Summer nights make me think of crickets, warm breezes, sleeping with the window open, and of course catching fireflies. One of the things I look forward to come summertime, is spending time with my kids. They’re growing up so quickly. I share lots of memories from when I was a little girls with them and catching fireflies was one of them. Sadly, I’ve been wondering why we don’t have as many  fireflies as when I was little, so we changed things up. This past week, I worked with my daughter on creating this firefly lantern from a mason jar and clearance miniature LED lights that I picked up on clearance from the after Christmas sales at one of our local crafting stores. Here’s what we did.

I wanted to mimic the flight of the each delightful firefly. So I created tiny little fireflies complete with their own wings and colorful glow. The way the strand looks when it is placed inside the jar seems to bring the fireflies to life. Grassy details were added to the base so the fireflies appear to be dancing in a field.

Having an extra set of hands was very useful in creating each little firefly. Here is a closer peek at how each one turned out on the strand. Aren’t they so cute?! The trick was to use a hairdryer to speed up their drying time.

This little lantern has attended backyard BBQs, evening gatherings, sleepovers but mostly spends its nights on my daughter’s nightstand. It’s quickly become her favorite way to drift off to sleep. The best part is when I turn off the string of LED lights for the night, the lantern continues to glow thanks to glow-in- the dark paint.  For the complete step-by-step tutorial, please visit my post on DIY Network.

For more fun and boredom busters, take a peek at all of my family crafts.