Story and Photos by Kate Burke
Summer nights mean staying out late, bonfires in the backyard, and getting together with friends to savor the heat that is sure to disappear come fall. Lighting is a great way to set summer mood, but ditch those electric lights and bust out more eco-friendly candles to brighten the night. These simple and cheap Moroccan-inspired miniature lanterns should do the trick.
Estimated cost: About $15 dollars (for multiple candles)
Time to complete: About 45 minutes
You will need:
• Glass paint (found at any craft store for 5 dollars or less) in turquoise and magenta
• 3 Baby food jars (any grocery store will have these – only 50 cents each!)
• Gold wire (found at any craft or hardware store for about 2 dollars)
• Pliers
• Gold paint pen or gold puff paint (I prefer the look of puff paint, but I already had the pen, so I used that here)
• Paintbrush
• 3 tea lights
Get started!
1. Soak the baby food jars in hot water and remove the labels. Make sure that all the sticky white glue comes off.
2. Paint the inside of your jar with the glass paint. Allow the inside to dry while you paint the remaining jars. The tops of the jars are difficult to paint, but don’t worry about leaving them bare- they will be covered in the next step.
3. Use the gold puff paint or pen to outline the top and bottom of your jars. Then, create any design in the middle. You can make these jars as simple or as detailed as you please.
4. Put one tea light in each jar.
5. Cut one wire strip for each jar that is about 6 inches long. With the pliers, bend the ends of the wire up so a little loop is created at each end.
6. Slightly bend the wire in half so that it fits inside the top of the jar. Then, let it expand so that it catches the sides of the jar and becomes a handle.
7. Light with a match and enjoy the glow!

Gallery • 3 Photos

Delightful DIY: Baby Food Jar Lanterns