This post was sponsored by WaterWipes as part of an Ambassador Program for Influence Central and all opinions expressed in my post are my own. I received complimentary products to facilitate my review.”
![Fall Craft: Mason Jar Luminaries #WaterWipesMom #IC [ad]](https://i2.wp.com/aisforadelaide.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/Mason-Jar-luminaries-water-wipes-mom.png?resize=735%2C1102&ssl=1)
I’m pretty sure I live in New England for the Fall. While I’m not head-over-heels for the hours I spend raking leaves, the colors, crisp air and chilly nights that I get to spend by the fire truly warm my spirit. To get the girls into the season- and have some girl time- I invited a few of my closest mama-friends over for a little mason jar craft party!
![Fall Craft: Mason Jar Luminaries #WaterWipesMom #IC [ad]](https://i2.wp.com/aisforadelaide.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/mason-jar-laminaries.png?resize=800%2C1200&ssl=1)
Fall is my season to whip out candles and give each room a bit of ambiance, versus a whole flood of light, as the days get shorter. What I NEVER do, is light a candle and walk away, so I started looking into how I could give my mantle some love, sans flame, and came up with some fall luminaries made from mason jars. They are lit from inside with battery operated tea lights, so while they’re pretty, they’re also not a danger!
Fall Luminaries Craft for Kids
![Fall Craft: Mason Jar Luminaries #WaterWipesMom #IC [ad]](https://i2.wp.com/aisforadelaide.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/MASON-JAR.png?resize=800%2C1200&ssl=1)
Materials:
- Mason jars, we used Ball 16 oz canning jars
- Mod Podge
- 1″ sponge applicator (get the least expensive ones you can!)
- Fall colored tissue paper, ripped into pieces
- Brown construction paper, cut into the shape of a tree, about 1″ shorter than the jar you’re using
- Battery operated tea light
Preparing
![Fall Craft: Mason Jar Luminaries #WaterWipesMom #IC [ad]](https://i0.wp.com/aisforadelaide.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/water-wipes-mom-Mason-Jar-Luminaries.png?resize=940%2C788&ssl=1)
- To get your home ready, cover a table in newspaper and masking tape it down! This will prevent any Mod Podge from sticking to it permanently!
- Set up each child’s “station”, if you will. Add a jar, sponge, tree cut out, and pack of WaterWipes.
- To avoid reaching, place two large bowls of tissue paper at either end, as well as disposable trays for the Mod Podge. This
canwill get messy, so anything you can just scoop up and toss will make your life easier. - Lay out some of your old t-shirts, or aprons as smocks. While your friends love coming over and making a mess of your house, they don’t want their kids to end up looking like your playroom. Help a mama out!
- Have some step stools on hand for kids that can’t reach the table. I have found that giving kids chairs to sit in during crafts turns into musical chairs/Ninja Warrior, with tripping and falling and, inevitably, someone not having a seat. I avoid this by having everyone stand!
- Have your set up in one place, and bring a trashcan close! If you set up in a place that kids can get to before you’re ready- station a parent to keep watch! Keep all of your supplies close at hand!
- Lastly, lay out cardboard (we used a broken down delivery box) on your counter as a space for the luminaries to dry. Place a permanent marker up there so parents can write their children’s names down by the jar and not have to remember which one they made.
Got it all ready? Let’s get to crafting!
How to:
![Fall Craft: Mason Jar Luminaries #WaterWipesMom #IC [ad]](https://i0.wp.com/aisforadelaide.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/Mason-Jar-Luminaries-craft-project.png?resize=735%2C1102&ssl=1)
- Start by sponging one section of your mason jar at a time with Mod Podge. Our party goers wanted to take their time finding the perfect placement for their tissue paper, so going in sections is important to avoid crafting frustrations. Mod Podge dries pretty quickly!
- Place tissue paper over your Mod Podge sections as you go- a little overlap on the edges is OK!
