How to Make a Paper Lantern (LED Light, No Candle)

A paper lantern is a folded paper decoration that opens into a round shape and holds a light inside. This version uses only battery-powered LED lights, never a candle or any open flame.

The technique is a classic accordion fold, similar to the lanterns children carry in a St Martin’s Day parade. It takes basic materials, a little patience, and adult help with the needle and thread step.

What materials do you need for a paper lantern?

You need lightweight paper, something to color it with, and basic tools to fold and hang it. Nothing here requires a special craft store trip.

• Three sheets of lightweight letter-size paper (the lighter the paper, the easier it folds)
• Glue or tape
• Crayons, markers, or paint
• A needle and thread
• Two craft sticks, popsicle sticks, or strips of card (optional, for the hanging hook)
• A battery-powered LED tea light or a small flashlight

This list covers the round accordion-style lantern described below. It does not cover other lantern styles, such as a paper bag lantern or a jar lantern, which use different materials and steps.

How do you color and prepare the paper?

Tape or glue the three sheets together lengthwise to make one long strip, then fold that strip in half lengthwise before you color it. Coloring before folding makes it much easier to cover evenly.

Color the outside of the paper on both sides, using a picture, a pattern, or a solid color. Keep the design near the top of each half, close to the fold, since that is the part that will show most once the lantern opens. For color ideas and paint recipes that work well on paper, see our page on homemade watercolor paints.

A first attempt often goes more smoothly with a simple pattern or solid color rather than a detailed picture, since the paper gets folded and handled quite a bit after this step.

How do you fold the paper into a lantern shape?

Fold the long strip accordion-style, the same way you would fold a paper fan, in folds about half an inch wide. Press firmly along every fold so the crease holds.

Once the whole strip is folded, unfold it just slightly, then refold each half separately so you end up with one fold at the top and two open edges forming a V shape. Press along all the folds again to set them.

This folding method works for the classic round lantern shape shown here. A different lantern shape, such as a flat or square lantern, uses a different folding pattern entirely.

How do you finish and hang the lantern?

Thread each open edge together with a needle and doubled thread, then open the folded paper into a circle and add a hook for hanging. This step benefits from an extra pair of hands.

Pass the needle through every fold along one edge, leaving about an inch of thread slack at each end, then tie it off. Repeat on the second edge. Gently pull the folded edges apart so the paper opens into a circle. If the center gap looks too wide, tighten the slack in the threads a little.

To hang the lantern, tape or glue a craft stick or strip of card across the top seam on each side, punch a small hole through both sticks, and tie on a loop of thread or string as a hook.

How do you light the lantern safely?

Place a battery-powered LED tea light or a small flashlight inside the lantern instead of any flame. Both give a warm glow through the colored paper without any fire risk.

Set the light on the bottom of the lantern before you close it up, or hang it from the craft-stick supports at the top if your light has a loop or clip. Either way, the paper never touches a heat source.

This step covers battery lights only. A real candle or open flame should never go inside a paper lantern, no matter how the lantern is built or how careful you plan to be.

For another paper craft that pairs well with a lantern-making afternoon, try our coffee filter butterflies. For more ideas, visit the main crafts section.

Sources

• National Fire Protection Association. Safety with Candles.