DIY: Fall Leaf Lanterns

Hey everyone!

Happy fall! Since it is in full swing now, I wanted to share a project I worked on this week: DIY fall leaf lanterns! They're so adorable, easy to make, and you can live in Florida and do them ;) I am obsesesd with fall time: from the outfits to the yummy treats to the smell of pumpkin spice (white girl right here), it is my favorite season! So try these out and tell me what you think of mine!

Here's what you need:

Mason Jars- $10-15 for a pack of 12

Mod Podge (small bottle)- $2-3

Fake (or real) Autumn Leaves- $2 on clearance at craft store

A couple heavy books- around the house

A paint brush- $1-2

Rubber bands-$1

Fall scented tea light candles-$5 for 12

I bought fake leaves from Michaels (since I live in Florida), but I removed them from the fake branches and put them flat in a book with other heavy books on top of them for 24 hours. After your leaves have been semi-flattened: you're ready to start! If you're using real leaves, put newspaper between the book pages so the moisture doesn't ruin the text. Next, take off the lids on the Mason Jars. You can make as many as you want, you just have to have the right number of leaves. Cover the entire base of the Mason Jar with Mod Podge and the back of the leaves. TIP: Paint and paste one leaf at a time, the Mod Podge dries pretty quickly. After that, you'll stick as many leaves in whatever pattern on the jar and apply rubber bands to areas where you think might pop up or not stick well. I used about 4-5 rubber bands on each jar, and make sure they're pretty tight. 

Let the jars dry for about four-six hours, turning on a fan can speed up the process. You will know when they're dry when the glue isn't showing on the outside of the jar anymore. Touch the jar to make sure it's dry, and remove the rubber bands carefully! You can see some reside from the glue when you take off the rubber bands, but when you light the candles you can't tell. Last, put the tea lights in the jar, and light the candles! Wah-lah: gorgeous falltime lanterns! I LOVE how mine came out! I was a little weary at first, because the leaves are fake, but with the pumpkin spice tea light glowing and the fall aroma in the air, I couldn't love them more: and they won't brown with time, so they'll be good for years to come!

So that's it! My latest DIY project. What do you think? Have you ever made fall lanterns? If you have, share some tips that you found helpful. If not, try it out! It was a pretty inexpensive project that had great results, and would make a great gift! I only made five, but I totally have enough supplies to make five more easily.

Thanks for reading,

-Olivia :)