- As your tiny crafters place their tissue paper, you may notice their hands getting more and more sticky. I recommend having a package of WaterWipes handy to keep their hands fairly clean. Gluey hands makes it hard to get the tissue paper to stick to the jar, and is another cause of crafting frustrations. WaterWipes are great because they are durable and effective without containing any of the harmful chemicals that may be found in other baby wipes, containing only two ingredients, 99.9% pure Irish water and 0.1% grapefruit seed extract. No pieces of paper towel stuck on your hands as you go along making your luminaries.
- Once your mason jar is covered in tissue paper, use some brown construction paper and cut out the shape of a tree and attach it to your jar, anywhere you want!
- Using very gentle strokes, put a top coat of Mod Podge all over your mason jar, covering the paper in the white film- don’t worry, it will dry clear. Any air bubbles that pop up, use your fingers to tap them down. This will keep the paper from shredding off and give it a nice glisten in the glow it provides!
- Wait for them to dry before popping your tea light in and placing the cap on!
![Fall Craft: Mason Jar Luminaries #WaterWipesMom #IC [ad]](https://i0.wp.com/aisforadelaide.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/aisforadelaide.com-fall-craft-project-waterwipesmom.png?resize=940%2C788&ssl=1)
Love this idea, and your step by step makes it so easy. Can’t wait to try this in my classroom this fall!!
Your kids are going to make the cutest crafts!!!
Awe how fun! I love mason jars! 🙂
These are really fun to make and so pretty all lit up!
What a great craft to do with the kids. I know that my kids would have a blast and it would be great to make them to light at night and see how they go. Thanks for sharing
So fun to see all lit up in the dark!
Such a super cute fall craft! I can see how it might get messy with little ones, but the finished product looks so great! I’m definitely going to try to make these luminaries myself!
I made one and it was SO relaxing for me! With the kids… it was more of an exercise in patience and laughter!
These are so pretty and would look great with a battery operated tea candle inside. I love that the color possibilities are also endless. Great craft idea!
We use the battery operated lights- they are perfect for a glow without the fire!
Kids would have a BLAST making these. I love the idea of doing them for fall too. It’s the perfect season to bring on the glow.
So true!
That is a wonderful idea. I always have mason jars laying around, so I think I’m going to try this with my girls. They love doing all kinds of crafts too.
They will LOVE this- they can choose lots of colors, too. Addie’s is all pink and purple tissue paper because those are her favorites right now! I love the individuality in them!
These are so cute. My kids and their friends would love to make them.
I hope you do! They’re a really sweet craft project!
What a great idea. Stella would make a ton of these. I love how you taped the paper down, clever.
It was AWESOME! I untapped it and rolled everything up into it- clean up was like 3 minutes!
This looks like so much fun. My kids love crafts like this.
Try it out! Super full fall craft!
Oh I am excited to do this with my kiddo! We LOVE crafts like this! Easy and fun and does something! SO cool!
I want to see how they turn out!!!
This is the cutest craft. I’m going to do this with my kids. I think it would be a fun fall project or even something similar for the holidays.
For sure! I want to do blue tissue paper with a snowflake for winter!!
I’m so excited Fall is on the way. Making these mason jar luminaries seems like a fun way to start the season!
So fun!
i simply love mason jars. they are perfect to get really creative with.
They really are!
These look so good. I am excited to try making these with the kids this weekend. I will have to grab some supplies this week.
Awesome!! YOu will definitely enjoy it! Don’t forget to grab a pack of WaterWipes for easy clean up!
Awesome!! YOu will definitely enjoy it! Don’t forget to grab a pack of WaterWipes for an easy clean up!
I totally love this idea. My 6 year old would most likely have a blast making a few this fall. And, I bet those WaterWipes are super handy for cleaning hands.
SO handy Without them I swear it would have been a whole different ball game!
It looks like you all had such a wonderful time. I so miss being with my nieces and nephews – I used to do crafts like this with them all the time. I love how they look in the one photo with the soft light from within.
Awww- I love crafting with all the kids. So fun to watch them imagine and then do!