alterations halloween luminaries...

hey bloggers!  just landed in jersey to spend the week at ranger before heading up to mass. to teach at absolutely everything this weekend.  since i'm a few hours behind in my sleeping clock, i figured i could post this before heading to bed.  of course you never know when inspiration hits, so i literally had this idea this morning and decided to make these, and even took step out photos and shot a quick video before heading down to the airport - crazy huh?

well these very easy to make halloween luminaries could certainly be used for a variety of decor ideas.  indoor or outdoor, used for party decor, or even in the kid's room for a fun nightlight.  once you see how simple they are to make, no doubt this idea will be put to good use throughout the christmas holidays too.  let's get started...t!m

supplies: paper lunch bags, cardstock/chipboard (use any recycled or leftover supplies for this), dry adhesive (glue stick or double stick tape), battery operated tealights, your favorites dies and dies cutting system (i used my alterations dies and vagabond machine)

step 1: place material to cut on to die.  here i'm using chipboard sheets i've been saving and this project is perfect for using up old papers, chipboard or recycled materials.

step 2: die cut a variety of shapes and elements.  i've used the following alterations dies: bewitching hour, raven & scaredy cat, on the fence, rickety house

step 3: gather up some lightweight paper lunch sacks

step 4: open bag and adhere cut shape INSIDE the bag.  i prefer to adhere the elements more towards the bottom of the bag.  *also be sure to use a dry adhesive like a glue stick or double-stick tape for this step. (liquid adhesive could bleed through the paper bag and we don't want that)

step 5: fold down the top of the bag by rolling it back.

step 6: repeat the previous step to have a more sturdy roll on the top of the bag.  this will keep the bag open and standing tall.

step 7: get a battery operated tealight and turn it on. *if you want more light simply add 2 per bag

step 8: drop it inside the bag. *if you're putting these outdoors, fill the bag with a little dirt, sand, rocks, etc. before adding tealight to keep the bag from blowing away.

step 9: my favorite part of creating these this way is during the day it looks like an ordinary paper bag, but when night falls, enjoy the  flickering of these festive and spooky luminaries.

Comments

[lauren]

what a great idea!

[Marlene Moore]

Wow! what a great idea. When I saw the first part I was wondering how you were going to cut out the bag, duhh!! Now need to go and find those battery powered tea lights!

[Nancy Wyatt]

Shut up! You are constantly rockin it Tim! love it! hugs from Texas!

[Janet Ang]

Gotta copy these for the kids in the neighborhood! Thanks for the idea! Can't wait to see you guys at Stamper's Corner!

[Stephanie Barnard]

Another awesome project!

Gotta get some of those Sizzix Dies! :)

[Rachel Greig]

love the video tim! How cool would it be to make HUGE cut outs to put in house windows with orange lights flickering behind them... just to give all the neighbors the spooks!!!

[Kirsten Varga]

I've got a bunch of those tea lights and the paper bags. Now all I need is to find those dies. Love this idea because luminaries are my favorite holiday decoration!

[Tamikko Gordin]

Absolutely the best idea ever! It's relatively cheap to do and could be done by a child or an adult for any season of festive party :)
love it!
this is why you rock my world with your creativity :)

[Megan Carter]

Wow, these look great, so atmospheric. I wish we celebrated Halloween here in Oz like you do. But I might make some of these anyhow. As always, Tim, very creative, very inspirational.
Megan

[Rachel C]

They are awesome :-) Thanks for sharing.