The idea of lanterns for Halloween has long been a popular one. After all, Halloween is spookier at night! When we saw this kit by Westrim Crafts/Creativity Inc in the craft store, we knew we had to give it a try! These kits are inexpensive and can be found in various appealing Halloween charactures. For us, the spider was an easy choice because it seemed so clever and would be a welcomed addition among a group of bright orange pumpkins.
Everything you need to make the spider as shown, except scissors, ruler, and glue (we highly recommend a fast setting Tacky-type glue) is included in the kit. Although the very first step of setting up the lantern is missing, it is easy to gently pull the lantern from both ends and gently slide the metal brace inside, fitting it into the grooved slots. Take care since the lantern is made of paper and you don't want to damage it. Since the top part of the lantern has a hook (for hanging) attached to it, you won't be able to confuse top/bottom of your project.
From here on out, the instructions are complete. Follow the lettered instructions (A-E) in order. We found it easy to glue the pieces with the exception of the chenille legs: the first time we glued the legs, we followed the instructions by glueing the pompon feet in place, then glueing the leg to the body. The weight of the pompons seemed to pull the legs off of the body, and since the lantern is made of paper, you can not saturate it with glue. The second time we made the lantern, we put the feet on afterwards, which worked better for us. We also let the glue dry somewhat before we attached it to the body. We then let one leg dry before continuing to the next leg, and so forth. After the legs were in place and dry we knew we were home-free.
We liked this little spider kit so much that we decided to make another one, a little more "jazzed-up" with craft supplies we had on hand! We follwed what we had learned from the first try and started, this time, by glueing on the legs first, getting the hard part out of the way! We decided since the jingle bells, that were to replace the black pompons were much too heavy to be attached first, would be added after the chenille legs were good and dry! Here is what else we did: replaced the black paper pupils with wiggle eyes in two different sizes; added stiff purple glitter felt behind the eyes and mouth; fit a red sparkle chenille around the teeth; cut two white foam fangs and glued them over two teeth; replaced the black chenille stems with purple sparkle chenille stems; replaced black pompons with 20mm purple jingle bells; added a V-shape purple sparkle chenille stem for eyebrows; glued sparkly foam spiders (with a small sparkle pompon glued to the abdomen) on the top and bottom of the lantern. We finished our "jazzed up" version by painting the cardboard band (on the inside of the lantern) black. We plan on placing a battery operated tea-lite inside on Halloween night!
With a little time and patience, you can easily make a few spider lanterns in time to enjoy for Halloween! And don't be afraid to "jazz up" your own!
This is our first spider. As you can see, he turned out pretty nice--quite like the photo on the box!
This our "jazzed up" spider. He looks a tad bit meaner--but just as fun to make!
Here are both spiders ready for Halloween fun!
