Rice paper lanterns

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Rice Paper lanterns have flourished since the 2nd century in China. Delighted by its beauty, the Chinese devoted their second most important holiday to the paper lantern - Lantern Festival. Covered with rice paper and dressed in styles, the lanterns are still popular today in illumination, decoration, and holiday celebration. Chinese rice paper lanterns add a warm ambiance to any room. Traditionally, they are white or cream in color, but today, you can find paper lanterns in many different colors, shapes, and sizes.

Make your own rice paper lantern

To make a rice paper lantern, you will need:

  • 6 flat bamboo strips, 48 inches in length, and 1/4 inch in width
  • rice paper
  • masking tape
  • scissors
  • glue stick or rubber cement
  • 1 UL listed indoor use swag electrical socket, or 1 battery powered socket

1) Start by bending a strip of bamboo to form a circle. You can soften the bamboo with the heat of a flame to make it more flexible, then place the loop into cold water, briefly, to reinforce it's shape. Join both ends of the bamboo with a very tacky masking tape. Repeat this step with the other 5 strips.

2) Take 4 bamboo circles, and form a box with them, using masking tape or string to attach them. Next, attach 1 bamboo circle to the top of the square, and one to the bottom, forming a box.

3) You can also add 1 short bamboo stick to the top and bottom of the lantern, spanning the openings. The top stick can facilitate the socket and bulb, and you can hang a tassel from the bottom. This completes the frame of your lantern.

4) Next, comes the application of the rice paper to the bamboo frame. Wrap the rice paper around the four sides of the bamboo frame, and join the paper with rubber cement or glue stick at the back of the lantern. Cut the rice paper along the top and bottom of the frame, leaving about an inch of excess. Fold this inch over the top and bottom of the frame, and secure with glue stick or rubber cement.

5) If there are any areas that sag, use a spray bottle to spray a light amount of water on the area, and allow it to dry. This should tighten the fibers.

6) Your chinese lantern is almost complete! Run your socket into the top of the rice paper lantern, or hang a battery powered socket there.

7) If you want to hang your finished work, attach a length of cording to the top of the rice paper lantern.