Tin lanterns are not only extremely easy and kid friendly, but you can make them under $5. Better yet, you can make them with items from around the house! Lanterns work great as garden decor, centerpieces and gifts! Take a look at this quick tutorial to see how you can add a little light to your life:

Step 1:

Gather your supplies! These tin lanterns can easily be made with items around the house, although it isn’t all that expensive either:

Hammer

Towel

Marker

Nail or screw

Tin can or tin bucket

Candle or LED light

Water

Many folks reuse their soup cans for this project, but we decided to use some inexpensive tin buckets from the dollar section at Target! Whichever you decide, fill with water and freeze. Freezing is essential! The ice helps tremendously when trying to poke your holes later.

Step 2:

After the water has frozen, lay the tin on a towel and wipe clean. The tin may create a thin layer of frost on the outside, which you want to dry as much as possible.

Step 3:

Using a marker, draw your design on the tin. We just did polka dots, but make sure you outline your design with dots, like a dotted line. I would avoid a permanent marker, in case you make a mistake – a dry erase marker works great!

Step 4:

Grab your nail and line up with dots. With the tin laying on its side, hammer nail into tin. I found that 3 good taps made a small hole, and 5 good taps made a larger hole – depending on what look you’re going for. We did a mix of both!

Step 5:

Wipe clean again to erase any remaining marker residue.

Repeat steps 3 thru 5 with other side of the tin!

You’ll probably have some ice chipping off and flying around throughout the process, but I promise it is well worth it!

Step 6:

Place a candle or LED light in the base of the tin and light it up!

Voila! You now have a super cool, inexpensive – if not free – DIY lantern!