Can I sleep yet?

I’ve spent the last couple days working on getting everything ready for my niece’s birthday party that we are hosting this Saturday. Nothing like a last minute decision to throw a birthday party. And you know I can't just get by with the basics or make a run to the party store to get supplies. Nope I have to jump in head first and decide to make everything. Did I mention I was tired? It will be worth it tomorrow though.

We had to take a brief break today from all the sewing (I thought my head was going to explode) and we made some paper lanterns for decorations. They really are cute and took no time at all to make. It was nice to do a little crafting together and just relax.

First pick out the colored paper you want to use. The paper I used is a lightweight cardstock which I thought would help them stand up to a bit more wear and tear. It would work great with construction paper too. Just fold your paper in half lenthwise. (or hot dog style if you were taught that way) Make sure you get a good crease.


I used my Fiskars Paper Trimmer to cut the slits in mine. You could use scissors too but I just love this little thing because I can not cut a straight line. Plus the ruler helped me keep my cuts approximately the same distance from the edge. I cut mine leaving about one inch on the top and bottom to make sure they wouldn't tear.


After you are finished your paper should look something like this. As you can see we aren't stuck on perfection around here and our cuts are not evenly spaced. It still looks fine in the finished product.

Then you just glue the ends together. You could use tape or staples too. I just used an Elmer's glue stick since that's what we had on hand.

Now you just need to make a dozen or so more and decorate your house with them. I plan on placing some in the window sill and then hanging some from either the ceiling or the ceiling fan.