife
- Assorted self adhesive stickers, circles, stars, flowers (office supply stores)
- Vitrea 160 Frosted glass paint (by Pébéo) water-based paints, I mixed silver
acrylic paint mixed with the white to create a silver frosted colour
-Sponge (a regular household sponge will do, you can also use a clean one
that is ready to be discarded)
- Ruler
- Colour wire, clippers or pliers
- Cotton swabs
- Votive or tea candles

(Material are available at art and crafts supply stores)

This is one of the first MIY project articles that was published in the Gazette
over six years ago. As a designer I was always transforming regular
household items into new creative uses. Why, because it broke my heart to
simply through out perfectly good items that could be re-utilized into new
artistic ways. This project is what started my MIY columns and today recycling
and green crafts are now a big trend, for me it has always been part of my
creative philosophy and lifestyle.

Clean glass jars thoroughly to remove labels, and wipe dry. If the labels are
hard to remove soak the jars in warm water and soap for about half an hour.
For stubborn sticky residue on the jars, apply a little vinegar or rubbing
alcohol and wipe off with a paper towel.

Use a variety of assorted self adhesive stickers like circles, dots, stars and so
on to create cool patterns by applying them to the clean glass jars. You can
also cut narrow painter's tape in lengths to fit around the glass jar for stripes,
or draw your own designs on larger width tape, cut out with a craft knife and
apply around the surface of the jars.

Cover your work surface with newspaper and prepare your materials and
glass items to be painted. Vitrea 160 paints are water-based and non-toxic,
they can be used on food consumption items such as glasses, plates, mugs
serving tray as well.

Place some frosted glass paint in a paint tray, I did some in blue, green and
orange frosted paints. To achieve a silver frosted paint I combined regular
acrylic paint with the white frosted paint. Dip the sponge, dab it to remove
excess paint and apply the paint all around the jars. This is easy and fun for
kids to do, plus sponging on the paint will give the painted items a textured
look. Once completed, place the painted glass jars upside-down onto
newspaper to let them dry, approximately one hour.

After one hour and before the jars are completely dry, use the tip of a craft
knife or pin to help peel off the stickers and painter's tape. If some bleeding
occurred along the edges of some of the designs, it can be simply wiped off
gently with a damp cloth. To remove any adhesive left by the stickers, use a
cotton swab and rubbing alcohol.

Clean the paint tray and sponges with easy soap and water clean-up. Let the
frost paint finish dry and cure for at least 24 hours before heat-setting. As the
paint dries you will see the frost effect become visible and the shapes pop out!

Once baked, the colours and items are fully cured. Remove the glass items
from the oven using oven mitts, and let them cool before handling.

Once cured and heat set in any domestic oven, the glass items are scratch
resistant and dishwasher- and-oven-safe. Place the painted glass items in a
cold oven and when the temperature of the oven has reached 325 degrees F
(160 degrees C), bake for 40 minutes.

Cut decorative wire to desired lengths, and wrap it around the neck of each
jar, making a loop at each side, then attach a handle also with loops. Or you
can cut a longer piece of wire to connect all the jars together, to string them
onto branches, trees, around the deck, patio, and porch or even on a fence.
Place a votive or tea light candle at the bottom of the jars and enjoy silvery
moonlit nights!

Tips: Applying a piece of double faced tape or sticky-tack at the bottom of the
candles will secure them into place and keep them centered in the jars.

Variations: Use mason jars to make larger lanterns. For a super easy
entertaining idea and centerpiece just lightly spray assorted sized jars with
frost glass paint (omit all stickers), let dry and fill half the jars with sand or
pebbles, add chunky coloured candles and simply illuminate.
Try a summer project version for children using a decoupage technique; have
them cover assorted jars with coloured tissue or rice paper (hand-torn into
various shape and pieces) with Mod-podge and a paintbrush. Once dry they
can decorate them with assorted coloured wires and beads.

Use a variety of assorted self
adhesive stickers like circles,
dots, stars and so on to
create cool patterns by
applying them to the clean
glass jars.

Recycled jar
luminettes make
super summer
decorations....
string them onto
branches, trees,
around the deck,
patio, and porch or
even on a fence.