DIY Rusic Wood Lantern

by Pinspired to DIY

1 Material

In the months prior to Christmas, as I was searching for DIY Christmas gift ideas, I saw several pins on Pinterest (of course!) displaying DIY wood lanterns that different DIYers had created. I liked the ones I saw, but wanted a lantern that was a little "beefier". So, I decided to create my own.

Here are the abbreviated instructions for building the lantern. For full instructions and pictures, please visit my blog at the link at the botto of this post.

You only need three boards to build this: a 1x10 board, a 2x2 board, and a 1x2 board.

First, using a miter saw, cut the 1x10 board into the proper size square boards.

Next, cut four 2x2 boards to create the lantern sides.

Using wood glue and wood screws (predrill the holes first), attach the four 2x2 side boards to each corner of the smaller square boards.

Next, add wood glue to one side of each of the large square boards.

Now attach the larger square boards to the smaller square boards using the wood glue and brad nails.

Next, cut the four 2x2 boards to create the feet. Then, using wood glue and brad nails, attach the feet to the bottom large square board.

Now, cut eight 2x2 boards to to length and secure these between the top and bottom of each of the long 2x2 boards with wood glue and brad nails.

Next cut the 1x2 boards to create the lantern top and attach these to the top of the top board using wood glue and brad nails. Then sand the lanterns and stain.

Drill two small holes in opposite sides of two of the top boards and insert then ends of 16 gauge wire into each hole. Bend the wire ends to secure.

Add a (flameless) candle, and ta-da! You now have a rustic, yet classy wood lantern!