Martinmas Lanterns

The amazing and talented AussieAnnie has been sharing some ideas for Martinmas lanterns so I thought I would share ours for anyone looking for a quick, last minute idea. We used colorful gift bags (.59 cents each), some ribbon from the ribbon box, a hole puncher and a few sheets of clear vellum paper (which you can buy individually in the scrapbooking section of any craft store if you don't need a whole pack). Electric tea lights are the only option for these lanterns. Don't even think about real candles!I printed images of St. Martin on the vellum for the boys but the girls wanted to color their own so I printed a copy of my St. Martin coloring page in a smaller size also on vellum for them to color in later. Then I cut a hole in both sides of the bag using a craft knife and punched two holes in the top for the ribbon tie.I taped the pictures on the inside and placed two electric tea lights in the bag before tying the ribbon. The girls will probably want to decorate the outside of the bag, but I imagine the boys will keep theirs simple.Our traditional horseshoe cookies will be perfect for H week this week. Bigboy is feeling much better and the germs haven't spread to the big kids yet. Hooray for small miracles!